Oily skin in men — a matte finish without a 10-step routine

Why men have oilier skin than women

This isn't a stereotype — it's biology. Male skin is around 15–20% thicker than female skin. It contains more sebaceous glands and produces noticeably more sebum. Testosterone keeps sebaceous glands more active throughout life, not just during puberty. This means men typically deal with oily skin long after their female peers have already moved into a combination or normal skin type.

On top of that comes the daily ritual of shaving — micro-injuries, irritation, and products with strong fragrance or alcohol that gently dehydrate the skin. Dehydrated yet still oily skin is one of the more common paradoxes seen in a cosmetology salon: sebum works overtime to compensate for the lack of hydration, and the result is the opposite of what's intended.

Shiny skin vs oily skin — not the same thing

Before we talk about solutions, it's worth getting the diagnosis right. Oily skin and shiny skin often look the same on the surface, but they have different causes and call for different approaches.

What actually works — and why you don't need 10 products

The beauty industry has built a myth that effective skincare requires a multi-step protocol with at least several products. For a man with oily skin, that's a recipe for frustration: weeks of laboriously layering products, with minimal or no result. The reality is simpler. Regulating sebum, deep cleansing and clearing pores are tasks a professional cosmetologist can handle with the right treatment — and you maintain the effect day to day with literally one or two products.

• Cleanse once or twice a day — a gel or foam with salicylic or glycolic acid, alcohol-free and without rubbing. More washing means more sebum.
• A light moisturiser — yes, even with oily skin. An oil-free formula with niacinamide or zinc locks in hydration without adding oil.
• SPF in the morning — UV radiation enlarges pores and breaks down skin structure. A 2-in-1 product (moisturiser plus SPF) is the one step that genuinely combines two functions.

When a cosmetic product isn't enough — what a treatment does that a cream can't

Daily products maintain your skin's condition — but they can't reverse years of enlarged pores, built-up blackheads and disrupted sebum balance. That's where a cosmetology treatment comes in. Not because the cream doesn't work, but because the scale of the problem calls for a different tool.

For oily skin in men, the most effective treatments combine two goals: deep cleansing (clearing pores, removing dead skin, blackheads) with sebum regulation at a level deeper than the surface. Treatments such as acid peels, hydrodermabrasion, mesotherapy for seborrhoea and dedicated protocols for oily skin each tackle the problem from a different angle.

1. 01

   Consultation & diagnosis

   Your cosmetologist assesses your skin type, pore condition, hydration levels and any inflammation. Based on this, we select a protocol — not every treatment suits every skin condition.

2. 02

   The treatment itself

   Deep cleansing, an enzymatic or acid peel, and — where needed — sebum-regulating mesotherapy or hydrodermabrasion. The exact steps depend on the chosen protocol.

3. 03

   Immediate result

   After the treatment, skin may be slightly reddened (24–48 hours), but for many people it's visibly smoother and less shiny straight away. Full results build over 1–2 weeks.

4. 04

   Series & maintenance

   We typically recommend a series of sessions a few weeks apart, followed by maintenance visits. Between sessions, a simplified home routine helps you keep the results from slipping.

Enlarged pores — can you actually "close" them?

The short, uncomfortable answer: a pore is an anatomical structure — you can't "close" it like a zip. What you can achieve is making it look smaller. Pores enlarge when the walls of the sebaceous duct lose elasticity (due to age, sun exposure, chronic seborrhoea) or when they're constantly clogged with sebum and dead skin. Regular cleansing and treatments that restore skin density reduce the visibility of pores — noticeably, for many people.

Technologies that can help reduce the visible appearance of pores include regular peels (even shallow ones, used frequently), treatments that stimulate the dermis, and appropriate skincare with retinol. Results vary from person to person — but with a consistent approach, the difference is visible to the naked eye, without corrective makeup.

Acne in adult men — it's not age, it's seborrhoea

One of the more common topics in the salon: a man in his thirties or forties with acne that was "supposed to end with adolescence." It didn't, because the mechanism is the same as it was at 17 — excess sebum plus a clogged pore plus bacteria equals inflammation. Years can change the hormonal context, but the physiology of oily skin remains.

Acne in adult men often flares up with stress (cortisol stimulates sebaceous glands), with diets high in dairy and high-glycaemic foods, and after a change in climate or season. Picking at blemishes yourself is a guaranteed way to cause scarring and spread inflammation. Instead of picking — unclog sebaceous ducts with regular peels, and let your cosmetologist decide when a deeper intervention is needed.

Shaving and oily skin — the shaving-product trap

Shaving is one factor that often worsens seborrhoea — and the tools and products you use matter a great deal. Alcohol-based shaving foams dry out the skin and signal to the sebaceous glands that they need to produce "emergency" sebum. Fragranced aftershave irritates freshly shaved skin. The result: skin that's shiny not just by nature, but also because of the products meant to help.

• Before shaving — a quick wash with warm water (opens pores, softens facial hair).
• Instead of alcohol-based foam — a gel or cream without alcohol and without heavy fragrance.
• After shaving — a soothing balm (not an alcohol toner), ideally containing niacinamide or hyaluronic acid.
• Once or twice a week — a gentle peel or salicylic acid in the evening, to prevent ingrown hairs and clogged pores after shaving.