Sulfur for Acne: The Old-School Treatment That Still Works

Sulfur might be the most slept-on acne treatment out there. People have used it for skin conditions for at least 3,000 years. The ancient Romans bathed in sulfur springs. Hippocrates recommended it. And if you go to a drugstore right now, you can buy a tub of sulfur ointment for about six dollars that will actually do something for your breakouts.

But nobody talks about it. The acne conversation has been dominated by benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and retinoids for so long that sulfur barely registers. I think that's a shame, because for certain types of acne and certain types of skin, sulfur is genuinely one of the better options.

How sulfur actually works on acne

Sulfur attacks acne from two angles.

First, it's keratolytic. That means it helps break down the outer layer of dead skin cells that can clog pores. When dead cells and sebum build up inside a follicle, you get a comedone. Sulfur helps dissolve that plug. It's a milder version of what salicylic acid does, though the mechanism is slightly different.

Second, it's mildly antibacterial. Sulfur creates an environment that's hostile to Cutibacterium acnes, the bacteria involved in inflammatory acne. It's not as aggressive as benzoyl peroxide in this regard. It won't nuke bacteria the way BP does. But it reduces bacterial populations enough to help with mild inflammatory breakouts.

There's also a drying effect. Sulfur absorbs excess oil from the skin's surface. For people with oily, acne-prone skin, this can be helpful. For people with dry or sensitive skin, it's something to watch.

The combination of these three things (unclogging pores, reducing bacteria, absorbing oil) makes sulfur a legitimate acne treatment, even if it doesn't get the marketing budget that flashier ingredients do.

The De La Cruz situation

If you spend any time on acne forums or skincare Reddit, you'll eventually come across De La Cruz sulfur ointment. It's a 10% sulfur ointment in a simple jar. It costs about $6 at Walmart or on Amazon. And it has a weirdly devoted fanbase.

The reason is simple: it works for a lot of people and it costs almost nothing.

The formula is basic. Sulfur in a petrolatum base. No fancy delivery systems, no botanical extracts, no marketing story. Just the active ingredient in a carrier. You apply it, it sits on your skin, the sulfur does its thing.

I don't think you need to spend more than this to try sulfur. Some brands sell sulfur products for $20-30 with nicer textures and added ingredients, and those are fine if you prefer them. But the $6 jar is doing the same fundamental job.

The smell problem

I'm going to be straight with you: sulfur smells bad. It smells like rotten eggs. That's because sulfur compounds are literally what give rotten eggs their smell.

The intensity varies by product. Some sulfur treatments have fragrances added to mask it. De La Cruz doesn't really bother. You open the jar and you know exactly what you're dealing with.

This is the main reason sulfur never became as popular as benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid, in my opinion. The science is there. The efficacy is there. But people don't want to smell like eggs. And I get it.

The workaround is to use sulfur in ways that minimize how long the smell is a factor. More on that in a second.

Who sulfur works best for

Sulfur isn't the strongest acne treatment available. I want to be upfront about that. If you have severe inflammatory acne with deep cysts, sulfur alone probably won't cut it. But it occupies a genuinely useful niche.

Mild comedonal acne. Lots of blackheads and whiteheads, not much inflammation. Sulfur's keratolytic action helps clear these without aggressive exfoliation.

Sensitive skin that reacts to benzoyl peroxide. This is a big one. BP is effective, but some people can't tolerate it. Their skin gets red, peeling, burning. Sulfur is considerably gentler while still offering both antibacterial and pore-clearing properties.

Sensitive skin that reacts to salicylic acid. Less common, but some people find even low-concentration salicylic acid irritating. Sulfur is an alternative that works on similar problems.

As an add-on to an existing routine. Sulfur masks used once or twice a week can complement a routine built around other actives without causing the irritation that adding another strong active might.

Mask vs spot treatment

There are two main ways to use sulfur, and they serve different purposes.

Short-contact mask (10-15 minutes). Apply a thin layer of sulfur ointment to your whole face or just the acne-prone areas. Leave it on for 10-15 minutes. Rinse off. This is the best way to use De La Cruz and similar ointments. The smell is only an issue for those 15 minutes, and you get the oil-absorbing and exfoliating benefits across a wider area.

Most people do this two to three times per week. Some people build up to nightly use. Pay attention to how your skin responds. If it's getting dry or tight, pull back.

Overnight spot treatment. Dab a small amount directly on active pimples before bed. The sulfur sits on the spot all night, working on that specific blemish. By morning, inflammatory pimples are often noticeably flatter and less red.

The spot treatment approach makes sense for occasional breakouts. The mask approach makes more sense if you're dealing with widespread congestion or you want the texture-smoothing benefits across your whole face.

Pairing sulfur with other actives

One of sulfur's advantages is that it plays nicely with most other acne treatments.

Sulfur + benzoyl peroxide. This is a classic combination. Some older prescription formulations actually combined the two. You can use a BP cleanser in the morning and a sulfur mask at night. The main risk is over-drying.

Sulfur + salicylic acid. Works fine for most people. SA handles the inside of the pore, sulfur works on the surface. Just don't layer them at the exact same time.

Sulfur + retinoids. Usable, but be careful. Both exfoliate, and retinoids can make skin more sensitive. If you're using tretinoin or adapalene, maybe use sulfur masks only once or twice a week and see how your skin handles it.

Sulfur + niacinamide. Good combination. Niacinamide helps with oil control and inflammation without exfoliating, so it complements sulfur without adding irritation.

Why everyone forgot about sulfur

This bugs me a little. Sulfur has been in the pharmacopeia for thousands of years. It works. The research supports it. So why did it fall off the map?

Partly it's the smell. Nobody wants to market a product that smells like eggs to teenagers.

Partly it's timing. Benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid got more research funding and marketing muscle during the 1970s-90s, when OTC acne treatment became a huge market. Sulfur was already "old" by then. There was no patent money in it. No pharmaceutical company was going to spend millions proving that a $6 generic ointment works when they could be pushing proprietary formulations.

And partly it's perception. "Ancient remedy" can sound either trustworthy or outdated, depending on how you frame it. In the skincare world, new and sciency tends to win over old and proven. Sulfur doesn't have a cool mechanism-of-action story. It doesn't have a catchy name. It just works.

I think more people should try it, especially if they've had bad reactions to BP or SA. It's cheap enough that there's almost no downside to experimenting with it.

Bottom line

Sulfur is a legitimate acne treatment that's been around for millennia and still holds up. It works best for mild to moderate comedonal acne and for people who can't tolerate harsher actives. De La Cruz sulfur ointment at $6 is the go-to budget option. Use it as a short-contact mask a few times a week or as a spot treatment overnight. Yes, it smells like eggs. No, you won't smell like that all day. The biggest reason sulfur gets overlooked is marketing, not science.