Even though I don't use pore strips anymore (I'm more of a chemical exfoliant kind of girl these days because it's gentler on my sensitive skin), I miss that feeling of instant gratification. You know the weirdly satisfying feeling you get when you peel the plastic off a new appliance? Or how fun it is to lift a pore strip and see all the gunk being lifted out of your pores? Peel-off masks seem to provide that same effect. So when I saw women all over my social feeds using peel-off masks, I knew they'd scratch the itch.
"Peel-off masks are a type of skincare treatment that typically comes in a gel or creamy form and is applied to the face for a set time and carefully peeled off," Dr. Dendy Engelman, a board-certified dermatologic surgeon at Shafer Clinic Fifth Avenue in New York City, explains. "The mask exfoliates the skin by removing dead skin cells and impurities from the surface of the skin, leaving the skin looking smoother and more radiant."
No wonder it's gone so viral -- there aren't that many skin care products that offer instant visible results. "The visual element of seeing the mask peel away and revealing smooth skin makes it highly shareable and creates a kind of 'wow factor,'" explains Kristyn Smith, an esthetician and the founder of Practise NYC. Although peel-off masks all have that gentle exfoliating effect, there are also different ones geared toward addressing various needs, from collagen masks that deeply hydrate dry skin to charcoal masks that address excess sebum in oily skin.
With help from the above experts and hundreds of customer reviews, we narrowed down the dozens of options on the market and distilled them into a curated list. Scroll down to find our picks for the five best peel-off masks for clearer, brighter skin.