September 15, 2026 · By The Essance Team

Why Is My Skin So Oily? What Causes It and What Actually Helps

Why Is My Skin So Oily? What Causes It and What Actually Helps

You wash your face in the morning and by lunch it is shining again. It is one of the most common skin frustrations there is, and most advice about it is either a product pitch or a myth. So here is the straight answer: oily skin is mostly decided by your genes, your hormones and the weather, and the part you control is how much you make it worse.

That last part matters more than most people think, because the usual instinct with oily skin, scrubbing it harder, is one of the things that can backfire.

Key Takeaway

  • Oil production is mostly set by genes and hormones. Androgens drive the oil glands, which is why oiliness surges at puberty, peaks in early adulthood and is higher in men.
  • Heat and humidity turn it up. Facial oil is measurably highest in summer and in humid climates, which is why skin can feel oilier some months than others.
  • Harsh cleansing and skipping moisturizer can make it worse. Irritated, stripped skin tends to produce more oil, not less. Gentle and consistent beats aggressive.

What Makes Skin Oily in the First Place

Oily skin comes from sebum, the waxy oil made by sebaceous glands that sit alongside hair follicles all over the face. Everyone makes it, and it does a useful job keeping skin supple. The question is only how much.

A 2017 review of oily skin treatments in the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology puts numbers on it: the average adult produces about 1mg of sebum per 10cm² of skin every three hours, and above 1.5mg is considered excessive, which is what dermatologists call seborrhea and everyone else calls oily skin. The same review names androgens, particularly dihydrotestosterone (DHT), as the main driver of both the size of the oil glands and how much they produce.

That hormonal link explains the pattern most people recognize. According to the review, sebum production dramatically increases at puberty and does not decline again until after menopause in women, or around the sixth to seventh decade in men.

Why Oily Skin Runs in Families

If your parents had oily skin, there is a good chance you do too. As Cleveland Clinic puts it, having overactive sebaceous glands "can run in families." Gland size, and with it pore size, is largely inherited.

This is the uncomfortable part most oily-skin articles skip: no cleanser, toner or mask changes your genes. What skincare can do is manage the shine day to day and avoid adding irritation on top. That is worth doing, but it is a different promise from "cure oily skin."

Why Oily Skin Gets Worse in Summer

Oily skin really is seasonal, and it has been measured. A 2005 study in Skin Research and Technology tracked facial oil at five points on the same volunteers' faces for a full year and found that summer was the highest sebum-secreting season. The forehead, nose and chin produced more than both cheeks, which is exactly the T-zone pattern behind combination skin.

Climate adds to it. The 2017 review lists spring and summer seasons and humid climates among the risk factors for oily skin, and Cleveland Clinic notes that "warmer weather is more conducive to oil production." If you moved somewhere hotter, or it is simply August, your skin is not imagining things.

Hormones, Your Cycle and Stress

Because oil glands respond to hormones, anything that shifts them can shift how oily your skin feels.

If oiliness arrives suddenly alongside other changes, such as new acne along the jaw, irregular periods or unusual hair growth, that is worth raising with a doctor rather than a skincare brand. Conditions that raise androgen levels can show up in the skin first.

How Washing Can Make Oily Skin Worse

The instinct with oily skin is to strip it: hot water, strong foaming cleanser, scrubbing two or three times a day. The American Academy of Dermatology warns against exactly this. In its guide to controlling oily skin, the AAD says "using a face wash that is too harsh can irritate your skin and trigger increased oil production." Cleveland Clinic makes the same point more bluntly: "Your skin produces more oil when it's irritated."

The AAD's advice is to cleanse your face "up to twice daily and after sweating" with a gentle cleanser. Not four times. Not with a scrub every morning.

Why You Should Still Moisturize Oily Skin

Skipping moisturizer feels logical when your face is already shiny. It usually is not. The AAD says that "although you have oily skin, it is still important to apply moisturizer to keep your skin hydrated," and Cleveland Clinic notes that parched skin produces more sebum.

The trick is the type of moisturizer. Oily skin does better with something light that absorbs fully rather than a heavy cream, and the AAD recommends looking for products labeled "oil free" and "noncomedogenic," meaning less likely to clog pores. If a moisturizer leaves your face slick an hour later, it is the wrong one for you, not proof that you should skip the step.

What Actually Helps Oily Skin

  1. Cleanse gently, twice a day at most. Plus after heavy sweating. Lukewarm water, no harsh scrubs.
  2. Use a light moisturizer anyway. Hydrated skin is less likely to overcompensate.
  3. Blot instead of washing again. The AAD suggests pressing a blotting paper against the skin for a few seconds to absorb oil during the day. It removes shine without another round of cleansing.
  4. Use a clay mask occasionally. Clay absorbs surface oil. In one study of 75 adults with oily or combination skin, a kaolin and bentonite mask used twice a week for four weeks significantly improved measured sebum content. Worth knowing: that study was funded by L'Oreal, tested its own formula, and had no control group, so treat it as encouraging rather than conclusive.
  5. Look for niacinamide or green tea if you want an active ingredient. The 2017 review highlights a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 100 people in which topical 2% niacinamide significantly lowered sebum excretion after two and four weeks, and two small studies (10 and 22 participants) in which a green tea emulsion reduced sebum.
  6. See a dermatologist if nothing works. Prescription options exist for genuinely stubborn oily skin. Cleveland Clinic suggests booking an appointment if you see no improvement after a month or two.

How Essance Products Fit an Oily Skin Routine

We do not make a product that changes how much oil your skin produces, and we would be wary of anyone who claims to. What we make are gentle, plant-based products that fit the routine above: cleansers that are not harsh, light moisturizers, and clay masques. We make them in small batches in Portland, Oregon, and every ingredient is listed on the product page.

For combination skin: the Dragon's Blood line

If your T-zone is oily but your cheeks are normal or dry, which is the pattern the 2005 study measured on most faces, this is the line built for you.

  • Dragon's Blood Cleanser ($30) - a creme cleanser on an aloe juice base with jojoba beads for gentle exfoliation. There are no sulfates in the ingredient list.
  • Dragon's Blood Toner ($15.50) - witch hazel, peppermint and helichrysum hydrosols, useful as a light refresh between washes.
  • Dragon's Blood Moisturizer (from $19) - our best-selling moisturizer for combination skin, with an aloe juice base, hyaluronic acid and Sangre de Drago sap.

For oily skin that also breaks out: the Clarifying line

The Clarifying Cleanser ($26) and Clarifying Moisturizer ($30) are made for acne-prone and sensitive skin. Two customers who reviewed the moisturizer on our product page described exactly what oily skin is after:

"When I wake up, my face feels really smooth and overall less oily. I like that this moisturizer feels light on my skin." - Sofia

"My skin is less oily and softer after only 3 weeks of use and I'm having significantly less breakouts." - Derek G.

An honest note on ingredients: both the Dragon's Blood and Clarifying moisturizers contain organic coconut oil and jojoba oil, so they are not "oil free" in the label sense the AAD describes. Many people with oily skin use them happily, as the reviews above show, but if you break out easily, try a new moisturizer on one small area for a week before using it all over.

Once or twice a week: clay masques

Our Pumpkin Clay Masque ($22) uses kaolin, rhassoul and pink clays, and the Dragon's Blood Clay Masque ($25) uses pink and rhassoul clays. Use one on the oily areas once or twice a week, not every day. Not sure which to pick? Our guide to clay masques compares them by skin type.

Still working out whether you are oily, combination or dehydrated? Start with how to identify your skin type. And if years of harsh cleansers have left your skin tight and shiny at the same time, our guide to repairing a damaged skin barrier is the better place to begin.

Oily Skin: The Short Version

Your skin is oily mostly because of genetics, hormones and climate, and none of those are your fault. What you control is whether you add irritation on top. Cleanse gently, keep moisturizing, blot during the day, use clay occasionally, and give any change a few weeks before you judge it.

Sources

Written by Max May for Essance Skincare, a plant-based skincare company making products in small batches in Portland, Oregon since 2011. Product details and ingredients in this article come from our own formulations and are listed in full on each product page.

FAQs

Sudden oiliness usually has a trigger. Hot or humid weather, the start of summer, hormonal shifts during your cycle, stress, or a new harsh cleanser that is irritating your skin are the common ones. If it comes with other changes such as new jawline acne or irregular periods, talk to a doctor.

Washing itself is fine up to twice a day and after sweating. The problem is harsh cleansing. The American Academy of Dermatology warns that a face wash that is too harsh can irritate skin and trigger increased oil production, so gentle beats frequent.

Yes. Dermatologists still recommend moisturizer for oily skin to keep it hydrated. Choose a light formula that absorbs fully. If you break out easily, look for products labeled noncomedogenic and patch test anything new.

Your oil glands keep working overnight, and nothing removes that oil for seven or eight hours. The average adult produces around 1mg of sebum per 10cm² of skin every three hours, so an oily face in the morning is normal and not a sign your evening routine failed.

It often eases. Research shows sebum production in women decreases progressively over a lifetime, especially after menopause, while men's stays higher and more stable until around their sixties or seventies.

Not quite. Oily skin is shiny all over. Combination skin is oily in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) but normal or dry on the cheeks. Research measuring facial oil found the T-zone produces more than the cheeks on most faces, which is why combination skin is so common.