Ingredient

Sulfur

One of the oldest acne treatments still on the shelf. Mild enough for rosacea and easily irritated skin. The drawback is the smell.
Dr. Schwarz, MD · Board-certified dermatologistLast reviewed September 8, 2026
Four sulfur acne products: Kate Somerville EradiKate, De La Cruz 10% sulfur ointment, The Ordinary and Thayers

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Sulfur has been put on skin for thousands of years, and it survived for a narrow but real reason — it helps inflamed bumps and it rarely makes anyone worse, which matters more than it sounds when most acne treatments get worse before they get better. I use it for rosacea with bumps, seborrheic dermatitis, and acne in people who sting or flush with everything else. It is slower and weaker than benzoyl peroxide, so I would not choose it first for stubborn or scarring acne. Two warnings: it smells, and a 10% mask will scent a bathroom for an hour; and it dries the skin, so start a plain moisturizer the same night you start the sulfur.

— Dr. Schwarz, Board Certified Dermatologist

Key Facts

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Also calledSulfur, precipitated sulfur, colloidal sulfur, sublimed sulfur
TypeMineral. A mild keratolytic that also has antibacterial and antifungal activity
Strengths sold3% to 10% over the counter. 5% sulfur combined with 10% sodium sulfacetamide by prescription
UseOnce a day, usually at night, or as a mask rinsed off after ten minutes
Time to work2 to 4 weeks for early change, about 8 weeks to judge it
Prescription neededNo for sulfur on its own. Yes for the sodium sulfacetamide combinations

What It Is

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Sulfur is a yellow mineral element, used on skin since ancient times and still sold as a modern treatment rather than folklore. For skin it is finely ground so it can be suspended in a lotion, a cream or a clay mask. Precipitated sulfur, sometimes called milk of sulfur, is the most common form in medicines. Colloidal and sublimed sulfur are other grades of the same element, milled more or less finely but doing the same thing. In the United States, sulfur at 3% to 10% is an approved over-the-counter acne ingredient, so it turns up in masks, spot lotions, cleansers and bar soaps without a prescription. Prescription products pair 5% sulfur with 10% sodium sulfacetamide, an antibiotic, mostly for rosacea and seborrheic dermatitis. A stronger ointment, 5% to 10% sulfur in petrolatum, is still used for scabies, particularly in very young infants and where the usual treatments are not suitable.

How It Works

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Sulfur is a mild keratolytic — it loosens the bonds holding dead cells together at the surface. It appears to do this by reacting with cysteine, a sulfur-containing building block in skin cells, forming hydrogen sulfide. Pore plugs break up more easily and thick scale lifts.

It is also antibacterial and antifungal. It slows Cutibacterium acnes, the bacteria involved in acne, and Malassezia, the yeast that drives dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis. That is why one ingredient shows up in both an acne mask and a scalp product. Sulfur also reduces oil slightly and calms inflammation, which is what helps the bumps of rosacea.

The evidence is old. Sulfur was in use long before modern trials, and most of what supports it is small, dated, or done on combination products. The mechanism is well described and the clinical experience is long, but the published evidence is thinner than for benzoyl peroxide or a retinoid. Expect a mild, gradual effect.

Here is where Sulfur acts in the skin, and what the others do instead.

About Sulfur
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Skin basics
BARRIEREPIDERMISDERMISPOREOILGLANDKILLS YEASTSTAYS ON THE SURFACESTOPS PLUGS FORMINGUNCLOGS THE POREKILLS BACTERIALOWERS OIL PRODUCTIONKILLS MITES

The yeast involved here lives on everyone's skin and only causes trouble when it overgrows in oil. Sulfur reduces it, which is why the flaking and itching settle and why it comes back if treatment stops for good. Old, mild, and useful when stronger antifungals irritate.

Sulfur works on the surface and in the top of the pore. It is not absorbed to any degree that matters.

Retinoids change how the lining of the pore sheds its cells, so the plug that starts a spot stops forming in the first place. That is why they prevent spots rather than treat the ones already there, and why the first weeks can look worse before they look better.

Salicylic acid dissolves in oil, so it gets down inside the pore rather than sitting on the surface, and loosens the plug of dead skin and sebum blocking the way out.

This works on the bacteria growing in an inflamed pore. Less bacteria means less for the immune system to react to, which is what takes the redness and soreness out of a spot.

This works upstream of the spot, on the gland itself. Less oil means fewer plugs, less for bacteria to feed on and less inflammation, which is why it changes the pattern rather than clearing one spot.

Everyone carries these mites in their follicles. In some people the immune system reacts to them, and reducing their number reduces the bumps and the redness that come with them.

The outer film of dead cells and oil. It holds water in and keeps irritants out, and it is thinner than a sheet of paper. Almost every dry, itchy, stinging skin problem starts here.

The outer layer, and the only one anything in a jar reaches. It renews itself constantly: a cell made at the bottom takes about a month to reach the surface and flake off. Most of what a skincare product does, it does here.

The living layer underneath, holding the blood vessels, the nerves and the collagen. It is where lasting change happens and it is hard to reach: most of what is sold for the skin never gets this far.

What It Treats

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No strong evidence for any condition.

Not the Best For

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Close-up of small pink bumps and flaky skin clustered on the chin below the lower lip

Perioral Dermatitis

Limited evidence

A sulfur wash or lotion is a gentler option for mild cases, and it is often chosen when someone cannot use the usual prescriptions. The evidence for it in this condition is thin, and the smell puts people off. It is worth a few weeks, not a few months.

Close-up of light skin with a scattered cluster of small pink raised bumps, some with tiny white tips

Fungal Acne (Malassezia Folliculitis)

Limited evidence

A sulfur wash or soap has some activity against this yeast and is an option if the antifungal shampoos are not tolerated. The evidence in fungal acne specifically is thin. It smells and can be drying on the chest and back.

Close-up of a cheek with inflamed acne. Raised pink-red bumps, a few with yellow-white heads, sit in a patch of redness, and the skin between them is dry and flaking.

Acne

Limited evidence

An old treatment, usually a mask or a spot dab, that dries the surface of a spot and mildly loosens plugs. It is gentle enough for skin that cannot tolerate benzoyl peroxide or a retinoid. It smells, and it is weaker than everything above it on this list.

Forms

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Sulfur comes in more shapes than most acne actives, and the shape decides how long it sits on the skin. Spot lotions, the ones that separate with pale sediment at the bottom, are dabbed on overnight. Cleansers do the least, because thirty seconds is thirty seconds. Prescription versions pair 5% sulfur with 10% sodium sulfacetamide. Sulfur smells, and no formula has solved that.

A row of Sulfur products sold as mask, photographed on white.
The easiest way to try it
Mask
Clay-based, usually 8% to 10%, rinsed off after about ten minutes.
A row of Sulfur products sold as spot lotion, photographed on white.
Overnight, one spot at a time
Spot lotion
The bottle with sediment at the bottom. Dab, do not shake, and leave it.
A row of Sulfur products sold as cleanser or bar, photographed on white.
Mildest
Cleanser or bar
On the skin under a minute. Useful alongside something else, not on its own.
A row of Sulfur products sold as prescription wash or cream, photographed on white.
With sodium sulfacetamide
Prescription wash or cream
5% sulfur plus 10% sulfacetamide. The form used for rosacea.
A row of Sulfur products sold as ointment, photographed on white.
Scabies, on a doctor's advice
Ointment
5% to 10% precipitated sulfur in petrolatum. Old, greasy, and still used in pregnancy and in babies.

Strengths

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The range is narrow, and moving up it changes how drying the product is more than how well it works. Most of the difference is whether it is rinsed off or left on.

WeakestStrongest
3%5%8% to 10%5% to 10% in petrolatum
Over the counter
3%
The lowest strength in general use, in cleansers and daily lotions meant to be tolerated, not to do heavy lifting.
Over the counter and prescription
5%
The middle of the range, and the strength in the prescription sodium sulfacetamide products.
Over the counter
8% to 10%
The strongest without a prescription, in clay masks and overnight spot lotions. Drying over the whole face every day.
Prescription or compounded
5% to 10% in petrolatum
A thick ointment for scabies rather than acne, applied to the whole body over several nights.

Basics

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When to Apply
Once a day, usually at night, on clean dry skin. Leave-on lotions go after cleansing and before moisturizer, as a thin layer over the area or dabbed on spots. Masks sit on clean skin about ten minutes, then rinse. Cleansers need a slow count before rinsing, or they wash off before doing anything.
How to Start
Three nights a week for the first two weeks, then daily if your skin is comfortable. Masks once a week to begin. Sulfur dries, so start a plain moisturizer at the same time. Keep it out of the corners of the nose and mouth and off the eyelids.
If It Irritates
Dryness, tightness and mild flaking are the usual complaints, and they respond to using it less often rather than stopping. Drop to two or three nights a week, moisturize first and put the sulfur on top, or switch to a rinse-off mask. Redness and stinging that build over several days mean stop.
If It’s Not Working
Give it eight weeks. Sulfur is modest and works best on inflamed bumps, so if your main problem is blackheads or comedones, a retinoid or salicylic acid fits better than more sulfur. If it half worked for rosacea or seborrheic dermatitis, the prescription sodium sulfacetamide combination is the next step.

Sample Routine

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Here is where Sulfur sits in a day, and what goes around it. Pick what you are treating and what your skin is like, and the rest of the routine changes to suit.

What to Expect

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Days 1 to 7Weeks 2 to 4Weeks 6 to 8
Adjusting
Days 1 to 7
Mild dryness and tightness, and a smell you will notice on the product and sometimes on your skin.
Working
Weeks 2 to 4
Inflamed bumps settle faster, fewer new ones appear, and scale lifts. Skin may look drier.
Judge it here
Weeks 6 to 8
Sulfur works gradually and will not improve much past about two months at the same strength.

What to Avoid

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  • Sulfur has few true conflicts Most of what goes wrong is dryness from stacking it on other drying products.
  • Other drying actives in the same layer benzoyl peroxide, high-strength salicylic acid or a retinoid at the same time dries the skin faster than either alone. Separate them by time of day.
  • Scrubs and alcohol-based toners sulfur is already loosening the surface. Exfoliating on top gives you rawness, not clearer skin.
  • Silver jewelry and light-colored fabrics sulfur tarnishes silver and can mark pale towels and pillowcases. Take rings off, and use a dark towel.
  • Assuming the smell means it is working the odor is just the mineral. A stronger smell does not mean more effect.

If You Stop

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Acne and rosacea return over a few weeks, at the pace they would have run at anyway. Sulfur suppresses rather than cures, and stopping does not cause a rebound beyond your own baseline. Seborrheic dermatitis comes back fastest, sometimes within two to three weeks, because the yeast that drives it recolonizes the skin. Most people who use sulfur for that stay on a maintenance schedule of once or twice a week instead of stopping. There is nothing to taper. Dryness from the product improves within a few days of stopping.

Ask Your Doctor

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If you are using a product that contains sodium sulfacetamide: A sulfonamide antibiotic, so a history of reacting to sulfa drugs matters.
If your skin is broken, cracked or badly inflamed: Sulfur stings on open skin. Wait until it settles.
If you are treating a large area or a child: Whole-body coverage, which scabies treatment requires, needs a dose and a plan from a doctor.
If your acne is deep, painful or leaving scars: Nodular and cystic acne needs more than sulfur, and waiting costs skin.
If you get swelling, hives or wheezing
Any change in breathing needs emergency care.
If you are pregnant or breastfeeding
Topical sulfur is an old option still used in some situations, but that decision belongs to the doctor managing your pregnancy.

How It Compares

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Three acne wash tubes on white: Differin Deep Cleanser, CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser and PanOxylLabeled cutaway diagram of a single skin pore. The epidermis is drawn as a brick-textured layer across the top and the dermis in pink below it, with a yellow oil gland at the base of the pore. Three callout lines point into the pore: decreases dead cells in pore near the opening, kills bacteria at the cluster of bacteria deep in the shaft, and decreases inflammation in the surrounding dermis.

Benzoyl peroxide

The same

Clearly more effective on inflamed acne and faster. Sulfur is gentler, does not bleach fabric, and is easier to tolerate on skin that stings with everything.

Paula's Choice 2% BHA exfoliant, La Roche-Posay Effaclar cleanser and a CeraVe psoriasis cream pumpLabeled cutaway diagram of a single skin pore, headed Salicylic Acid. The epidermis is a brick-textured band across the top and the dermis is pink below it, with a yellow oil gland at the base of the pore and a small cluster of bacteria inside it. A single dark navy callout line points into the top of the pore: decreases dead cells in pore. There are no other callouts, so the drawing shows one effect where the other ingredient diagrams show two or three.

Salicylic acid

Different job

Better at clearing blackheads and comedones because it gets into oil. Sulfur does more for inflamed bumps and for scale.

Five azelaic acid tubes and bottles on white, most marked 10 percent, from Peach Slices, Paula's Choice, Facetheory, The Ordinary and NaturiumLabeled cutaway diagram of a single skin pore, headed Azelaic Acid. The epidermis is a brick-textured band across the top and the dermis is pink below it, with a yellow oil gland at the base of the pore and a small cluster of bacteria inside it. Three callout lines point in: decreases dead cells in pore and kills bacteria are drawn in dark navy as main effects, and decreases inflammation is drawn in gray as a lesser one.

Azelaic acid

Better

Better supported for both acne and rosacea, and it also fades the dark marks acne leaves behind, which sulfur does not.

Metronidazole or ivermectin for rosacea

Better

Better studied and usually tried first. Sulfur with sodium sulfacetamide is a reasonable option when those have not worked or are not tolerated.

Permethrin for scabies

Better

The standard treatment, easier to apply and far less messy. Sulfur ointment is reserved for cases where permethrin is unsuitable.

Myths

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  • "Sulfur is unsafe if you are allergic to sulfa drugs." Unrelated. Sulfa antibiotics are sulfonamides, and reacting to them says nothing about elemental sulfur. The exception is the prescription combination products, which contain sodium sulfacetamide.
  • "Sulfur draws impurities out of the skin." Nothing is drawn out. It loosens dead cells and plugs at the surface, reduces oil, and slows the bacteria and yeast there.
  • "It is old, so it must be weak and useless." Old and weak are different. Sulfur is genuinely mild, which is why it is still used on skin that cannot take more. It works slowly; it does not do nothing.
  • "The stronger it smells, the better it works." Smell tracks how much sulfur is there and how it is formulated, not the result. A 10% masked product and a 10% unmasked one perform the same.
  • "You can leave a sulfur mask on overnight for a faster result." Masks are made to be rinsed. Left on for hours they mostly dry the skin.

Questions Patients Ask

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Why does sulfur smell like eggs?

It slowly releases small amounts of hydrogen sulfide on the skin, the same gas behind that smell. Normal, and not a sign the product has gone off. Most products add fragrance to mask it, with mixed success.

Can I use sulfur if I am allergic to sulfa antibiotics?

Elemental sulfur is not related to sulfa drugs and does not cross-react. The prescription products that combine sulfur with sodium sulfacetamide are different, because sodium sulfacetamide is a sulfonamide. Check those with your doctor.

Is sulfur good for blackheads?

One of the weaker choices. Sulfur works best on inflamed bumps and on scale. Blackheads and closed comedones respond better to a retinoid or salicylic acid, which gets into the oil inside the pore.

Can I use it with benzoyl peroxide or a retinoid?

Yes, but not in the same layer. Both combinations dry the skin quickly. One in the morning and one at night, or sulfur as a twice-weekly mask, keeps it manageable.

Why does it turn my silver jewelry black?

Sulfur reacts with silver to form silver sulfide, the same tarnish you see on cutlery. Harmless but hard to reverse, so take rings and chains off first.

How long should I give it before deciding it does not work?

Eight weeks of steady use. Sulfur is gradual and has no late surge, so if nothing has changed in two months, switch ingredients rather than going stronger.

References

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