Proactiv Solution Original

Destroys your skin health – Dries the bajesus out of your skin and damages it. I used this for years as a teenager and young adult and now I have scarred, wrinkly, inelastic skin. Proactive does not support the health of your skin; it bleaches it (and your pillow, towels, clothes, bed sheets). I should have just put up with the acne for the time being, but now I have… Read more

permanent scarring, pigmentation, enlarged pores, dry wrinkly skin, etc. Advice for those struggling with acne: use products which support the HEALTH of your skin, not the attack of acne. Keep hydrated, wash your face with kind products and LEAVE IT ALONE (don't touch or pick at it). Change your pillow case and towel regularly. Keep your hands clean with soapy water. Eat clean food, not processed junk. Hydrate your skin! Use a BB cream instead of cakey foundation and makeup. If you touch your face with anything, make sure it's clean. Check your hormones aren't out of whack. Girls, you may also benefit from a contraceptive pill; for me Yasmin has helped with my skin, mood, period pain, heavy periods etc. Cetaphil is also gentle for the skin and won't stress it out or strip it of its natural defense's.

Only treatment that has ever worked for me – I suffered from adult acne. I used to have breakouts every month until I found this product. My acne has cleared up and I now only have the occasional pimple. I feel so much better about my appearance now and don’t have to spend time covering my face with makeup. I’m devastated you can no longer purchase this product in Australian stores and now have to pay shipping online. Show details

Terrible, Made my skin worse – So, I have been struggling with acne for a while now, I asked my Mom if she knew any good products and she didn’t have any so she just bought whatever was nice. Spoiler alert! Terrible decision. The Soap only made things worse, it made my skin red and irritated. The toner dried up my skin and the repair made me feel itchy on my face and it became… Read more

red and full of rashes. I never used the tea tree moisturiser as my skin was reacting horribly to the other products, god knows what it could have done. So anyone that is looking for fixes on acne or pimples, do NOT buy this, it will only make your skin worse.

Love it – I’ve been using this product for years. I stopped once and my acne came straight back. I’m back using it again and skin is again clear. Tip is not to purchase direct from the company so you don’t get locked into an expensive contract, there are other suppliers out there.

Love it !! – It’s pretty good but once I stop using it, I get my acne back. So as long as I use it, it does the work!! You got to use little, cause it pretty expensive to use alot.

Been using for years and I love it! – I have been using this product for over 8 years. I don't have acne but I get some nasty breakouts. Proactiv has always helped control my combination skin. It helps to keep my skin clean and fresh. I use every morning while in the shower. I also use the oil free moisturiser after the 3 step system to keep my skin hydrated. The 3 other steps… Read more

can dry your skin out if you use too much, you only need a little bit.

I have sensitive skin and this did not affect me.

At first it stung a bit, but that means it is working.

Your skin gets used to it the more you use it.

I love this product and think it is worth every cent.

Not effective – i used the 3 stepscleanser,toner,repair lotion and including tea tree moisturiser.I used these for at least a month and still it has 0 effect on my skin.It was a bit pricey and ran out quickly .Moisturiser and toner smells really nice and are good.I didn't like the cleanser and repair lotion as after using them i had rashes on my skin .I would… Read more

still get pimples around my forehead and chin, it was not controlling any of my acnes at all.It was worse ..I hated it.waste of my money..

Good short term fix but long term damage – I used proactive from the age of 19 until about 26 on and off and it did definitely get rid of my pimples. But over the long term I ended up with dermatitis on the inside of my right hand from where I put the toner if I had no cotton balls. It has gone on for years now and I'm 32 and nothing helps how itchy it is and my skin breaks all the time. I… Read more

also noticed that it permanently dried my face out. Prior to proactive I had greasy skin and after using it it is dry constantly...like itchy dry. I have to put cream on my face everyday to stop the itching. I know it's from long term use of proactive. It's not normal to just have an itchy face all the time. Just a warning to those wanting to use it. But I will say I tried everything to get rid of my pimples and it was the only thing that worked. Probably because of how harsh the chemicals are no germs could survive. Thanks.

Ex staff – I used to work at a Proactiv Solutions kiosk back when they still had kiosks. There were so many things that we had to say or were not allowed to say to customers. I ended up being basically held back at night by two of my superiors, being threatened, blackmailed and interrogated by them, and they weren't even too clear about what I did wrong. Apart from that I don't think the people working for them really used these products themselves.

Needs to be discontinued – This stuff caused severe swelling and redness to my daughters face including her eyes. This company is a money making scam. They know their product has the potential to cause this type of reaction. So why can't they provide small sample products for people to try and test so we dont have to waste our money on over priced chemicals. Show details

Don't buy this! It's a scam. Made my face worse. "From acne to swelling and itching." – As mentioned by previous users I now have swelling, blisters(looks like chemical burn) and itchiness all over my face including ears. Crap scammers. How is this product still being sold!? Show details

VERY BAD PRODUCT!!! – Product is very bad, proactiv company goal is not to help your skin, it’s to make money. Once you stop using the product your acne comes back, they just need you to continuously buy off them forever. There are products out there that will get rid of acne with just couple weeks of use and you will never have to use anymore products.

Its a waste of money and it doesn't work for the majority of skin – I don't recommend you buy this product. It may work for like the 1% of people, of whom the product was designed for but other than that I don't see how this would help anyones skin. I had break outs so I thought I'd give it a try. Needless to say I was traumatised with the result. Please stick to sukin people. you'll save hundreds of dollars and emotional break-downs.

THE WORST COMPANY EVER!!! – THE WORST COMPANY EVER!! don’t ever order from this company biggest scammers ever, horrible products and all they do is take money from your account!!! And won’t even refund the money back to you do not order

Don’t trust this company – My daughter’s face hasn’t cleared after using two lots of everything and the company goes ahead to charge me $177 for a subscription I didn’t order. I bought the first proactiv and thought my daughter should give it another try even though the first lot barely made a difference. On calling to enquire they said I’d have to pay for it as they’d… Read more

already shipped it out, shipped out something I never ordered. Please please please do not buy this or engage with this company!

Disgraceful company – The product is average, I have used it for 4 months and my skin is worse now than when I began. Additionally, I moved house and updated my details online and it automatically sent me out $100 worth of products. This was despite them sending me a 90 day supply a month earlier. I called them to sort out their error and they blamed me. Stating I had… Read more

changed it to a four week supply. I did not. They told me there was nothing I could do and as it was in their warehouse ready to be sent bad luck. I told them to cancel it since it was in their warehouse and they refused. I cancelled my membership.

Rip off scammers – This product is the worst ever. I wish I'd read the reviews. Then I was sent next months automatically didn't even ask for it and they charged me. Called the company to complain and get my money back, even after the call complaint and return they were still scheduled to send me another box as I didn't specifically ask for my account to be stopped. Worst product burning my son's face and scam company not wanting to stop my direct debits!

My skin has burns – I brought pro active and my skin is burnt I look like I’ve got chemical burns and my skin so dry I’ve had to cover my skin sobolne cream

Why did I ever spend 90 dollars buying this?? – I suffered from severe acne last year. I went through a bunch of ads and websites looking for a good product I could use to help. I found proactive and bought it. Huge mistake. My skin became even worse. More redness occured, dry as skin, you name it. Do not recommend this product to anyone.

Warning! – WARNING!!!! This product can damage your skin, cause pain, burning and extreme discomfort. This is my 14year old daughters face after using the products twice

Itchy/bumpy reaction 3 weeks in – So I bought the 3 step proactiv kit around a month ago, did the patch test and when it was all clear, I began and the results were good. Less spots (still 2 or 3 most of the time), my skin dried out a little but nothing moisturiser couldn't help. A few days ago, nothing had changed in my routine/diet/life but my face became so itchy I wanted to… Read more

scratch it off. And then I noticed my face had gone extremely bumpy. Not too sure how to describe the texture, maybe a cross between a cauliflower and a basketball? I stopped using it for a few days to see if I could notice any difference, and my face immediately stopped itching. Definitely not for me, weird how the reaction wasn't instant, but no I personally would not recommend. Also, they're not joking when they say it can bleach fabrics. Even when you think you've rinsed your face well, it'll destroy the colour of a towel.

Acid on your skin and will bleach all your towels – This stuff contains bleach that will make your (or your child's) skin very itchy, sore and it will thin the skin. If i it will bleach all your towels too - beware if it spills on the floor and you walk on it you could end up with bleach marks on your carpet ! Bleached 2 sets of towels, called them they didn't care a bit, pretty much said too bad, it contains bleach, can't help you. Amazingly arrogant.

Definitely worth trying!! – I could write a essay on this stuff I swear. I will try to keep it short so people read it and go buy this stuff because it is AMAZING! I’m early 20’s suffered from cystic acne ( those giant red balls deep under the skin) mostly around my jaw and forehead that took months to disappear but leave a red mark. It’s been 8 months , I occasionally get a… Read more

whitehead that disappears within a day or so. I peeled for the first week and after that my skin adjusted and have not even had 1 cystic pimple. You want a solution, head over to shops and buy proactiv.

Horrible burns – This product caused intense itching 8 hours after applying. My face went deep red. Thought that was ok....but it got worse. I only applied it ONCE. The following day the itching remained but i woke to swollen eyes. Now a week later I've experienced severe itching and facial peeling. I've been slathering on a moisturiser three times a day. Finally today no more itching. Horrible product.

Not good, don't buy – I was pretty excited when my partner brought home Proactiv. I don't ever treat myself to "good products". I saw the ads years ago and thought wow, this stuff could be the holy grail of acne products. I was very mislead! LiKe everyone else. This product caused me irritation like no other. I went red all around my jaw and neck. I swear my… Read more

pimples have gotten worse since as well. My face went dry, flakey and itchy! so itchy I stayed up at night itching it was the worst. I also recall the burning sensation others have mentioned. The only product in it that I could use was the deep cleanser but that's only cause it doesn't cause irritation.. I'd prefer to go buy something else.

By the way I gave this product a fair go by using it for a good month on and off (had to stop due to itching and redness). It also definitely bleaches towels which is no wonder why it burns your face. A product that does that in my mind shouldn't be put on your face. Anyway. Don't buy it. Buy something else. Nothing you do will make the product work. It's a chemical not worth ruining your skin with.

Worst product I ever bought!!! – This product is just waste of money. It's not working at all and gave me more problems. So first time when I order it I pay $19.95 + shipping. I thought if it works good like what they said then I got such a good deal!! NO!!! I regret putting that stuff on my face. First time I used it I felt like my face was on fire. It was so hot and it hurt… Read more

so bad. My face turned red. So I stop using it for couple days and used it again still same and it even got worse. My face start itching really bad and it start bleeding a little. So I had to go get medical treatment. I couldn't put make up for a month. It was so bad!!!

I called Proactive and told them what happened. This is what he told me. "Okay. I understand you are frustrated. But proactive works great and that's how it works. You will feel burn on your face because it's fighting with your acne. Itching and bleeding is all the bad stuff coming out from your skin." (OMG) I told them I don't think so and I ask him for a refund and he suggested to me use it for one more month. I said no. However next month I got charged another $38. I called them again and ask them why they send it and she told me I have to use it for at least 2months to get a result. I told them give my money back they never did. At least she cancelled. Do not recommend this product.

Liars and cheaters – First of all proactive products didn't work on my skin at all. Even worse they bleach my skin which made sun burns and redness during summer... Secondly After several phone calls with questions of money returned I still haven't got money back... in addition their customer service does care at all about customer whenever I asked for email with… Read more

instructions what I should to do it was ignored.

At the end PtoActive company sent a bailiff for me cos apparently I owned the money for product from which I wasn't satisfied...

Well done!

Ruined my face – The first day of use wasn't too bad, I noticed that it smelt odd, like chemicals. The next day, as per instructions I used the step one cleanse and it started to burn my face, I became distressed and washed it off. My skin immediately broke out into a textured and inflamed rash, I have normal skin that isn't sensitive. Two days after my skin is… Read more

still itchy and irritated with patterns I can only describe as healed burn wounds. It was like bleach on your skin. Worst product I have ever used for a ridiculous price, disappointed and would not wish upon anyone.

Horrible customer service and terrible skin reaction! – I bought the 90 day plan with installment payments. First time using and it made my skin itchy and feel really 'thin' and always red and blotchy. Called customer service and they told me they would cancel the last payment if i sent my product back. I asked them to email me the postal address. They never did and i still keep getting invoice… Read more

reminders and i tried to live chat them to figure out what to do from here, because by this point it was over 60 days, but i had been waiting on an email. Used live chat which told me that i couldn't ask that question on live chat because it concerned an account and i would have to email service@proactiv.com.au (which FYI, is a pretty dumb use of live chat if you can't use it to check on orders).

Email bounced back, so i opened up another live chat where i told her that it didn't work and she told me it might be because the emails are 'full' and to call instead, which i wasn't happy to do as i didn't have time to wait on hold again for 20-40 mins like last time! So i asked if there was another way i could email or if she could have someone email me. she told me she could do neither which was, understandably, SO FRUSTRATING.

So not only can i not contact them (unless i want to spend my lunch break on hold for 20-40mins!!) they're still trying to charge me for something that gave me an allergic reaction!

NEVER shop with them. Whole process was horrible.

Awful company to deal with – Company is awful to work with. The product made my daughter's skin worse, and when sent the product back they did not acknowledge the return till 3 weeks and 4 phone calls later. The refund has been just as bad! Two weeks of receiving an email saying that they have refunded on the credit card and take between 3-5 days and 3 phone calls later, I… Read more

was told that there is an issue with the refund because the account has been cancelled so they need to send out a check which will take between 3-5 weeks. However as they've said on every phone call rest assured it will be taken care of..I wonder how many phone calls this check will take??

:( – I've been using this for over a week now and it's made my skin worse!! So disappointed, it says works from day one, but from day one my skin has only gotten worse!

Awful!! Do not buy! – I have been using proactiv for a week now, using the exact instructions...it has honestly made my skin worse! It wasn't even that bad before but now i've got huge spots all over my face and wake up with a new spot every morning! I feel so annoyed that i was sucked into the 'success stories' and wasted my money! It hasn't been this bad in years,… Read more

and it took me years to get my skin fairly clear! It was just the odd spot i wanted to clear up. Disappointed is an understatement!

Burnt my face – For 60 days exactly worked perfectly was so happy then the following week my face was on fire bright red blotchy and quite literally burnt, all they said was oh well wth

Love it – Proactiv is the most amazing thing ever created. I am not associated with them in any way. It worked wonders for my skin. I have used it for many many years. I don't understand the bad reviews, people must not use it correctly. I used to get red, peeling skin in the beginning as I was over scrubbing and did not apply a moisturiser. I use a really good moisturiser once the Proactiv products soak in. Never got dry, peeling skin again. Love it.