9 best dermatologist-backed and editor-tested acne body washes of 2025

Body acne is simply a peculiarly sadistic joke. It sneaks up connected you, shows up uninvited to nan beach, and makes you second-guess each vessel top. As personification who tests beauty products for a living, I’ve tried everything short of beatified water.

The champion assemblage wash for acne isn’t ever nan strongest, it’s nan 1 that tin termination germs without torching your moisture barrier. So I spent months testing formulas crossed my shoulders, back, chest, and yes, my butt. We consulted dermatologists, dug done objective studies, and pushed each 1 of these products done my over-sensitive, breakout-prone skin. Plus, Papri Sarkar, MD, Massachusetts-based board-certified dermatologist specializing successful cosmetic dermatology, hand-picked a fewer of our tried-and-true options for you to shop from below.

“You should usage a assemblage lavation for acne-prone tegument 1 to 2 times per time based connected need; manner affects this proposal specified arsenic really overmuch personification useful retired and nan usage of occlusive clothing,” Roberta Del Campo, MD, board-certified dermatologist, told nan New York Post. “Severity of nan acne and besides tegument type will besides play a role.”

Our squad of board-certified dermatologists outline what to cognize astir ingredients, usage and much successful our in-depth FAQ section connected assemblage washes for acne-prone skin. If you’re looking for nan champion acne assemblage lavation for men, women, delicate skin, aliases thing that won’t portion you down to ash, I’ve sewage you. Here are nan absolute champion options, based connected science, not TikTok.

Best overall: PanOxyl Acne Foaming Wash 10% Benzoyl Peroxide

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This is nan golden standard. Benzoyl peroxide has been clinically proven to trim acne-causing germs (C. acnes) and inflammation astatine concentrations arsenic debased arsenic 2.5%, though 10% is nan dermatologist-recommended spot for assemblage use. The creamy foam penetrates pores without harsh scrubbing, and it’s fragrance-free — perfect for sensitive, inflamed skin.

“This merchandise contains either 4 aliases 10% benzoyl peroxide and has a bully lather which is important to a batch of my patients,” Dr. Sarkar says. “It tin beryllium rather drying though truthful it’s not nan champion action for barren aliases delicate skin.”

I wasn’t prepared for really quickly this cleared up my shoulders. After years of flaky trial-and-error, PanOxyl worked for illustration it had a vendetta against my acne. It’s not a glamorous lavation — nary scent, nary artistic — but it performs for illustration it’s sewage thing to prove. My only warning? It bleaches thing it touches erstwhile bedewed aliases sweated through, including your towels and your partner’s hoodie. Still, worthy nan casualties. This is my go-to proposal erstwhile friends say, “Nothing works.”

Active ingredients: 10% Benzoyl Peroxide | Size: 5.5 oz | Best for: Moderate to terrible assemblage acne, peculiarly connected nan back

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Best value: Neutrogena Body Clear Acne Body Wash

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This budget-friendly look uses 2% salicylic acerb to unclog pores, trim oil, and mildly exfoliate nan tegument without tearing it apart. Unlike galore SA washes, this 1 lathers nicely and rinses clean.

If this had existed erstwhile I was a teenager, my precocious schoolhouse gym people mightiness not person been truthful traumatizing. It’s lightweight, doesn’t reek of chemicals, and it’s kept my breakouts from going afloat Armageddon. I utilized it regular for 2 weeks during a play of harder workouts and noticed less clogged pores astir my thorax and bra strap area. For little than $10, it’s giving objective results pinch drugstore prices — and honestly, that’s nan dream.

Active ingredients: 2% Salicylic Acid | Size: 8.5 oz | Best for: Daily attraction aliases mild breakouts

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Best moisturizing: Olay Super Serum Body Wash

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While not an progressive acne treatment, this serum-infused assemblage lavation profoundly hydrates pinch niacinamide, glycerin, and vitamin B3 complex, each of which support a healthier tegument barrier—essential if you’re utilizing acne actives for illustration benzoyl peroxide aliases salicylic acid. One recent study noted that maintaining tegument hydration improves some tolerability and adherence to acne regimens.

This is my nightly security policy. When I’ve overexfoliated aliases my tegument feels tight from back-to-back acne treatments, nan Olay Super Serum Body Wash brings maine backmost to baseline. It smells rich | and clean—like a 5-star hotel’s towel closet—and leaves my tegument noticeably softer without immoderate residue. While it won’t clear your breakouts, it will make your tegument consciousness for illustration it deserves to beryllium touched again. I rotate it successful connected off-days to springiness my tegument a break from nan difficult stuff.

Active ingredients: Niacinamide, Glycerin, Vitamin B3 Complex | Size: 20 oz | Best for: Rehydrating betwixt acne treatments, dryness-prone aliases sensitized skin

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Best exfoliating: Murad Acne Body Wash

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This is nan triple-threat: salicylic acid, glycolic acid, and day seed powder for beingness + chemic exfoliation. Glycolic acerb dissolves dormant tegument cells, helping different actives penetrate better.

“This formulation hits acne pinch aggregate ingredients to get it nether control,” Sarkar says. “It contains salicylic acerb and glycolic acerb and besides contains good day seed extracts for immoderate mechanical exfoliation.” Not to mention, she says this is awesome for those who don’t consciousness for illustration their assemblage lavation is moving unless it has a scrubbing component, arsenic is nan lawsuit pinch this formulation.

I usage this erstwhile I’m successful a “everything must beryllium fixed correct now” mood. The scent is spa-like, nan texture is luxe, and nan payoff is instant. After conscionable 1 use, my tegument looked smoother and felt softer. After a week, clogged pores astir my hips and butt started to shrink. It’s fierce successful nan champion measurement — don’t usage it regular unless you want your tegument begging for mercy, but erstwhile aliases doubly a week? Game-changer.

Active ingredients: 1% Salicylic Acid, Glycolic Acid, Date Seed Powder | Size: 8.5 oz | Best for: Congested skin, thickened bumps, post-workout acne

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Best for backmost acne: CeraVe SA Body Wash for Rough & Bumpy Skin

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CeraVe combines 3 cardinal ingredients — salicylic acid, ceramides, and niacinamide — for an approach that clears pores while repairing your barrier. It’s fragrance-free and dermatologist-developed, truthful it won’t irritate ample areas for illustration your backmost and shoulders.

“Although this assemblage lavation is marketed for keratosis pilaris (KP) aliases strawberry skin, it doubles nicely arsenic an acne wash,” Sarkar says. “The 2% salicylic acerb helps to forestall and dainty blackheads while ceramides thief to rehydrate skin.”

This 1 earns imperishable existent property successful my shower. When my precocious backmost flares up — usually from sweat, stress, aliases a constricting sports bra — I scope for this immediately. It’s for illustration pressing a reset fastener without triggering a caller activity of irritation. No fragrance intends it plays bully pinch my perfume, and nan lather is gentle but substantial. Plus, it helped pinch immoderate unsmooth KP patches connected my arms, truthful it’s pulling double duty.

Active ingredients: 2% Salicylic Acid, Niacinamide, Ceramides | Size: 10 oz | Best for: Back and enarthrosis acne, keratosis pilaris

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Best natural/organic: Burt’s Bees Natural Acne Solutions Body Wash

Amazon

Made pinch 99% earthy ingredients and 1% salicylic acerb derived from willow bark, a proven treatment for mild acne vulgaris, this is simply a gentle, plant-powered cleanser. Tea character lipid adds antibacterial effects, and nan look avoids sulfates and parabens.

I kept this 1 successful my partner’s ablution and ended up stealing it back. It smells for illustration a fancy greenish juice barroom and gives maine that post-yoga glow moreover erstwhile I haven’t worked retired successful days. I wouldn’t usage it arsenic a solo curen for superior flare-ups, but it’s cleanable for maintenance. If your tegument is reactive, aliases you’re conscionable trying to cleanable up your ingredients list, this 1 checks each crunchy-yet-effective box.

Active ingredients: 1% Salicylic Acid (Willow Bark) | Size: 12 oz | Best for: Holistic routines, delicate acne-prone skin

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Best for delicate skin: La Roche-Posay Lipikar Wash AP+ Gentle Foaming Moisturizing Wash

Amazon

Formulated for very barren to eczema-prone skin, this gentle foaming assemblage lavation is free of fragrance, sulfates, and parabens — but still gets in installments for helping pinch acne-adjacent issues for illustration post-inflammatory redness, dryness, and obstruction compromise. It contains niacinamide, shea butter, and La Roche-Posay’s prebiotic thermal water, which together calm inflammation and support patient tegument flora. While it doesn’t incorporate accepted acne actives, it’s perfect for those whose breakouts are triggered by over-cleansing aliases harsh scrubs. Dermatologists often urge this merchandise for obstruction repair and inflammation-prone skin.

When my skin’s successful afloat rebellion mode — red, dry, itchy, possibly breaking retired conscionable to beryllium a constituent — this is nan only point I tin scope for. It lathers lightly, rinses clean, and someway makes my tegument consciousness hydrated before I moreover use lotion. It’s not going to shrink a zit overnight, but it’s nan uncommon assemblage lavation that genuinely calms my tegument down. I usage it whenever I’ve overdone it pinch exfoliants aliases request to reset completely. This is nan training-wheels cleanser that your tegument really respects.

Active ingredients: Niacinamide, Shea Butter, Glycerin, Thermal Spring Water | Size: 13.52 oz | Best for: Sensitive, reactive tegument that still needs a heavy (but kind) clean

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Best for ingrown hairs and clogged pores: First Aid Beauty KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub pinch 10% AHA

Amazon

This powerhouse scrub uses a dual-action blend of beingness and chemic exfoliants to break down keratin buildup and slough distant dormant tegument cells — nan guidelines causes of some ingrown hairs and clogged pores. It combines 10% alpha hydroxy acids (glycolic + lactic acid) pinch pumice buffing beads to clear follicles and forestall hairsbreadth from getting trapped beneath nan skin. Glycolic acerb is clinically proven to accelerate compartment turnover and trim follicular occlusion. Plus, nan look is fragrance-free, non-sensitizing, and safe for usage connected nan bikini line, butt, and back.

It obliterates ingrown hairs connected my legs and bikini statement and softens clogged, bumpy patches connected my arms and shoulders. I usage it 2–3 times a week, focusing connected problem zones — particularly aft shaving aliases wearing tight gym clothes. The grainy texture is aggravated but satisfying, and nan AHAs do their point without leaving maine reddish aliases raw. It’s not marketed arsenic an acne wash, but if your breakouts thin much “clogged and textured” than inflamed, this is your silent assassin.

Active ingredients: 10% AHA (Glycolic Acid, Lactic Acid), Pumice | Size: 8 oz | Best for: Bikini line, booty, backmost of arms — anyplace rough, bumpy, aliases prone to ingrowns

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Best erstwhile thing other works: Vanicream Z-Bar Medicated Cleansing Bar

Amazon

This is not a wash, but a coagulated barroom cleanser containing 2% pyrithione zinc, which targets fungal acne (Malassezia folliculitis) and seborrheic dermatitis — 2 often-misdiagnosed causes of assemblage breakouts. The Vanicream marque is beloved by derms for being irritant-free: nary dyes, fragrances, lanolin, parabens, aliases formaldehyde.

This is nan “maybe it’s not acne” bar. When my breakouts weren’t responding to salicylic acerb aliases benzoyl peroxide, this cleared things up successful nether a week — particularly connected my thorax and precocious back. It’s benignant of boring, sure, but who cares? It works, doesn’t sting, and lasts everlastingly successful nan shower. And since it’s a bar, I tin recreation pinch it without leaking bluish goo each complete my toiletries. When I’m dealing pinch dermatitis aliases fungal acne and trying to discern my rumor from different acne types and these, this is what I scope for.

Active ingredients: 2% Pyrithione Zinc | Size: 3.36 oz | Best for: Fungal acne, ultra-sensitive aliases eczema-prone skin

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How we tested

We didn’t conscionable suds up erstwhile and telephone it a time — I put these acne assemblage washes done what I lovingly mention to arsenic my skin’s gladiator pit. Over nan people of 3 months, I rotated products play (or biweekly if results took longer to show), tracked flare-ups pinch obsessive notes, and made judge to isolate each look successful its ain testing window. Here’s what that looked like:

• Tried each lavation for astatine slightest 7 consecutive days, often longer, to gauge some short-term effects (e.g., reduced inflammation) and semipermanent shifts (e.g., little congestion, less breakouts).
• Paired each merchandise pinch a accordant routine: gentle, fragrance-free assemblage moisturizer; regular SPF connected exposed areas; and nary further progressive treatments to forestall interference.
• I took notes on:
  • Breakout activity: New pimples? Faster treatment time? Decrease successful deep, cystic ones?
  • Skin consciousness post-wash: Tightness, itchiness, residue, softness.
  • Fragrance and lather: Did it make my bath smell for illustration a laboratory aliases a spa?
  • Tolerability: Any irritation, redness, peeling, aliases burning?
• Cross-referenced pinch objective literature connected progressive constituent efficacy, including:
  • Benzoyl Peroxide & C. acnes eradication
  • Salicylic Acid exfoliation and pore penetration
  • Hydration and obstruction usability successful acne treatment

I’ve sewage operation tegument that’s some acne-prone and easy dehydrated (the skincare balanced of a play queen), truthful if these passed my test, they’ll astir apt walk yours too.

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An FAQ connected Body Washes for Acne-Prone Skin

Ahead, our squad of board-certified dermatologists explicate nan ins and outs of assemblage washes specifically formulated for acne-prone skin.

How to show if you person acne-prone skin, per dermatologists

First things first: How do I know if I person acne-prone skin? A communal misconception is that oily skin is synonymous pinch acne-prone skin, but they’re not 1 and nan same.

“By definition, to person acne-prone skin, you must person comedones (white heads and achromatic heads- blocked pores),” Dr. Del Campo tells The Post. “Those pinch acne-prone tegument thin to person inflammation successful nan skin, redness and imaginable tenderness associated pinch lesions. Those pinch ‘sensitive skin’ will besides announcement redness and aliases much reactive skin.”

However, if you don’t person comedones, you’re technically not branded arsenic having acne-prone skin.

“Acne-prone tegument fundamentally conscionable intends that your tegument is much apt to get acne than nan mean person’s,” Sarkar further explains. “For example, though coconut lipid is simply a good constitution remover for immoderate patients, for acne-prone patients, they are much apt to get acne successful consequence to utilizing that.”

Similarly, those pinch acne-prone tegument whitethorn beryllium much apt to get clogged pores, often person much oily tegument and mightiness respond pinch acne during stressful times. “Sensitive tegument is much reactive than nan mean person’s,” Sarkar adds. “A diligent pinch delicate tegument whitethorn respond pinch barren patches, redness, acne, hives aliases a rash to communal situations aliases products.”

Certainly, there’s overlap betwixt acne-prone and delicate skin. “Some patients respond pinch acne to galore triggers making their tegument much reactive aliases delicate than different patient’s,” she adds.

What to look for successful a assemblage lavation for acne-prone skin, per dermatologists

It’s important to statement that conscionable because a assemblage lavation says it’s awesome for acne connected its merchandise explanation doesn’t needfully mean it is. That said, shopping for a value assemblage lavation apt for acne-prone tegument requires a observant look astatine its constituent list.

Luckily, New York Post Shopping and our squad of dermatologists cautiously vetted nan fistful of champion products to shop from above. There are immoderate cardinal elements to support successful mind, though.

“Ingredients to combat bacteria-causing acne — specified arsenic benzoyl peroxide tin beryllium effective,” Del Campo shares. “I besides for illustration alpha and beta hydroxy acids specified arsenic salicylic acid aliases glycolic acerb to trim oiliness and exfoliate nan tegument to minimize nan consequence of blocked pores; blocked pore travel from trapped dirt, debris and oil.”

Keep successful mind that some glycolic and salicylic acerb are known to barren retired nan skin, truthful beryllium observant erstwhile utilizing successful excess — if you person barren and/or delicate skin, that is — and beryllium judge to travel up pinch a body lotion post-shower for much hydration.

Aside from benzoyl peroxide, different ingredients to look for erstwhile seeking retired an acne assemblage lavation are sodium hypochlorite and lactic acid. “In general, since nan tegument connected nan assemblage is little delicate and thicker than nan tegument connected nan face, assemblage acne washes often person higher concentrations of these ingredients than their facial lavation counterparts,” Sarkar notes,

What are nan benefits of utilizing a assemblage lavation for acne-prone skin?

Even nan champion assemblage lavation won’t clear acne overnight, but these formulations connection plentifulness of cleansing and skin-boosting benefits.

“The benefits of utilizing assemblage washes are that you tin easy use actives to your tegument (you’re naked already and each of your tegument is easy to lather up successful nan shower), you tin usage much irritating ingredients arsenic you’re applying them for a short while and past washing them disconnected and it’s easy to use to ample amounts of aboveground area astatine a time,” Sarkar lists. “Essentially it’s a twofer: you’re showering to cleanable your assemblage and, by utilizing an acne assemblage wash, you’re getting to cleanable your assemblage and dainty your acne astatine nan aforesaid time.”

How often should I usage a assemblage lavation connected my acne-prone skin?

Of course, usage depends connected really terrible your acne is, really delicate aliases reactive your tegument is and really often you shower.

“In general, unless your tegument is very sensitive, if you person assemblage acne that is bothering you, utilizing an acne assemblage lavation each different time is simply a bully bet, Sarkar recommends. “As pinch each skincare though, tailor your regular to your skin. If your tegument is irritated, usage little frequently. Similarly, if your tegument is handling your acne assemblage lavation without a hiccup, you mightiness beryllium capable to usage daily.”

Can I shave erstwhile utilizing a assemblage lavation for acne-prone skin?

According to Del Campo, shaving tin beryllium done instantly aft utilizing your favourite assemblage lavation for acne-prone skin.

“I urge shaving afterward arsenic germs and ungraded will beryllium wiped from nan tegument so, if microscopic openings from nan shaving are introduced to nan skin, nan germs will not participate nan skin,” she explains.  “It’s absorbing to statement that nan shaving process tin besides enactment arsenic a mechanical exfoliant.”

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