5 Face Masks You Must Try If You Have Oily Skin

Oily skin is both a blessing and a curse. On the positive side, it helps keep your skin smooth and looking young for years. On the negative side, oily skin makes you look shiny and greasy, causes breakouts, can enlarge your pores, and quickly ruin your makeup.

Oily skin can be caused by various things. Some of the top causes are

• Genetics: If your parents have oily skin chances are you’ll inherit it.
• Hormones: Pregnancy, puberty, and stress can cause hormone imbalances that contribute to oil production.
• Diet: Having an unhealthy diet that is full of foods high in fats, salt, sugar, and caffeine can cause your skin to produce oil.
• Skincare and makeup products: Using products on your face that irritate your skin, or even dry it out can cause your oil glands to go into overdrive and produce excess oil.

Related read: 6 Ways To Help Foundation Last Longer On Oily Skin

(This post includes affiliate links for which I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you should you make a purchase.)

I’ve been battling with oily skin for years, trying to find ways to make it less noticeable and work around it. Over the years I've used various products on my oily skin and adjusted my skincare routine more times than I can count all to try and lessen the oil production in my skin. While that has been annoying on the positive side, I've found that facial masks are a great way to minimize the amount of oil my skin produces.

Good facial masks can help lessen oily skin by absorbing or removing surface oil. As well as increasing the moisture and hydration levels of the skin lessening the skin's need to produce extra oil.

The best facial masks for oily skin 

• Have activated charcoal, mud, or clay as a key ingredient which helps to draw out impurities or deep clean the pores
• Use pure and natural ingredients that won't dry out the skin or clog the pores
• May also have ingredients like salicylic, glycolic, or lactic acids that exfoliate the skin

Here are five facial masks that include one or more of those attributes making them helpful for those of us with oily skin.

1. Formula 10.0.6 Pores Be Pure Skin-Clarifying Mud Mask

To help address the excess oil my skin produces,  enlarged pores, and pimple breakouts, I decided to focus on keeping my pores clean and clear. To help achieve that I knew I needed more than just a facial cleanser. So I searched for additional skincare products and this mud mask from Pores Be Pure seemed to fit the bill. 

The Pores Be Pure Mud Mask contains both Kaolin and Bentonite clays which help its claim to remove dirt and oil from clogged pores. It contains ingredients like strawberry and rosemary extracts which eliminate impurities from the skin and yarrow which helps to clarify skin.

I've been able to find this mask at Amazon and Target.

2. Proactiv Skin Purifying Acne Face Mask

This one is a sulfur clay mask but also includes kaolin clay. These clays help to draw out impurities that are clogging the pores. Clogged pores can result in breakouts and increased oil production. 

While this mask can help with oily skin since it's from Proactiv its key focus is clearing up acne and preventing new breakouts. This facial mask also deep cleans the skin helping to shrink the appearance of pores. It also has vitamin F complex to help the skin retain moisture.

This mask can be found at Amazon and Target.

3. The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Clarifying Masque

I like the brand The Ordinary so I decided to add The Ordinary's Salicylic Acid 2% Clarifying Masque to this list. The facial mask includes clay and vegetable charcoal to remove impurities from the skin. It also contains 2% salicylic acid. 

This mask claims to create a smooth and clear complexion while leaving the skin feeling refreshed.

The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Clarifying Masque can be purchased at Sephora, Target, Ulta, and directly from The Ordinary.

4. Clinique Acne Solutions Oil-Control Cleansing Mask

If you're looking for a facial mask that is on the higher end of the price point spectrum, take a look at Clinique. It's a popular skincare brand.

This kaolin clay mask has salicylic acid and claims to go deep to clean and unclog pores and rid the skin of excess oil. 

This mask can be purchased at Macy's, Sephora, and Target.

5. Murad Acne Control Clarifying Mask

If you’re looking for a mask without sulfates this one is a good option. I used this mask back when I was having adult acne issues.

This is a clay-based mask that helps to clear up acne and keep the skin clear. It also absorbs dirt and oil to reduce facial shine.

You can purchase this mask at Amazon, Kohl's, Sephora, and directly from Murad.

Tip

Before using any face mask, I always test it out on a small patch of skin to ensure it doesn’t have a negative effect and ends up irritating my skin.

Do you have any face masks you recommend for oily skin? If so, share in the comments below.