{
  "id": "salicylic-acid",
  "idVersion": 1,
  "ingredient": "Salicylic acid (BHA)",
  "route": "topical",
  "grade": "limited",
  "gradeLabel": "Limited",
  "claim": "Studied in relation to clearer, less congested skin. Most of the record is in-clinic peels rather than the products on a shelf.",
  "caveat": "The everyday leave-on comparison rests on low-quality evidence from a small trial. Salicylic acid evidence is not equivalent to tretinoin evidence, and timing depends on the formulation you are holding.",
  "published": "2026-09-19",
  "sources": [
    {
      "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32356369/",
      "journal": "Cochrane Database Syst Rev",
      "year": 2020,
      "n": 46,
      "design": "Cochrane review",
      "duration": null,
      "percentages": [],
      "outcome": "acne",
      "finding": "Cochrane review: for people rating their own acne there may be little or no difference between salicylic acid and tretinoin, on low-quality evidence from 46 participants. Risk of bias and imprecision limit confidence.",
      "formulation": "leave-on topical"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26347269/",
      "journal": "Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol",
      "year": 2015,
      "n": null,
      "design": "Review",
      "duration": null,
      "percentages": [],
      "outcome": "acne, comedones",
      "finding": "Review of salicylic acid AS A PEELING AGENT: its comedolytic action makes it a useful peel for acne across skin types. It does not study leave-on products.",
      "formulation": "in-clinic chemical peel"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21896127/",
      "journal": "J Cosmet Dermatol",
      "year": 2011,
      "n": null,
      "design": "Randomized controlled peel trial",
      "duration": null,
      "percentages": [
        "48.5%"
      ],
      "outcome": "non-inflammatory acne lesions",
      "finding": "Peel RCT: reduced non-inflammatory lesions (~48.5% from baseline by Day 98).",
      "formulation": "in-clinic chemical peel"
    }
  ],
  "peopleReport": null
}