Good cleansers for acne-prone skin?

[NatashaR23]

I'm looking for a new cleanser to try for acne-prone skin. I'm running out of my current favorite, Origins Zero Oil™ Deep Pore Cleanser , and want to try something new. This works fine but I still have a problem with oiliness and am hoping to find something that works better. I have pretty sensitive, acne-prone skin. I don't have a huge problem with acne currently, but I'll get breakouts if I use a product that doesn't agree with my skin. I'm just really trying to tackle the oiliness problem right now, without drying my skin out too much. I came across The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser 5 oz / 150 ml which seems like it might work well. Any other ideas?

[WinglessOne]

@NatashaR23  Just to make sure I understand your full skincare routine, is this everything you currently use on your face? 

1. Wash with Origins Zero Oil Deep Pore Cleanser. 
2. Treat (occasionally) with The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% serum. 
3. Moisturize with Origins Clear Improvement Pore Clearing Moisturizer. 

Also: do you notice your skin feels kinda dry beneath the oil it produces? Do you have any dry patches where you're oily—maybe places where your skin looks/feels flaky or scaly? If yes: 

Spoiler

Sometimes skin will overproduce oil to try to fix dehydration. If your skin seems dry beneath the oil, you may want to cut back on the BHA cleanser: use it just 1-3 times a week, and use a non-BHA cleanser the rest of the week. I have mostly-dry combo skin with an oil slick in the middle of my face, and my favorite cleansers are made by Paula's Choice: they have a wide variety of skincare products for different skin types. I'm sure folks with oily skin can offer up more suggestions. 🙂 In fact, your skin might do well with something like Youth To The People Superfood Gentle Antioxidant Refillable Cleanser or even a CeraVe cleanser. 

Also, consider adding a hydrating serum to your routine, or switch from that Origins moisturizer to one that contains better hydrating ingredients. The Origins moisturizer does contain dimethicone as an occlusive ingredient to help seal in moisture, and there's some oat extract and hyaluronic acid for hydration. But it's also loaded with witch hazel, an ingredient that can cause excessive dryness with repeat usage. A better moisturizer might be First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Oil-Control Moisturizer 1.7 oz/ 50 mL or something along those lines. 

My favorite hydrating serum is The Ordinary "Buffet" 1 oz/ 30 mL for its hyaluronic acid and peptides content. The Ordinary and The Inkey List also make standalone hyaluronic acid serums. Again, whether or not you even need a separate hydrating serum depends on your skin's condition. But at the very least, consider changing to a different moisturizer. 

I've never used The Inkey List's BHA cleanser but I've recommended it to a few folks because the ingredients list looks solid. The BHA cleanser I do occasionally use is Paula's Choice CLEAR Pore Normalizing Cleanser. 

And please add a sunscreen to your routine! The only time you don't need daytime sunscreen is when you plan to stay completely out of the sun (indoors, away from windows with open blinds/curtains). You'll want a sunscreen with minimum SPF of 30, applied each day your skin's exposed to sunlight, regardless of weather or season. A popular chemical sunscreen option is Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen Invisible Broad Spectrum SPF 40 PA +++ 1.7 oz/ 50 mL which I occasionally use. I gravitate more toward physical/mineral sunscreens like Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Sheer Mineral Sun Spray SPF 50 4 oz , but I rotate through several different sunscreens. 

[quspork]

What other products are you currently using, @NatashaR23? Unless your skin is very sensitive to leave-on treatments, I'd actually recommend switching to a gentle daily cleanser and then using a BHA/salicylic acid treatment 3 or 4 times a week. Part of the problem with treatment cleasners is that they can be stripping and dry out your skin causing it to overproduce oil which in turn leads to even more oilness. So cutting back on that and focusing on hydrating cleansers might help. 

[NatashaR23]

Hi @quspork , do any specific products come to mind, especially for the treatment? I also currently use the Origins Clear Improvement™ Pore Clearing Moisturizer with Salicylic Acid 1.7 oz/ 50mL mostly. That's pretty much it for daily use but I also use The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% Oil Control Serum  occasionally. 

[quspork]

So no moisturizer or sunscreen, @NatashaR23? Those are important parts of a daily routine, moisturizer especially as it helps balance out oily skin. For a good BHA serum though, there are lots of options. Two of the most popular are Paula's Choice BHA (I believe there are different strengths offered) and CosRx's BHA Blackhead serum. The Inkey List also has an affordable BHA serum in their line up as well. 

ETA: Sorry, I completely misread the product above and see that you do have a moisturizer, but since it's a treatment moisturizer I'd recommend switching to something gentler and more hydrating.