Does creatine cause acne? The short answer is no—there is no scientific evidence directly linking creatine supplementation to acne breakouts. Despite years of concern among fitness enthusiasts, no clinical study has measured and recorded acne incidence in creatine users. The myth persists because a single 2009 study showed that creatine increased DHT (dihydrotestosterone) levels in a small group of rugby players, leading many to assume acne would follow. However, that study never actually measured skin health or acne, and more recent evidence contradicts its findings.
If you’re considering creatine supplementation and worried about your complexion, the available research suggests your skin is likely safe. The confusion around creatine and acne stems from a theoretical chain: if creatine raises DHT, and DHT can worsen acne in people already prone to it, then logically creatine should cause acne. This reasoning sounds plausible on the surface, but it glosses over a critical gap—there’s no evidence the first link in that chain actually triggers the last. Scientists have published dozens of studies on creatine’s effects on hormones and performance, yet none have documented actual acne as a side effect. The narrative has been built on theory rather than clinical observation.
Table of Contents
- What Does the Science Actually Say About Creatine and Acne?
- The DHT Connection: What the Latest 2025 Research Reveals
- Why the 2009 Study Misleads: Limitations and Context
- What Actually Causes Acne in People Who Work Out
- What If You Take Creatine and Still Get Acne?
- Practical Recommendations for Creatine Users Concerned About Skin
- What Future Research Will Likely Show
- Conclusion
What Does the Science Actually Say About Creatine and Acne?
The most important fact to understand is that there is zero clinical evidence directly linking creatine to acne. Medical News Today and Curology, both evidence-based resources, have examined the available literature and found no studies measuring acne incidence in creatine users. This absence of evidence is significant—if creatine regularly caused acne, you would expect at least some published case reports or small observational studies documenting the problem. Instead, the scientific literature is silent on acne as a creatine side effect, even though dermatologists and sports medicine physicians have been aware of the theoretical concern for years. The origin of the creatine-acne myth traces back to a single 2009 study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. Researchers gave 20 college rugby players creatine monohydrate and measured their DHT levels during a 7-day loading phase and 14-day maintenance period. They found a 56% increase in DHT during the loading phase and a sustained 40% elevation during maintenance.
The study made headlines in fitness communities, and people quickly jumped to the conclusion that higher DHT meant higher acne risk. However, the researchers never measured acne, skin quality, or follicle health. They only measured hormone levels in blood serum. This is a critical distinction—measuring a hormone is not the same as measuring a clinical outcome. What makes this even more problematic is that the 2009 study has never been successfully replicated by independent researchers. In the years since publication, other scientists examining creatine’s effects on testosterone and DHT have largely failed to find the same magnitude of increase. Of 13 studies examining creatine’s effects on testosterone, 10 found no meaningful increases. Importantly, none of the studies investigating free testosterone—the direct precursor to DHT—reported significant increases. This pattern suggests the 2009 finding may have been an outlier or specific to the population studied rather than a universal effect of creatine supplementation.
The DHT Connection: What the Latest 2025 Research Reveals
The most recent evidence on this question comes from a 2025 randomized controlled trial, and it directly contradicts the 2009 findings. Researchers conducted a 12-week study comparing creatine supplementation to placebo and measured DHT levels, the DHT-to-testosterone ratio, and hair growth parameters (a sensitive marker of DHT activity on follicles). The result: there were no significant differences between the creatine group and the placebo group on any of these measures. This was the first study to directly assess follicle health outcomes following creatine supplementation, making it far more relevant to the acne question than the 2009 hormone measurement alone. The 2025 trial is important because it tested the mechanism that supposedly links creatine to acne. If creatine reliably increased DHT, you would expect to see measurable changes in hair growth, DHT levels, and hormone ratios in a 12-week study with a sensitive measurement protocol.
The fact that none of these changes occurred suggests that either creatine does not significantly increase DHT in most users, or that any increase that does occur is too modest to trigger downstream effects on follicles or skin. This finding is a significant problem for anyone claiming creatine causes acne through a DHT mechanism. There is also an important caveat: even when DHT levels do increase, the magnitude matters. In the 2009 study, the elevated DHT remained within normal ranges. DHT is a natural hormone that every person produces, and normal variation between individuals is substantial. A 40% increase that keeps you within the normal range is fundamentally different from a 40% increase that pushes you into an abnormal or pathological range. For acne specifically, the threshold question is whether small or moderate increases in DHT—if they occur at all—are sufficient to trigger breakouts in people who aren’t already genetically predisposed to DHT-sensitive acne.
Why the 2009 Study Misleads: Limitations and Context
The 2009 study has several limitations that aren’t always discussed when people cite it. First, the sample was very small—only 20 college rugby players. This raises questions about generalizability. Rugby players are a specific population: young, male, athletic, engaging in intense physical training, and potentially using other supplements or having dietary patterns that differ from the general population. Whether their hormonal response to creatine matches the response in non-athletes, older adults, women, or other groups remains unknown. Small studies can be valuable for identifying signals, but they need replication in diverse populations before their findings can be treated as definitive. Second, the study measured only serum DHT, which is just one marker of androgenic activity. DHT affects tissues through the androgen receptor, and the sensitivity of skin to DHT varies dramatically between individuals based on genetic factors like androgen receptor density and 5-alpha reductase enzyme activity.
Two people with identical DHT levels can have very different skin responses because of these genetic differences. The 2009 study provided no information about whether the increased DHT actually translated to increased activity in skin tissue or whether the participants experienced any change in acne status. Without that information, extrapolating from the hormone data to skin outcomes is speculative. Third, the 2009 study did not control for confounding variables that affect acne in athletes. College rugby players undergoing intense training increase their sweating, may change their protein intake, may alter their hygiene routines, and are under psychological stress during the study period. Any of these factors could trigger acne independently of hormone changes. The study design did not isolate creatine’s effects from the context of athletic training and lifestyle. When researchers designed the more recent 2025 study with better controls and larger sample sizes, they found no DHT increase at all—suggesting the original finding may have been confounded or inflated.
What Actually Causes Acne in People Who Work Out
If creatine isn’t responsible for acne in gym-goers, what is? Research points to specific factors that have much stronger evidence supporting a link to breakouts. Whey protein is one of the best-documented culprits. Multiple studies have shown that whey protein increases IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor 1) levels, and IGF-1 is known to stimulate sebum production and skin cell proliferation—two mechanisms that promote acne. This is a much more direct biological pathway than the hypothetical creatine-DHT-acne chain. If you’re breaking out after starting a workout routine and taking a protein powder, the powder is a more likely suspect than creatine. Increased sweating from more intense workouts is another well-established trigger.
Sweat itself doesn’t directly cause acne, but sweat-soaked clothing, trapped bacteria, and increased moisture in follicles create an environment where acne-causing bacteria (Cutibacterium acnes) can thrive. This effect is purely mechanical and doesn’t depend on any hormonal changes. Someone taking creatine and simultaneously increasing their training intensity will sweat more, and that increased sweating could easily explain any skin problems they notice. Confusing this cause with creatine itself is a common mistake. Other workout-related factors include improper hygiene (not washing post-workout), touching the face during exercise, using contaminated gym equipment, and dietary changes that often accompany starting a fitness routine. Many people who begin taking creatine also increase their overall protein intake, change their meal timing, or alter their sleep schedule—all of which can affect skin. The problem is that acne typically appears on a 6-8 week lag from its triggering cause (because that’s how long it takes for a follicle to develop into a visible lesion), so people often misattribute the breakout to whatever supplement or activity they started most recently, not necessarily what actually caused it.
What If You Take Creatine and Still Get Acne?
Some people will read this article, take creatine, and still develop acne. The fact that this happens doesn’t mean creatine caused it. Acne is multifactorial, and someone prone to breakouts can experience worsening from many causes: their menstrual cycle (if applicable), increased stress, dietary triggers, poor sleep, changes in skin care routine, or simply genetic predisposition activating at an unfortunate time. If you develop acne while taking creatine, the responsible approach is to consider all the variables that changed around the same time, not to assume causation. That said, there is one legitimate caveat: if you are someone who is extremely sensitive to androgenic activity and has severe, hormonally-driven acne that worsens with androgens, you may theoretically want to be cautious. For people in this category—those with a history of severe cystic acne triggered by hormonal fluctuations—it’s reasonable to discuss creatine use with a dermatologist before starting.
This is not because creatine definitely causes acne, but because if you are in the rare group where DHT sensitivity is extreme, even a small increase might matter. For the vast majority of people without this specific predisposition, this concern is theoretical rather than practical. The distinction matters because it shapes expectations. If you have normal acne risk and take creatine, the probability of experiencing acne caused by creatine is very low based on available evidence. If you develop acne anyway, you should investigate other causes first. However, if you have a personal history of severe hormonally-driven acne, you have a legitimate reason to seek professional guidance, not because the evidence indicts creatine, but because the stakes are higher for you personally if something does trigger a flare.
Practical Recommendations for Creatine Users Concerned About Skin
If you want to take creatine but are worried about acne, the practical answer is simple: based on current evidence, you can safely supplement with creatine while maintaining good skin health practices. The evidence does not support discontinuing creatine due to acne concerns alone. However, you should pair creatine use with habits that actually matter for skin: thorough post-workout hygiene, clean workout clothes, and if you’re also using whey protein powder, monitoring whether the protein (not the creatine) correlates with breakouts. Creatine monohydrate is the most studied form and the most cost-effective option. It carries the same lack of evidence for causing acne as other forms, and it’s the form used in the studies discussed in this article. The typical loading protocol is 20 grams per day divided into 4 doses for 5-7 days, followed by a maintenance dose of 3-5 grams per day.
Some people skip the loading phase and simply take 3-5 grams daily, which takes longer to build up in your system but avoids the higher initial intake and any potential acute effects. Neither approach has been shown to cause acne in any published study. One practical comparison: if you’re deciding between creatine and whey protein as supplements to support your training, creatine has far stronger evidence supporting its safety for skin. Whey protein has documented biological mechanisms linking it to IGF-1 increases and acne in some studies, whereas creatine’s mechanism for causing acne remains entirely theoretical and unsupported by clinical outcomes. If acne is a concern and you must choose, creatine is the safer bet. If you’re taking both, you have more reason to suspect the protein than the creatine if breakouts occur.
What Future Research Will Likely Show
The 2025 randomized controlled trial represents a significant step forward because it directly tested the mechanism linking creatine to acne in a controlled environment. As more research follows this model—measuring not just hormone levels but actual skin outcomes in diverse populations—the evidence for creatine’s safety for skin will likely continue to strengthen. The fact that the 2025 study found no DHT increase at all, contradicting the 2009 finding, suggests that future research will continue to chip away at the theoretical basis for concern. One area where additional research would be valuable is investigating whether creatine affects acne risk in women, in older adults, and in people taking hormonal birth control or other medications that affect androgen signaling.
The existing evidence base skews heavily toward young men, so expanding the population studied would provide more complete answers. Researchers could also conduct prospective studies following creatine users over 12-16 weeks and measuring acne incidence directly using standardized acne severity scales. Such studies would definitively answer the question rather than leaving it in a state of theoretical uncertainty. Until such research exists, the absence of evidence from current literature is the most honest answer: we have no evidence that creatine causes acne in any population studied so far.
Conclusion
The evidence shows that creatine supplementation does not have a documented link to acne. While a 2009 study found increased DHT levels in a small group of rugby players, this finding has never been replicated, subsequent research contradicts it, and critically, acne was never measured in that original study. Recent 2025 randomized controlled trials testing the DHT mechanism directly found no significant increases in DHT, DHT ratios, or follicle-related outcomes in creatine users compared to placebo. There is simply no clinical evidence that creatine causes breakouts, despite the persistent myth in fitness communities.
If you’re concerned about acne and considering creatine supplementation, the science supports taking it safely. If you develop acne while supplementing, investigate other more likely causes first: your protein powder, increased sweating, stress, diet, sleep, or menstrual cycle. For the vast majority of people, creatine is not the culprit. If you have a personal history of severe, hormonally-driven acne, it’s reasonable to discuss any supplement with your dermatologist, but do so based on a honest assessment of the evidence rather than a fear rooted in a single unreplicated study from 2009.
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