Free · answers stay in the browser
Retinoid purge or a real breakout?
A purge is a short wave of comedones in places you already clog, after you start something that speeds cell turnover. A breakout is new inflammation in new places, often from irritation or a product that does not agree with you.
Acids and retinoids can purge. Oils, sunscreen, and heavy creams do not purge. If a moisturizer is causing spots, that is a breakout or a clog, and waiting it out does not help.
- Cost
- Free
- Time
- A few questions
- Signup
- None
- Data
- Not stored
The new product is:
In the app
Want a record of purge or breakout, not a one-off?
Purge or breakout settles the question above. The app is where that decision can be checked against six skin scores over the following weeks.
- Six saved scores: hydration, texture, tone, acne, pores, and redness
- A morning and evening routine built from the scan
- The same face, week after week, so a change shows up as a trend
Scan with your phone. iPhone opens the App Store. Android opens Google Play.
The science
What the purge or breakout quiz decides, and what it leaves alone
- 01
A structured question, not a photo score
A quiz fits when the answer depends on behavior, a label, or a number you already know. A camera cannot see how a product feels, what else is in the routine, or whether a breakout started after a new active.
- 02
How this page reaches a label
The questions cover The new product is:; New spots are:; How long has this lasted.
Tied answers stay tied. If two labels earn the same weight, both are shown, because forcing a single winner would invent confidence the answers did not have.
- 03
What the label means, and what the app records
The labels it can return include Closer to a purge, Closer to a breakout or a clog, Stop and get advice.
The AISkincare app keeps a scan: hydration, texture, tone, acne, pores, and redness, then builds a morning and evening routine from those scores. This page answers once and does not store the photo.
Use the label to choose a next step, then check it against a scan if the question was about skin rather than about a product or a style.
- 04
Where this kind of check runs out
This is a cosmetic self-check for education. It is not a diagnosis, not a treatment plan, and not a substitute for a dermatologist or other clinician.
If the honest answer to a prompt is 'it depends' or 'I am in pain,' stop and treat that as the result. The page cannot examine you.
How to use a purge or breakout result
Only use this if you started a retinoid, retinoid-like active, or an exfoliating acid. Location matters more than how many spots you see. Burning, swelling, or rash is not a purge.
The labels it can return include Closer to a purge, Closer to a breakout or a clog, Stop and get advice.
How to answer so the label is worth having
Answer for the last two weeks, not for your best week or for a photo you wish you had taken. If a prompt is about a product, use the ingredient list on the bottle you own, not a similar product from another brand.
The questions cover The new product is:; New spots are:; How long has this lasted.
A label today, a score over the month
Purge or breakout can be retaken when the routine changes. It will not show whether redness or texture actually moved. That comparison is a scan in the same light, saved in the app.
The QR code under the tool sends an iPhone to the App Store and an Android phone to Google Play.
What the purge or breakout quiz cannot decide
This is a cosmetic self-check for education. It is not a diagnosis, not a treatment plan, and not a substitute for a dermatologist or other clinician.
It cannot see beneath the skin, predict a reaction to an ingredient you have never used, or replace a clinician for a spreading rash, a changing mark, or painful acne.
How to use the result
- Only use this if you started a retinoid, retinoid-like active, or an exfoliating acid.
- Location matters more than how many spots you see.
- Burning, swelling, or rash is not a purge.
Where to go from here
If one part of the result stood out, open the tool that asks only that question. Each one states its limit in the same place, and each one links back to a guide when a longer explanation helps.
- Barrier stress checkScore sting, tightness, and sudden redness to see if your barrier needs a pause before another active ingredient.
- Uniform bump quizCompare itch, uniformity, and location to see if bumps behave more like acne or a malassezia-pattern flare. This cannot confirm a yeast.
- Redness pattern checkSeparate flushing, product reactivity, and red breakouts. This does not diagnose rosacea or any other condition.
- Filaments or blackheadsGray dots on the nose are often filaments, not blackheads. Learn which pattern you are seeing before you squeeze.
This is a cosmetic self-check for education. It is not a diagnosis, not a treatment plan, and not a substitute for a dermatologist or other clinician.