A Korean foam cleanser is a gentle cleansing product that makes your face squeaky clean without drying or irritating it. Its pH factor is close to the skin’s natural pH so it’s much more safe to use for cleansing than soap.
South Korean beauty brands create very innovative formulas for all skin types. So I hope that with this guide, you’ll be able to choose the best Korean cleansing foam for your skin. Let’s dive right in!
My top 3 picks
Best Korean foam cleanser
Innisfree Green Tea Korean Foam Cleanser
Innisfree is famous for using extracts from plants that grow on the mineral-rich volcanic soil of the Korean resort island of Jeju.
This Korean foam cleanser is formulated with 17.27% double squeezed green tea grown in Jeju.
Green tea has excellent anti-inflammatory and soothing properties.
So this foam cleanser is very gentle on the skin.
It calms and balances it and won’t leave it dry or irritated after you wash it.
Green tea is also helpful against acne.
The manufacturer says that this product is suitable for skin of all types.
AHC Aqualuronic Facial Cleanser
AHC Aqualuronic Korean cleansing foam is formulated with three types of hyaluronic acid, French seawater, and ceramides.
Hyaluronic acid keeps the skin moisturized and lubricated.
It helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles.
This product contains 3 types of hyaluronic acid in 3 different molecular weights — low, medium, and high.
Each molecular weight penetrates the skin at different levels for different skin benefits.
French seawater is a popular skincare ingredient and health drink component in South Korea.
It’s clean seawater obtained from a depth of 300 meters off the French Mediterranean coast.
This water is rich in minerals but has few bacteria or marine organisms found in seawater near the surface.
Ceramides lock moisture in the skin and prevent dryness and irritation.
AHC’s products were originally developed for high-end aesthetic clinics in South Korea.
So the manufacturer uses premium-quality components and advanced formulas.
This is a high-tier mass-market beauty brand in Korea.
AHC foam cleanser is very gentle and is great for normal, sensitive, or dry skin. It’s also good for aging skin.
MEDIHEAL N.M.F Intensive Hydrating Korean Cleansing Foam
Mediheal is best known for manufacturing sheet masks that are very popular in South Korea.
However, the brand also makes excellent foam cleansers using the same ingredients as the ones you can find in their sheet masks.
NMF is their most popular moisturizing sheet mask. And this foam cleanser contains the same key ingredients.
NMF stands for Natural Moisturizing Factor.
This is Mediheal’s mixture of hydrating components, including hyaluronic acid, sea minerals, and amino acids, that naturally moisturize the skin and restore its protective barrier.
So this rich cleansing foam has an intensive hydrating effect on the skin.
It gently cleanses the face, removes impurities and excess oil without drying your skin.
This product is perfect for normal, dry, or sensitive skin.
You can use the NMF sheet mask as part of your skincare routine after you have cleansed your face with the NMF foam.
MEDIHEAL Intensive Pore Clean Korean Cleansing Foam Formulated with Charcoal
Mediheal Intensive Pore Cleaning Korean foam cleanser contains activated charcoal.
Activated charcoal has incredible purifying and detoxifying qualities.
It’s even used as a remedy for poisoning.
And of course, it has an amazing skin purifying and detoxifying effect too.
Charcoal dissolves and pulls impurities like dirt, oil, and sebum out of your skin and pores.
It unclogs and cleans out pores, absorbs oil, and helps to make your face matte, soft, and squeaky clean.
In addition to charcoal, this cleanser also contains moisturizing and soothing ingredients.
So your face won’t feel too dry after the deep cleansing procedure that this foam offers.
The charcoal cleanser is best for oily and combination skin.
MEDIHEAL Collagen Intensive Lifting Korean Cleansing Foam
This Mediheal Korean cleansing foam contains collagen, elastin, and squalane.
These ingredients improve the firmness and elasticity of the skin that’s why this product is named a lifting cleanser.
Collagen and elastin make the skin firm.
Squalane provides natural nourishment to dry skin.
The cleansing foam also contains Vitamin E and green tea that soothe and rejuvenate the skin.
This face cleanser is perfect for aging skin.
Mizon Snail Repairing Korean Foam Cleanser
Mizon is best known for its skincare line based on snail mucin.
Snail mucin is a star ingredient in Korea’s beauty industry.
This is the mucus that snails leave when they crawl over something.
Snails use this mucus for repairing their skin.
It has excellent repairing qualities for human skin too.
Mizon cleansing foam contains snail secretion filtrate, Centella Asiatica extract, and peptides.
All these ingredients make this foam very gentle on the skin.
It has a moisturizing and repairing effect.
The foam also gently exfoliates the skin and cleans out pores.
It’s great for people with sensitive and acne-prone skin.
You can use it with other products from Mizon’s snail repair line.
The collection process of snail mucin for K-beauty products is usually cruelty-free. No snails get harmed.
ETUDE HOUSE SoonJung 5.5 Foam Cleanser
This Korean foam cleanser has a low 5.5 pH factor.
That means its pH level is close to that of the skin’s natural pH.
So it’s very gentle on the skin.
It contains panthenol and madecassoside.
Panthenol hydrates the skin, restores its natural protective barrier and helps the skin to retain moisture.
Madecassoside is derived from Centella Asiatica, the current number one ingredient in K-beauty products.
It is an active ingredient that soothes and repairs damaged skin.
The product turns into a rich and creamy lather that removes all the impurities without drying the skin or irritating it.
The manufacturer promises that this product is hypoallergenic and is perfect for sensitive skin.
ETUDE HOUSE Baking Powder Deep Cleansing Foam
This deep cleansing foam is formulated with baking powder and rice bran powder.
Baking powder has deep cleansing and oil-absorbing effect.
It pulls excess oil, sebum, impurities out of your skin and pores.
It also unclogs pores, removes blackheads, and has antiseptic qualities.
Rice bran contains enzymes that unglue dead skin cells from the surface of your skin.
So this product also peels and exfoliates your face with the help of rice enzymes and fine baking powder particles.
However, it does this gently and without irritation.
This product is great for oily and combination skin with blackheads and clogged pores.
TONYMOLY Peach Punch Sweet Foam Cleanser
TONYMOLY Peach Punch Sweet Foam Cleanser is formulated with peach water, 10,0000 ppm peach extract, and olive oil.
Peach water and peach extract help to reduce pigmentation, even out the skin tone, and moisturize the skin.
Olive oil also hydrates the skin.
It’s rich in vitamins and has excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
This product is rich and creamy and is perfect for dry skin.
It gently cleanses the skin without drying it.
And it has a divine peach scent.
Nature Republic Jeju Sparkling Mud Foam Cleanser
This Korean foam cleanser is another product that uses ingredients from the mineral-rich volcanic island of Jeju.
It’s formulated with Jeju Sanbang mountain spring water, French clay, seaweed extract, and floral extracts.
The foam has the look and color of a clay mask out of the tube but turns into a thick foam with the addition of water.
It has an excellent and very deep cleansing effect.
Clay exfoliates and purifies the skin, unclogs pores, and removes all the dirt, oil, and sebum.
The cleansing effect is very profound and this foam can make the skin a bit dry.
So it’s great for oily, acne-prone, and combination skin but may be too strong for dry or sensitive skin.
Use a moisturizer after you have used this foam cleanser.
TONYMOLY Clean Dew Aloe
This Tonymoly Clean Dew foam cleanser is formulated with 96% Aloe Vera leaf extract and fresh forest dew complex.
Aloe is super-beneficial for the skin.
It hydrates the skin without leaving it greasy and has excellent anti-inflammatory properties.
So this product is ideal for cleansing acne-prone skin.
Aloe extract absorbs easily, which makes this product great for oily skin.
And it also a great moisturizer.
So it’s perfect for dry and sensitive skin and won’t leave it feeling tight.
The manufacturer suggests using this foam daily as part of your normal skincare routine.
COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser
This cleansing foam is a mild cleanser with a low pH factor — around 5.3 pH.
Low pH products have a pH level close to the natural pH levels of the human skin, which is slightly acidic.
So these products don’t make the skin dry and don’t irritate it.
The skin will stay smooth and silky not raw and flaky.
CosrX foam cleanser will remove all the impurities but won’t damage the skin’s protective barrier.
It contains tea tree oil that soothes and calms the skin.
This product is good for normal, dry, or sensitive skin.
The manufacturer calls it a morning cleanser but you can also use it before bed.
I DEW CARE Namaste Kitten Vegan Face Wash
I Dew Care Korean foam cleanser is sold in a lovely pink and green tube and has a cute kitty-themed name.
It contains hemp seed oil extract, heartleaf extract, and maritime pine bark extract.
Hemp seed oil extract moisturizes the skin without clogging pores and helps to regulate its oil production.
Heartleaf extract has strong skin calming and soothing properties. So your skin won’t be irritated after you use this foam cleanser.
Maritime pine bark extract hydrates the skin and reduces pigmentation.
This product is vegan, cruelty-free, and gluten-free.
According to the manufacturer, it’s non-toxic and contains no parabens, sulfates, or phthalates.
The packaging is sustainable and eco-friendly.
The manufacturer suggests using it together with other products from the Kitten My Balance On line.
You can wash your face with the Namaste Kitten foam cleanser, use the Yoga Kitten wash-off mask, and apply the Zen Kitten toner, the Juicy Kitten serum, and the Chill Kitten moisturizer.
Three of these products are also sold together in a bundle.
What is a Korean foam cleanser?
A foam cleanser is a water-based cleansing product that foams up.
This foam dissolves and eliminates all the impurities
You need to use it after removing makeup with an oil cleanser.
Cleansing is a super-important step in your skincare routine.
It extracts dirt, oil, sebum, unclogs pores, and helps all the nourishing and moisturizing components from creams and other products penetrate your skin deeper.
Korean foam cleanser vs soap
The cleansing foam is softer on your skin because it has a pH factor that is close to the natural pH factor of your skin, which is around 5.5.
Soap has a pH factor between 8 and 10.
So it makes your skin dry and irritated.
Soap strips your skin of natural oils and imbalances its pH.
It also increases your skin’s oil and sebum production.
When should I use a Korean foam cleanser?
The foam cleanser is used during the second step of the Korean 10-step skincare routine.
The 10 steps are:
- Oil cleanser
- Foam cleanser
- Exfoliator
- Toner
- Essence
- Ampoule/Serum
- Sheet Mask
- Eye Cream
- Moisturizer
- Sunscreen (morning) or night cream (evening)
The cleansing process should consist of two steps
The first step is using an oil cleanser.
This product dissolves all oil-based impurities and makeup.
However, it’s not entirely effective on its own.
And if you don’t wash it off with a Korean cleansing foam your oil cleanser can clog pores and provoke breakouts.
So you should follow the oil cleansing step with a foam cleansing step.
This product dissolves all the water-soluble impurities, sweat, and dirt.
It also helps to remove oil residue and to balance the skin.
Only after foam cleansing will your face become squeaky clean.
How to use a Korean foam cleanser?
Take a drop of your favorite foam cleanser from its packaging.
However, never apply the cleanser directly to your face to create foam on your skin.
First, you need to work it into a foam in your hands and then apply that foam to the face.
That way the bubbles will quickly dissolve all the impurities but the cleanser won’t cause any irritation or unpleasant sensations, and won’t dry your skin out.
You can create the foam easily if you use a special foaming net.
Bulk Homme The Bubble Foaming Net
It foams the cleanser up very quickly.
So you can get a large amount of foam out of a tiny drop of product.
This will make one bottle or tube of the product last longer.
Spread the foam all over your face avoiding the eyes, nose, and mouth.
Massage your face gently.
A Korean foam cleanser is not a mask so there’s no need to keep it on your face.
Rinse the product off with lukewarm water.
It will dissolve and remove all the dirt, sweat, and other water-soluble impurities from your skin.
What is the next step after the Korean cleansing foam?
The next step after the Korean foam cleanser should be either the exfoliation or the application of toner.
After the cleansing step, you can exfoliate your skin to remove dead skin cells and blackheads and clean out pores.
However, don’t exfoliate your skin every day.
You should perform this step only 1-3 times a week, depending on your skin type.
Do it 2-3 times a week if your skin’s type is oily or combination.
And only exfoliate the skin once a week if it’s dry and sensitive.
So on most days, your next step after cleansing would be the application of toner.
Toner hydrates and nourishes your skin and acts as the carrier for other products that you apply after that.
It helps active ingredients from creams and serums penetrate deeper into your skin and work more effectively.
Then you can apply serum and moisturizer.
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