OnSkin App Review: Ingredient Scanner and Skin Scan Explained

OnSkin is mainly an ingredient scanner. It gives skincare, makeup and hair products a Safety Score from 0 to 100 against a database of about 2 million products, then a Skin Match verdict based on a short skin quiz. Its Face Analysis selfie scan, added in late 2025, is newer and much less documented. The app is free with limits; full access runs on weekly or longer PRO plans.

Below we look at each half separately: how the product score is built and where it overstates risk, what the face scan does and how photos are handled, the paywall and prices as of October 2026, and how OnSkin's mix of scanner and selfie compares with Pori's. This review is based on OnSkin's website, FAQ, privacy policy and store listings. We didn't test the app hands-on.

Is there a better alternative to OnSkin?

If the selfie side matters more to you than database size, look at Pori. We make Pori, so factor that in. Pori starts from a skin scan: a selfie returns a 0 to 100 skin score with Hydration & Moisture, Pores & Texture, Pigmentation & Tone, Anti-aging & Elasticity and Overall health, plus a skin-age estimate, and its ingredient scanner (Pro) flags each ingredient as beneficial, use with caution or avoid for your skin type. OnSkin's product database is far larger, it runs on Android, and it covers hair and household products, so for scanning lots of products it does more. Our ranking of ingredient checker apps compares both with Yuka, SkinSort and others.

What does the OnSkin app do?

Its App Store listing describes a set of product tools built around a Skin Profile, from developer AIBY.

It rates 4.7 from about 33,000 US App Store ratings as of October 2026, needs iOS 18 or later, and is also on Google Play.

How does the OnSkin ingredient scanner score products?

OnSkin combines a risk level for each ingredient into a 100-point Safety Score, using what its FAQ calls a proprietary formula. Ingredients are assessed for carcinogenicity, endocrine and reproductive toxicity, allergy risk, and alerts for ingredients that are unsafe in high amounts. The score bands are:

• Excellent: 76 to 100
• Good: 51 to 75
• Not Great: 26 to 50
• Bad: 0 to 25

Products scoring 95 or higher get a "Safe Choice" mark, which the OnSkin site says is informational only and not a certification by any regulator. Sources it names include the FDA, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review, the European Commission, IARC and California EPA. The App Store listing says scoring criteria are reviewed by in-house certified dermatologists, that there are "no brand deals, no sponsored reviews," and the site says you won't see cosmetic ads in the app. If a product is missing, you can request an analysis, which the listing says takes a few hours.

Is the OnSkin app accurate?

It's more careful than a pure avoid-list, but it is still a hazard score built from ingredient names. The "high-concentration alert" criterion is a step toward considering dose, yet US labels don't list percentages, so the app can only infer amounts from an ingredient's position.

Some of its own framing also runs ahead of the evidence. The FAQ's example suggests scanning a "clean" product to find "toxic preservatives such as parabens," while the FDA says it does not have information showing that parabens as they are used in cosmetics have an effect on human health. Our guide on whether parabens are bad covers the research. On the other hand, OnSkin's flags on fragrance fit the evidence: a study of 1,470 products sold as clean found 93.8% contained at least one potential allergen, most often fragrances and botanicals.

Skin Match is the more useful half for most people, because it checks a product against your own skin profile. It's only as accurate as your quiz answers, though. The website's routine quiz asks six questions, starting with skin type, main concern, age and climate, so if you misjudge your skin type, every match shifts.

How good is the OnSkin skin analysis?

There isn't enough public detail to judge it. The App Store description doesn't mention Face Analysis at all; it appears in the version 3.13 release notes as a way to "scan your face to discover your skin's real needs." We found no published list of what it measures, no scores per area and no accuracy data on OnSkin's site or listings.

On photos, OnSkin's two documents read differently. The privacy policy says the skin analysis feature uses Apple's TrueDepth API, that face photos are "used in real time and processed locally on your iOS device," and that they are never sold or shared with third parties. The website FAQ's example says an uploaded face photo is "securely stored to personalize your profile." Both say photos aren't used for advertising. If this matters to you, read the current policy before scanning, and see our guide to skin analysis app privacy.

Like any consumer face scan, it isn't a skin check. The American Academy of Dermatology advises seeing a board-certified dermatologist for a spot that is different from others, or that changes, itches or bleeds.

How much does OnSkin Premium cost?

OnSkin is free to download, and the FAQ says the free version lets you scan and check ratings with limits, while PRO unlocks unlimited scans and features such as the Personal Skin Helper. A free trial is offered at first launch. The US App Store lists these in-app purchases as of October 2026:

The listing doesn't state each PRO plan's billing period. Weekly plans add up quickly: $6.99 a week is about $363 a year, so if you plan to keep it, check whether a longer plan is offered at the paywall. The App Store privacy label lists purchases, location, identifiers and usage data among the data that may be used to track you, and third-party advertising among the purposes for data linked to you.

How does OnSkin's scanner-plus-selfie approach compare with Pori's?

Both apps pair product scanning with face analysis, but they start from opposite ends. OnSkin is a product database with a skin profile and a newer selfie feature attached. Pori is a skin tracker with an ingredient scanner attached.

Pori's scanner covers far fewer products, and US coverage is thinner than OnSkin's, though you can photograph a label when a barcode isn't found. Where Pori differs is the loop: you scan your skin, check a product against your skin type, then rescan to see whether anything changed. If you want to understand what a selfie scan can and can't read, see how AI skin analysis works.

Who is OnSkin best for?

• A good fit: people who scan many products, including hair and household ones, want a quick verdict plus a match for their skin profile, or use Android.
• A weaker fit: people who mainly want a detailed, trackable selfie analysis, people who prefer not to pay weekly, and anyone who finds "Bad" scores alarming when the flagged ingredient is used at permitted levels.

Neither half of the app is a diagnosis. If a product causes a reaction that doesn't settle, or your skin changes in a way that worries you, see a dermatologist.