Heavy, oil-based products are the most likely to make blackheads worse. Thick liquid foundations, creamy moisturizers, and certain plant oils sit on the skin and trap sebum inside pores, creating the exact conditions blackheads need to form. But the full picture is more nuanced than just avoiding one product category.
How Blackheads Form in the First Place
A blackhead starts when skin cells inside a pore don’t shed the way they should. Normally, dead cells flake off and get carried out of the pore by sebum (the oil your skin naturally produces). When those cells become sticky and clump together instead, they form a plug. Sebum backs up behind that plug, and the exposed tip oxidizes and turns dark. That’s the “black” in blackhead.
Any product that contributes to either side of this equation, sticky cell buildup or excess oil trapped in the pore, can make blackheads worse. The technical term is “comedogenic,” meaning it promotes the formation of these plugs.
Heavy Foundations and Primers
Liquid and cream foundations are among the biggest offenders because they combine multiple pore-clogging factors. They contain emollients to create a smooth, blendable texture. They use silicones like dimethicone to fill in fine lines and create a “blurred” finish. And they stay on your face for 8 to 12 hours at a stretch, giving those ingredients extended contact time with your pores.
Several specific ingredients common in foundations are known to be comedogenic. Isopropyl palmitate, used in tinted moisturizers and creamy formulations, is a well-documented pore clogger. Certain red dyes used in blushes and tinted products, particularly D&C Red #27 and #40, rate high on comedogenicity scales. Bismuth oxychloride, a shiny metallic ingredient in mineral makeup, and talc, found in setting powders and pressed foundations, can also contribute to clogged pores.
Primers deserve special attention. They’re designed to create a film over your skin, which is essentially a barrier that can trap sebum underneath. Silicone-based primers are the most common type, and while not everyone reacts to them, they’re a frequent trigger for people already prone to blackheads.
Thick Creams and Occlusive Moisturizers
If your skin is oily or blackhead-prone, heavy cream moisturizers can make things worse. These products work by forming an occlusive layer that prevents water from evaporating out of your skin. That’s great for dry skin types, but on oily skin, that same seal traps sebum inside pores.
Petroleum-based products like Vaseline are a good example of how individual skin type matters. Pure petroleum jelly is an extremely effective moisturizer, and many people use it without issues. But for acne-prone skin, it can worsen blackheads and whiteheads by creating an airtight seal over pores that are already producing excess oil. Rich night creams with heavy plant butters (shea, cocoa) can have a similar effect. If you notice more blackheads after switching to a thicker moisturizer, the occlusive ingredients are the likely cause.
Coconut Oil and Other Plant Oils
Coconut oil has a reputation in some circles as a skin-clearing, acne-fighting ingredient. The research tells a different story. A study published in the International Journal of Contemporary Medical Research tested virgin coconut oil alongside several other oils on a standardized comedogenicity model and found it was just as comedogenic as the others. The researchers specifically noted that virgin coconut oil, “which is claimed to be non-comedogenic and is even advised as a treatment for acne,” produced comedones at rates comparable to mustard oil, mill-processed coconut oil, and paraffin.
Other plant oils commonly applied to the face, like wheat germ oil and flaxseed oil, also have high comedogenicity ratings. Not all oils are equal, though. Some lighter oils like jojoba and squalane tend to be better tolerated by acne-prone skin because their molecular structure more closely resembles human sebum. But if you’re actively dealing with blackheads, layering any oil over already-oily skin increases the risk of trapping debris in your pores.
Harsh Scrubs Can Backfire
This one is counterintuitive. Physical scrubs, the kind with crushed walnut shells, apricot pits, or sugar granules, seem like they should help by clearing dead skin out of pores. In reality, scrubs with jagged, irregular particles can create tiny tears in the skin’s surface. That damage triggers inflammation, which causes the skin to produce more oil and shed cells faster as part of the healing response. The result is more of exactly the raw materials that blackheads are made from.
Over-scrubbing also strips the skin’s protective barrier, which prompts your oil glands to compensate by ramping up sebum production. If you’re scrubbing your nose and chin daily to fight blackheads and they keep coming back, the scrub itself may be part of the cycle.
Why “Noncomedogenic” Labels Aren’t Reliable
You’ve probably seen “noncomedogenic” on product packaging and assumed it meant the product won’t clog pores. Unfortunately, that label has no standardized regulatory meaning. The original comedogenicity ratings were developed using a rabbit ear test, where ingredients were applied to rabbit ears and the resulting pore blockages were graded on a 0-to-3 scale. A 2025 review in JAAD Reviews found that ingredients identified as comedogenic in rabbits often don’t have the same effect on human skin.
The review also highlighted a fundamental flaw in how these ratings work: they test isolated ingredients, not finished products. The concentration of an ingredient, the way it interacts with other ingredients in a formula, and the overall formulation chemistry all change whether a product actually clogs your pores. A product containing a small percentage of a comedogenic ingredient in a well-formulated base might be perfectly fine, while a product full of “noncomedogenic” ingredients could still cause problems depending on how they combine. The most reliable test is your own skin over a few weeks of use.
Purging vs. a Real Problem
One important distinction: some products that increase skin cell turnover, like retinoids and chemical exfoliants containing alpha or beta hydroxy acids, can cause a temporary wave of blackheads and breakouts that looks alarming but is actually a sign the product is working. This is called purging. The product speeds up cell turnover, which pushes existing clogs to the surface faster than they would have appeared on their own.
There are three ways to tell purging apart from a genuine comedogenic reaction. First, location: purging shows up in areas where you normally get blackheads, while a bad product reaction can appear in new, random spots. Second, duration: purging typically resolves within four to six weeks as the backlog of clogged pores clears out. If new blackheads keep forming past six weeks, the product is likely making things worse. Third, the trigger ingredient: purging only happens with active ingredients that accelerate cell turnover. If a new moisturizer or foundation is giving you more blackheads, that’s not purging. That’s a product your skin doesn’t tolerate.
What to Look for Instead
For blackhead-prone skin, lighter product textures generally cause fewer problems. Gel-based or water-based moisturizers hydrate without forming a heavy occlusive layer. Mineral sunscreens with zinc oxide tend to be better tolerated than chemical sunscreens in a greasy base. For makeup, powder foundations and water-based liquid formulas are less likely to contribute to clogged pores than cream or stick foundations.
Pay attention to how your skin responds over two to three weeks when you introduce a new product. If blackheads increase in areas you don’t normally break out, or if they persist beyond six weeks, the product is likely contributing to the problem regardless of what the label says.