Sometimes, you get a pimple that just won’t go away. Even if you have a ritual of washing your face twice a day, moisturizing, and maybe even applying topical treatments and toners for problem areas, once in a while you’ll get a pimple that won’t budge. If it’s the day before an important event, a job interview, or any other time when you need your pimple to tone down as soon as possible, acne patches are for you.

What is an acne patch and what types exist?

 An acne patch is a small sticker that you can apply to a pimple and leave on the area for about two hours.  An unmedicated acne patch is made of hydrocolloid dressing and suctions your pimple out of your face and into its material. Medicated acne patches typically contain salicylic acid, tea tree oil, or both. While you might already use one of these remedies to prevent and treat acne, the stickers help the medicine get absorbed deeply into your skin. Often, when you just apply these products topically, they only reach the surface level of the skin and never get to treat the root areas of a pimple. Another type of patch is made with microneedles, which prick through the skin to allow acne-fighting ingredients to get beneath the skin’s surface. This type of patch also contains nacinamide, which helps keep the skin hydrated and healthy.

When and how should I use the different patches?

 Unmedicated acne patches are best for treating white heads or other pimples that have risen to the surface of the skin, which are typically large. Save the medicated patches for pimples that are red and irritated, but that lie beneath the surface of the skin. The patches with microneedles—the most intense of the three options—are effective for cystic, hormonal acne that lies deep beneath the surface of your skin.

Always check the label on the box of your acne patches, but you should typically only leave acne patches on your skin for a maximum of two hours.

What can I expect from using acne patches?

 While it’s impossible to promise that an acne patch will make a pimple completely vanish overnight, acne patch users have found that the unmedicated stickers help remove whiteheads and the medicated and microneedle stickers reduce pimple size and redness much more quickly than other acne treatments.

What brands of acne patches are the best?

If you’re looking to purchase acne patches, choose one of these three favorites depending on the type of patch that best suits your acne.

Cosrx Acne Pimple Master Patch

These non-medicated patches contain liquid paraffin, betaine salicylate, and white willow bark. The liquid paraffin creates a barrier and moisturizes the skin, the betaine salicylate exfoliates skin, and the white willow bark has anti-inflammatory qualities and helps treat acne. The patches help address acne and acne scars on both the face and body.

Missha Speedy Solution Anti Trouble Patch

These medicated patches are made of salicylic acid and tea tree oil, which help to bring down redness and help pimples recover more quickly. Wear this patch when you need to resist touching your face, which adds bacteria and oil to blemishes.

Acropass Trouble Cure

Acropass Trouble Cure patches are made with microneedles that push into the skin, helping the patch’s salicylic acid and tea tree leaf oil sink into the skin beneath the acne’s surface. The patches also contain hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and oligopeptide-76, which target bacteria and inflammation. These patches are great for stubborn hormonal or cystic acne. Though they contain microneedles, you shouldn’t worry about pain during the treatment because every microneedle is only a third of the width of a strand of hair.

If you’re struggling with a pimple that just won’t go away, try an acne patch for a quicker, more effective way to address your acne.