Seoul Guide
After cleansing and toning, soak a cotton pad with the essence and wipe along the skin’s texture. Let the essence fully absorb into the skin before continuing with the rest of the skin routine, use at night for best results.
If using during the day, remember to wear SPF. Sensitive skins should take care not to use this product too much, start with 1-2 times a week and adjust frequency according to skin’s reaction. It is not recommended for this product to be used in conjunction with other exfoliants (AHA, BHA, retinols, vitamin C etc.)
It is suggested to use COSRX’s chemical exfoliators with a cotton pad for maximum results.
Please not that initial use of the product may give temporary irritation to the skin. To minimise this, begin with using the product once a week, and after the skin has adapted to it, increase the usage up to 2 to 3 times a week. It is not recommended for everyday use.
Why we like it
The 0.9% betaine salicylate reaches deep into the skin to remove impurities and refine skin texture. This product can be used both as an exfoliator and an essence.
Ingredients we love
Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Water – Softens dead skin to allow them to fall off. This ingredient is used for fighting acne. .
Ingredient List – Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Water, Butylene Glycol, Betaine, Niacinamide, Betaine Salicylate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Panthenol, Xanthan Gum, Ethyl Hexanediol
Marc B (verified owner) –
Gentle but gets the job done, great for those pesky nose blackheads and spreadable enough to be used on your back even. Use it every. 2nd or 3rd use as it can pack a punch. Great as an acne essence step.
marisune.gouws –
This is honestly one of the best chemical exfoliators I have ever used. I’m so impressed! I had a lot of acne and bumps on my forehead and this cleared it within three uses. It’s also very gentle (the first use I got red and hot in the face, but every use after that was just fine). I highly recommend this product!
leightonjames89 –
Excellent chemical exfoliator, worth the hype gentle enough to be used everyday, you will see instant results, avoid using this during the day for some reason it can cause more redness and sensitivity owing to the actives present in the formula.
aaminakhanzn (verified owner) –
Obsessed! In just a few days my sebaceous filaments on my nose as well as blackheads on cheek have reduced drastically
leeannedeonarain (verified owner) –
This has become one of my holy grail products. Initially I did purge a bit but that is the product working deep within the skin to remove all the gunk. It has shrunken my pores and gives my skin a beautiful glow.
Sarah Place (verified owner) –
Great product for blackheads on the nose!
Aaliyah (verified owner) –
It’s okay. I have really stubborn blackheads and it’s still there. I use this every second day. It did clear up my skin a little.
Demitri (verified owner) –
I really love this product! It doesn’t smell of anything and has a waterlike consistency. It clears up my skin so quickly. I use it after cleansing in the evening, three to four times a week. I would definitely repurchase
JOANNE –
So gentle. Non iritating. It has helped the texture of my skin a lot. My skin is much smoother. Helps with keeping acne at bay.
cathlee25 (verified owner) –
What an incredible and effective product! Been using it for three weeks now, twice a week. It’s smoothened and cleared up a lot of my blackheads, whiteheads and pimples. Very gentle on the skin too. I’d suggest applying with your fingertips rather than a cotton pad as it save more product.
deveneysmith (verified owner) –
Really gentle on the skin and leaves a dewy complexion after usage.
CC (verified owner) –
I have waited a while before reviewing to properly judge the efficacy of this product, and I’m blown away! My skin is used to exfoliants, so I use the product 3 times a week (do so with caution, over exfoliating can lead to dry skin), and I’ve seen a noticeable difference after one week’s use. My skin is smoother, I have less blackheads, and my pores are much smaller. As a result, my skin looks much more healthy.
daneelmarshall (verified owner) –
I use this twice a week and I love it. It is gentle yet affective.
c.rohan –
If I could only have one K-beauty product for the rest of my life, it would be this one. As someone with some intense break-outs of the cystic kind, nothing aids them as this does. Before, what used to be an unsightly nodule for weeks, sometimes months, is now gone in days. I don’t pick at, or extract pimples for the fear of scaring, but with this, I don’t have to. (pls, touch wood for me, this can’t stop working, I’m very vain, I’ll cry.)
Jurgen Maletzky (verified owner) –
My review is overdue. I started using this product in 2020, and have been repurchasing frequently. I struggled with really bad acne since my teen years well into my 20s, and was very insecure about it, but my acne has gone away ever since I regularly started using this product. My acne scars have healed too. So if you are one of those young people desperately looking for a life changing affordable product , after trying all sorts of products that failed, I promise you this is the one you’ve been looking for.
michielubbe (verified owner) –
I know you should only use this product every 2-3 days but I’ve found it gently enough to use daily!
It’s great at drawing out acne spots and keeping my cystic acne under control! My skin is too sensitive for physical exfoliants so this is the perfect product for me 🙂
lizmarie.basson (verified owner) –
This seemed too good to be true, but I purchased it to give it a go and I am taken aback by the results. Four uses and the cystic acne on my chin that has been with me my whole life is basically gone and the same with the blackheads on my nose. The rest of my face is clearing out a bit slower, but I can see the difference
zitaharilall (verified owner) –
I use this exfoliant 2 – 3x a week (typically every second day, but will swap out the third use of the week for the NeoGen exfoliant pads) and use a hyaluronic acid and then the COSRX oil-free moisturizer thereafter. The small blackheads around my nose and cheek area have definitely decreased and I have started to see a slight decrease in the size of the pores on my cheek area. My skin is also generally a lot less oilier before incorporating the COSRX products into my routine. I also use this product to spot treat any emerging pimples which prevent them from becoming whiteheads.
Lex.a (verified owner) –
its okay not life changing
Christie (verified owner) –
This product really works and does what it says! I used it once so far, it was non irritating and moisturizing. Gentle but effective, my pores were noticebly cleaner after one use.