Murad Acne Spot Treatment

Murad

Where to buy Possibly in stock

About this product

The Murad Acne Spot Treatment is a treatment. Our analysis of its 26 ingredients (19 low-risk) rates it Excellent (87/100). Based on its ingredients, it looks well-suited to oily / acne-prone, dry, and sensitive skin.

Vegan-friendly Reef-safe

Summarised from our ingredient analysis — not brand marketing copy.

At a glance

Type
Treatments
Ingredients
26
Low-risk
19
Fragrance
Fragrance-free
Origin
United States

The evidence

Quick Product Notes

Paraben-Free Sulfate-Free Alcohol-Free Silicone-Free EU Allergen-Free Fungal Acne (Malassezia) Safe

Notable Effects & Ingredients

No Notable Effects & Ingredients

Ingredients Related to Skin Types

Good   Bad — tap a skin type to see which ingredients · estimated from ingredient functions
Dry Skin 7/7
Good for dry skin
Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract Glyceryl Stearate Dicaprylyl Maleate Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate Cetearyl Alcohol Glycerin Lecithin
Caution for dry skin
Glycerin Salicylic Acid Ceteareth-20 Sodium Hydroxide PEG-100 Stearate Zinc Acetate Lecithin
Oily/Acne-Prone Skin 4/0
Good for oily/acne-prone skin
Sulfur Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate Salicylic Acid Zinc Acetate
Sensitive Skin 6/4
Good for sensitive skin
Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate Glycerin Allantoin Zinc Acetate
Caution for sensitive skin
Glycerin Salicylic Acid Methylparaben Propylparaben

Ingredients list

26 total
Lower hazard (1) Higher hazard (7)
All26 Skin Conditioning15 Emollient5 Emulsifying4 Fragrance4 Emulsion Stabilising4 Skin Protecting4 Preservative4 Solvent3
EWG CIR Ingredient Name & Cosmetic Functions Notes
1
Sulfur
(Antiacne Agent, Antidandruff Agent, Hair Conditioning, Skin Conditioning Agent Miscellaneous, Antiseborrhoeic, Antistatic Agent, Skin Conditioning)
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Oily Skin
1
Water
(Solvent)
4
B
Glycolic Acid
(Exfoliant, Ph Adjuster, Buffering Agent)
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Oily Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin
1
A
Sclerotium Gum
(Emulsion Stabilising, Skin Conditioning, Viscosity Increasing Agent, Viscosity Controlling)
1
Dicaprylyl Maleate
(Skin Conditioning, Emollient, Solvent)
1
A
Cetearyl Alcohol
(Emulsion Stabilising, Opacifying, Foam Boosting, Viscosity Increasingagent Aqueous, Viscosity Increasing Agent, Emollient, Emulsifying, Viscosity Controlling)
1
A
Glyceryl Stearate
(Emollient, Emulsifying)
Fungal Acne
Fungal Acne Trigger
3
A
PEG-100 Stearate
(Surfactant)
Fungal Acne
Fungal Acne Trigger
3
B
Ceteareth-20
(Cleansing, Emulsifying, Surfactant)
2
A
Glycerin
(Denaturant, Fragrance, Hair Conditioning, Humectant, Oral Care Agent, Oral Health Care Drug, Skin Protecting, Viscosity Decreasing Agent, Perfuming, Solvent)
Good for Dry Skin
Good for Dry Skin
Fungal Acne
Fungal Acne Trigger
1
B
Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract
(Antioxidant, Skin Conditioning, Emollient, Abrasive)
4
Zinc Acetate
(Cosmetic Astringent, Cosmetic Biocide, Skin Protecting, Antimicrobial)
1
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil Bad for Sensitive Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin
4
B
Salicylic Acid
(Antiacne Agent, Antidandruff Agent, Corn/Callus/Wart Remover, Denaturant, Exfoliant, Fragrance, Hair Conditioning, Skin Conditioning, Keratolytic, Masking, Preservative)
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Oily Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin
2
3
Lecithin
(Skin Conditioning, Emulsifying, Surfactant, Antistatic Agent, Emollient)
1
Tocopherol (Vitamin E) Good for Dry Skin
Good for Dry Skin
1
A
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
(Antioxidant)
1
A
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
(Flavoring Agent, Skin Conditioning, Humectant)
Palmitoyl Hydroxypropyltrimonium Amylopectin/Glycerine Crosspolymer
1
A
Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract
(Anticaries Agent, Antidandruff Agent, Antifungal Agent, Antimicrobial Agent, Antioxidant, Oral Care Agent, Oral Health Care Drug, Sunscreen Agent, Uv Absorber)
Good for Dry Skin
Good for Dry Skin
1
A
Allantoin
(Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Soothing)
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Sensitive Skin
Good for Sensitive Skin
3
B
Sodium Hydroxide
(Denaturant, Ph Adjuster, Buffering Agent)
1
A
Disodium EDTA
(Chelating Agent, Viscosity Controlling)
6
B
Diazolidinyl Urea
(Preservative)
4
A
Methylparaben
(Fragrance, Preservative)
Paraben
Paraben
7
A
Propylparaben
(Fragrance, Preservative, Perfuming)
Paraben
Paraben

My Ingredient Notes

No personal ingredient notes yet. Save ingredients to your profile to get good/bad alerts here.

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Key ingredients

Sulfur
Skin Conditioning
Glycolic Acid
Exfoliant
Sclerotium Gum
Skin Conditioning
Dicaprylyl Maleate
Skin Conditioning, Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient

Benefits

Good for oily/acne-prone skin
Good for sensitive skin

Concerns

Contains paraben
Not fungal acne (malassezia) safe
Propylparaben — higher EWG

EWG flags hazard, not real-world risk — ratings don't account for how much of an ingredient a product contains. Treat these as things to research, not verdicts. How we score →

Ingredients explained

Water
Solvent
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Solvent
Sclerotium Gum
Emulsion stabilising, Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Emulsion stabilisingSkin conditioningViscosity increasing agentViscosity controlling
Dicaprylyl Maleate
Skin conditioning, Emollient
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Skin conditioningEmollientSolvent
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emulsion stabilising, Opacifying
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Emulsion stabilisingOpacifyingFoam boostingViscosity increasingagent - aqueousViscosity increasing agentEmollientEmulsifyingViscosity controlling
Ceteareth-20
Cleansing, Emulsifying
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR B CleansingEmulsifyingSurfactant
Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract
Antioxidant, Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR B AntioxidantSkin conditioningEmollientAbrasive
Zinc Acetate
Cosmetic astringent, Cosmetic biocide
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 4 Cosmetic astringentCosmetic biocideSkin protectingAntimicrobial
Lecithin
Skin conditioning, Emulsifying
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 2–3 Skin conditioningEmulsifyingSurfactantAntistatic agentEmollient
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Antioxidant
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Flavoring agent, Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Flavoring agentSkin conditioningHumectant
Palmitoyl Hydroxypropyltrimonium Amylopectin/Glycerine Crosspolymer
Other
Limited public safety data.Read moreShow less
EWG N/A
Sodium Hydroxide
Denaturant, Ph adjuster
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR B DenaturantPh adjusterBuffering agent
Disodium EDTA
Chelating agent, Viscosity controlling
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Chelating agentViscosity controlling
Sulfur
Antiacne agent, Antidandruff agent
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Antiacne agentAntidandruff agentHair conditioningSkin-conditioning agent -miscellaneousAntiseborrhoeicAntistatic agentSkin conditioning Good for Oily Skin
Glycolic Acid
Exfoliant, Ph adjuster
Skin irritation can occur at high concentrationRead moreShow less
EWG 4 CIR B ExfoliantPh adjusterBuffering agent Good for Oily SkinBad for Sensitive Skin
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient, Emulsifying
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A EmollientEmulsifying Fungal-acne trigger
PEG-100 Stearate
Surfactant
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR A Surfactant Fungal-acne trigger
Glycerin
Denaturant, Fragrance
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 2 CIR A DenaturantFragranceHair conditioningHumectantOral care agentOral health care drugSkin protectingViscosity decreasing agentPerfumingSolvent Good for Dry SkinFungal-acne trigger
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Oil
Other
Excessively acidic, potentially irritatingRead moreShow less
EWG 1 Bad for Sensitive Skin
Salicylic Acid
Antiacne agent, Antidandruff agent
Skin irritation can occur at high concentrationRead moreShow less
EWG 4 CIR B Antiacne agentAntidandruff agentCorn/callus/wart removerDenaturantExfoliantFragranceHair conditioningSkin conditioningKeratolyticMaskingPreservative Good for Oily SkinBad for Sensitive Skin
Tocopherol (Vitamin E)
Other
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Good for Dry Skin
Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract
Anticaries agent, Antidandruff agent
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Anticaries agentAntidandruff agentAntifungal agentAntimicrobial agentAntioxidantOral care agentOral health care drugSunscreen agentUv absorber Good for Dry Skin
Allantoin
Skin conditioning, Skin protecting
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Skin conditioningSkin protectingSoothing Good for Oily SkinGood for Sensitive Skin
Diazolidinyl Urea
Preservative
Moderate-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 6 CIR B Preservative
Methylparaben
Fragrance, Preservative
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 4 CIR A FragrancePreservative Paraben
Propylparaben
Fragrance, Preservative
Higher-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 7 CIR A FragrancePreservativePerfuming Paraben

How to use

How to use

  • 1 Where it fits: Apply after toner and before moisturiser — thinnest to thickest.
  • 2 Morning only: Apply as the last step of your AM routine, after moisturiser, and reapply every ~2 hours of sun exposure.
  • 3 Wear SPF the next day: Acids and retinoids increase sun sensitivity — daily sunscreen is a must while using this.

General guidance from this product's category and active ingredients — always follow the directions on the package.

Trust & honesty

Pregnancy & breastfeeding

Contains ingredients some choose to avoid or double-check while pregnant or nursing.

Use with caution
BHA (salicylic) (Salicylic Acid)

Low-strength topical salicylic acid (BHA) is generally considered fine. Caution is usually reserved for high-strength leave-on products and salicylic peels.

This is general information, not medical advice. Pregnancy guidance varies and depends on concentration and your individual situation — always check with your doctor, midwife or pharmacist. How we flag this.

Effective levels — general guide

The concentrations these actives are typically effective at in research — not a measurement of this product.

Vitamin C (ascorbic) 5–20%

L-ascorbic acid is usually used at 5–20% (around 10–15% is common). Above ~20% adds little and tends to irritate more; it also needs a low pH to work.

Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate

BHA (salicylic) 0.5–2%

Salicylic acid is OTC-capped at 2%; 0.5–2% is the usual leave-on range. Much below that it acts more as a soothing agent than an exfoliant.

Salicylic Acid

AHA (acid exfoliant) 5–10% (OTC)

OTC leave-on AHAs are usually 5–10%. The effect also depends on pH and free-acid value, not the percentage alone.

Glycolic Acid

INCI lists don't disclose amounts, and we don't claim to know this product's levels — these are the ranges these ingredients are usually effective at, so you can tell a real formula from "fairy-dusting" a marketed active. How we estimate this.

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