Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water: a Guru Score of 68%

What the experts use it for.

The concerns the experts tie this product to, in their own words. Paid and founder takes don't count.

Breakouts and acne2 experts

“These have never caused breakouts for me.”

Abbey Yung, watch at 4:17

Excess oil and shine1 expert

“I absolutely love that it works so well, is easy to use for makeup removal, and does not feel greasy at all.”

Abbey Yung, watch at 0:56

Dark spots and post-acne marks1 expert

“It's low pH, great for your skin, has niacinamide so great for your skin for acne, blemishes, dark spots, barrier.”

Doctorly, watch at 11:53

Skin barrier support1 expert

“It's low pH, great for your skin, has niacinamide so great for your skin for acne, blemishes, dark spots, barrier.”

Doctorly, watch at 11:53

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored

Dr. Vanita Rattan

1.23M subs

~Yay

"It's got poloxamer 184, which is also a surfactant. And it's got glycerin in it, which is a humectant. So that just basically holds water in the top layer of skin. So it's a very basic ingredients list, which I love. There's no alcohol, no essential oils, and no fragrance. So this for me is a definite yes. Definitely worth buying. And nothing in this is going to irritate your skin. [...] It's a very gentle way for me to remove my makeup. So I definitely recommend the Micellar Cleansing Water."

Dr. Aleksandra Brown

153k subs

~Yay

"It is super gentle. It removes that makeup, sunscreen impurities without leaving greasy residue. Great for all skin types, especially sensitive skin, as it requires no rinsing or scrubbing whatsoever. I love it for first cleanse, preparing the skin for that deeper second cleanse. I've gone through bottles and bottles of this. I love the one with the pink cap because it's really good for even the most sensitive skin. Also, it does not irritate my eyes at all."

Top Pick: affordable micellar water

All 5 takes from Dr. Aleksandra Brown

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"It is super gentle. It removes that makeup, sunscreen impurities without leaving greasy residue. Great for all skin types, especially sensitive skin, as it requires no rinsing or scrubbing whatsoever. I love it for first cleanse, preparing the skin for that deeper second cleanse. I've gone through bottles and bottles of this. I love the one with the pink cap because it's really good for even the most sensitive skin. Also, it does not irritate my eyes at all."

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"I tend to use my micellar water, Bioderma has been my go-to lately, it really doesn't matter which one you use, Garnier is another good one, some call it the dupe, but I think they're a little bit different. If you're going to get Garnier, it's the one with the paint cap. I obviously love this, it's almost out, so I'll just put this on a cotton round and kind of wipe my face, especially get around the eyes to make sure I remove all that night skincare routine."

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"It's only in about $10 range. It will gently remove makeup, even eye makeup, even mascara. You just have to hold it when you put it on your cotton round on your eyelashes for a little bit to pull the mascara off and then wipe it off. It does a fantastic job. It's good for sensitive, acne-prone, oily skin, all skin types really. And no, it does not require any rinsing. Micellar water is intended to be left on your face. You don't really have to wash your face after using micellar water."

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"I love the one with the pink cap. It's really good for sensitive skin. It does a good job of removing makeup and sunscreen impurities. I really like it for the eye makeup. If you just put some on a cotton round and let it sit on your mascara and then pull it off, it comes off so so easy. This is really best for like that first cleanser or if you've cleaned everything and you just want to make sure it's clean. You want to get behind your ears."

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"I have the Garnier skin active Micellar Cleansing Water, the one with the pink cap. I did purchase this myself. I love it, it's affordable, easy to use. I tend to use micellar water in the morning instead of washing my face because I feel like I need to get my nighttime skincare off but I don't really feel like splashing water on my face most of the time, so this is my go-to."

Skin Obsessed Mary

33k subs

~Yay

"I use this specifically to remove eye makeup before I double cleanse in the evening. [...] Both of these products use gentle surfactants to lift makeup without stripping the skin. [...] You really can't go wrong with Garnier."

James Welsh

1.58M subs

~Nay

"I'm convinced people are pretending to like Garnier micellar water. [...] I hate this one. I like the concept, and as much as I say you don't need to rinse off your micellar water, this one needs to come off your face and into the bin. [...] It left my skin sticky and stingy, it stung around my eyes and around my nose folds. It got rid of makeup particularly well, but so does a cleansing balm. If you really like the feeling of a sticky oily mess on your skin, give this one a go."

All 4 takes from James Welsh

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"In my personal opinion, this is the worst brand for micellar water. I have seen people, including myself, review this. You leave it on your face, it stings. It says for sensitive skin, but when you leave it on, it stings, it hurts, it can feel itchy. [...] This one stung my eyes so much, it dried out the corners of my nose. It was stingy, it was irritating. [...] I know a lot of people use this absolutely fine, but also the vast majority of reviews I see from this is negative."

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"My brother loves Garnier. He can leave it on his skin no problem whatsoever. My skin goes crazy. It gets red, inflamed and itchy. If I even leave this on my skin for 2 seconds, do I now rinse off every micellar water? No, obviously not."

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"I'm convinced people are pretending to like Garnier micellar water. [...] I hate this one. I like the concept, and as much as I say you don't need to rinse off your micellar water, this one needs to come off your face and into the bin. [...] It left my skin sticky and stingy, it stung around my eyes and around my nose folds. It got rid of makeup particularly well, but so does a cleansing balm. If you really like the feeling of a sticky oily mess on your skin, give this one a go."

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"Garnier micellar water I will not touch, it irritates my skin to no end. My brother loves it, it is one of his favorite micellar waters, so it is not that all micellar water is bad, it is just not for me."

Dr Dray

2.69M subs

~Nay

"Micellar water is helpful for some people for removing makeup, water resistant sunscreen, cosmetic residue. It's like an option, right? You have oil cleanser, cleansing balm, micellar water. It works for some people. For me, I never find that these work particularly well. [...] When I've tried this, it just burns around my eyes and causes eyelid irritation."

All 6 takes from Dr Dray

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"I cannot get this to work for myself this Garnier Micellar Water."

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"The Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water gives me raccoon eyes. It doesn't work for me, [...] even when I use it in a double cleanse fashion."

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"Micellar water is helpful for some people for removing makeup, water resistant sunscreen, cosmetic residue. It's like an option, right? You have oil cleanser, cleansing balm, micellar water. It works for some people. For me, I never find that these work particularly well. [...] When I've tried this, it just burns around my eyes and causes eyelid irritation."

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"I tried Garnier's Micellar Water in the past and it was a fail for me, [...] it stings and burns the skin and leaves mascara residue behind."

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"I have had no success with this Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water whatsoever. I find it deplorable, it burns my eyes, it actually burns my skin, and I don't have particularly sensitive skin. It doesn't take off makeup like mascara, it requires a lot of effort. [...] I do it as a double cleanse, I use this first and then follow up with a gentle cleanser, and I'm still left with mascara residue all over the place. I just cannot get this product to work."

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"There's also one by Garnier, the SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water, maybe that's what this Target one is supposed to be emulating. [...] I have tried it and I remember the same situation, [...] it takes too much time in comparison to oil cleansing. There are multiple barriers in my experience with micellar water like that."

Dr. Jenny Liu

324k subs

~Yay

"I recommend going with something affordable like a micellar water, and the one I'm suggesting is from Garnier, their Micellar Cleansing Water, for about $4.99. It's a gentle micellar water you can put on a cotton pad and gently massage on your face and eyes to remove all the makeup and buildup. [...] If you don't wear a lot of makeup and water-resistant sunscreen, you can skip this."

Dr. Shereene Idriss

1.73M subs

~Nay

"I don't think the Garnier micellar water takes off the makeup well. [...] It kind of irritated my eyes way more than anything else I've ever used."

All 2 takes from Dr. Shereene Idriss

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"I don't think the Garnier micellar water takes off the makeup well. [...] It kind of irritated my eyes way more than anything else I've ever used."

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"I would pick this over Mustela for your baby's tush. If you're looking for a non-rinse water cleaning solution for your baby's tushy tushes, go for this one. Would I pick this on a normal day for my face when I'm taking off my makeup and my skincare? No, because I don't think it works as well on its own compared to the Bioderma one."

Cassandra Bankson

2.46M subs

~Yay

"I never thought I would love micellar water from Garnier but I actually fell in love with this. You can find some really inexpensive but effective skincare."

All 2 takes from Cassandra Bankson

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"I never thought I would love micellar water from Garnier but I actually fell in love with this. You can find some really inexpensive but effective skincare."

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"This works really well on face makeup. My foundation gone, sunscreen gone. But for some reason, whether it was the magnetic liner or [...] regular eyeliner and mascara, this just didn't do it. It says it removes makeup even waterproof mascara but I don't feel like it did. [...] For face stuff it's great but I still felt like I needed to rinse it off at the end. For the price it's fine but I was just kind of disappointed with this."

Doctorly

3.59M subs

~Yay

"Garnier has a micellar water so you don't need to break the bank here. It's low pH, great for your skin, has niacinamide so great for your skin for acne, blemishes, dark spots, barrier. Super straightforward, simple, fragrance-free."

Mad About Skin

734k subs

~Yay

"If you want to go super affordable, the Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water is great. I used to use that so, so long, so so good. In terms of cleansing, it will work just as well."

AliceintheRabbitHole

59k subs

~Yay

"I'm quite familiar with the original Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water as well as some of the other variants. I like Garnier's cleansing water. I think it's a great option, a budget friendly option. Some people do react with it for some reason."

Nipun Kapur

413k subs

~Nay

"Micellar water and cleansing milk is not the same as using a cleansing balm or a cleansing oil. [...] Sunscreen filters are very very tough to break down, therefore cleansing balm is recommended."

Hyram

4.33M subs

~Yay

"For a good affordable makeup remover I personally recommend the Garnier unscented Micellar Cleansing Water. This one is a great simple drugstore product that just gets the job done, it removes all the makeup and all the sunscreen without posing the risk of sensitizing your skin. It's a very simple formula. Micellar waters are really great because they're very gentle on the skin, they tend to not be very stripping, and this one is a great example of that."

All 2 takes from Hyram

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"Garnier Micellar Water is coming up a lot in this video on her eyes washing her face. [...] It's not the best for mascara or eyelashes, but that's where a micellar water can work a lot. [...] I would recommend a reusable cotton round with micellar water and then pressing it on your eyes to get rid of that because cleansing balms just aren't the best."

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"For a good affordable makeup remover I personally recommend the Garnier unscented Micellar Cleansing Water. This one is a great simple drugstore product that just gets the job done, it removes all the makeup and all the sunscreen without posing the risk of sensitizing your skin. It's a very simple formula. Micellar waters are really great because they're very gentle on the skin, they tend to not be very stripping, and this one is a great example of that."

Abbey Yung

887k subs

~Yay

"This cleanser has a whipped, airy foam consistency. It's plush, it's soft, it's super lightweight. And the key ingredients are glycerin and green"

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water?

A fragrance-free micellar cleansing water designed to remove makeup, sunscreen and impurities without rinsing, suitable for all skin types including sensitive skin.

Is Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water worth it?

The gurus are split. 10 of the 14 gurus give it their stamp of approval while 4 would skip it, which lands it in the middle at a Guru Score of 68%.

What is Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water's Guru Score?

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water holds a Guru Score of 68%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 14 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.

Who is Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water best for?

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water is generally suited to sensitive skin.

What is Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water good for, according to the experts?

In their reviews, experts say Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water is good for breakouts and acne (2 experts), excess oil and shine (1 expert), dark spots and post-acne marks (1 expert) and skin barrier support (1 expert).