Numbuzin No.3 Cleansing Balm review: great first cleanse, modest pore claims.
A green K-beauty balm that melts sunscreen and makeup and rinses away clean, which is exactly what a first cleanse should do. It's unusually open about its green tea and charcoal doses. It isn't truly scent-free, though, and the "pore" promise rests on ingredients with little evidence behind them.
numbuzin No.3 is a good first-step cleansing balm for removing sunscreen and makeup, with modest extras. An oil-and-ester base dissolves makeup, and built-in emulsifiers turn it milky with water so it rinses off without an oily film. It discloses 1% green tea powder and 0.8% charcoal, but there's little evidence that charcoal or green tea in a rinse-off balm shrinks pores or clears blackheads. It's sold as fragrance-free yet contains tea tree and rosemary oils, which can irritate sensitive skin. Follow it with a gentle water-based cleanser. As an import, its price in India varies by seller.
- Product
- numbuzin No.3 Pore & Makeup Cleansing Balm, 85 g
- Best for
- Removing sunscreen, makeup and oil as a first cleanse
- Not ideal for
- Very sensitive skin; essential-oil allergies
- Key ingredients
- Green tea powder 1%, charcoal 0.8%, clays
- Base
- Caprylic/capric triglyceride and other light esters
- Scent
- No added fragrance, but tea tree and rosemary oils
- How to use
- Dry hands, dry face; emulsify with water; rinse; second cleanse
- Verdict
- A capable balm; buy it for the melt, not the pore claims
Reviewed by the Naked Compound Research Team · Last updated · Not lab-tested: based on the published ingredient list, the brand's directions and the sources below.
numbuzin is a Korean skincare brand that names each product by number, and No.3 is its "pore" line. This balm is sold in India through Amazon, luxury marketplaces and K-beauty importers. Its job is the first step of a double cleanse: dissolving sunscreen, makeup and excess oil that a regular face wash struggles to lift.
We read the label the way we read a supplement label: what's stated, what's implied, and what's missing. We haven't lab-tested this product. Everything below comes from the published ingredient list, the brand's directions and the evidence on its key ingredients, and we've flagged where the claims run ahead of that evidence.
"A cleansing balm is judged by how cleanly it melts and rinses. On that, No.3 delivers. The pore promises are the part to take lightly."— Naked Compound Research Team
What's actually in the jar.
The full ingredient list, in label order and grouped where ingredients do the same job. numbuzin states some doses in ppm (parts per million; 10,000 ppm = 1%). [1]
| # | Ingredient | What it does here |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Caprylic/capric triglyceride | The main oil: a light, coconut-derived ester that dissolves makeup and sunscreen without feeling heavy. |
| 02 | Ethylhexyl palmitate, triethylhexanoin | More light esters that help the balm melt and spread. |
| 03 | Sorbeth-30 tetraoleate, polysorbate 85 | Emulsifiers. When you add water, they turn the oil milky so it rinses off instead of leaving a film. This is what separates a balm from plain oil. |
| 04 | Synthetic wax, beeswax, silica dimethyl silylate | Give it a solid balm texture in the jar. |
| 05 | Green tea powder (10,000 ppm) | 1% green tea. An antioxidant-rich plant ingredient, but rinsed off within a minute or two, so expect little lasting effect. |
| 06 | Tea tree leaf oil, rosemary leaf oil | Essential oils. They add a herbal scent and some antimicrobial reputation, and they're a common cause of irritation for sensitive skin. |
| 07 | Green tea seed oil (10 ppm), green tea water (0.1 ppm) | Tiny amounts, there mainly for the label story. |
| 08 | Charcoal powder (8,000 ppm) | 0.8% charcoal. It can bind surface oil, but there's little evidence it clears blackheads or shrinks pores. |
| 09 | Dipropylene glycol, 1,2-hexanediol | Solvent and preservative booster. |
| 10 | Chromium oxide green | A mineral pigment: the reason the balm is green. |
| 11 | Pentaerythrityl tetra-di-t-butyl hydroxyhydrocinnamate | An antioxidant that keeps the oils from going rancid. |
| 12 | Illite, montmorillonite, kaolin | Clays that absorb oil, near the end of the list. |
Ingredient list as published by retailers of the 85 g balm (2026). Formulas can change, so check the list on the jar you receive.
Doses in ppm
Printing 10,000 ppm green tea and 8,000 ppm charcoal on the ingredient list is more transparent than most brands, K-beauty or otherwise.
"No fragrance"
There's no added perfume, but tea tree and rosemary oils are fragrant essential oils. If you avoid fragrance because of sensitive skin, this balm isn't truly scent-free.
"Pore" and "blackhead" claims
Charcoal and clay can soak up surface oil, and a thorough first cleanse helps pores look clearer for a while. But there's little clinical evidence that charcoal products clear blackheads or change pore size. [3]
It's step one, not the whole routine
Cleansing balms are designed to be followed by a water-based cleanser. Used alone, they can leave residue that some acne-prone skin doesn't like.
What we can actually say.
Oil-based cleansers are good at removing sunscreen and makeup. Water-resistant sunscreens and long-wear makeup are designed to resist water, so an oil or balm that dissolves them, followed by a regular cleanser, is a sensible way to remove them fully. This balm's emulsifiers mean it rinses off rather than sitting on the skin.
The charcoal and green tea are mostly there for the story. Reviews of charcoal in skincare find little clinical evidence for its popular claims, including clearing blackheads and shrinking pores. [3] Green tea has research as a leave-on ingredient, but at 1% in a balm you rinse off after a minute, we wouldn't expect much from it.
Essential oils are the main irritation risk. Tea tree and rosemary oils can cause irritation or allergic reactions, and they're present in a product marketed as fragrance-free. If your skin reacts to fragranced products, patch-test first.
No product-specific trials. We found no independent published studies of this balm. The review rests on its ingredients and general cleansing guidance.
How to use it as a first cleanse.
Dry hands, dry face
Take about a grape-sized amount and massage it onto a dry face for 30–60 seconds. Water at this stage stops it melting makeup properly. [2]
Emulsify, then rinse
Wet your fingertips and keep massaging until the balm turns milky, then rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water. [2]
Second cleanse
Follow with a gentle water-based face wash to remove any residue: see our Cetaphil Gentle Face Wash review, or a salicylic acid wash for oily skin.
Evenings, and keep it dry
Use it in the evening when you've worn sunscreen or makeup. Scoop with a clean, dry spatula so water doesn't get into the jar.
Who should buy it, and who shouldn't.
You wear sunscreen or makeup and want a clean first cleanse
- You wear water-resistant sunscreen or long-wear makeup most days.
- You like a balm that rinses off without an oily film.
- You value brands that disclose ingredient doses.
- You already double cleanse, or want to start.
You're sensitive to scent, or expect it to fix pores
- Your skin reacts to fragrance or essential oils, including tea tree.
- You're buying it to clear blackheads: a salicylic acid product has better evidence.
- You want a single-step cleanser and won't follow it with a face wash.
- You want value: plain cleansing oils and balms cost less in India.
Pros
- Melts sunscreen and makeup and rinses clean with water
- Discloses green tea and charcoal doses in ppm
- Light ester base, not heavy mineral oil
- Sensible 85 g size for a first-cleanse product
Cons
- Tea tree and rosemary oils despite a "no fragrance" claim
- Little evidence for charcoal's pore and blackhead claims
- Needs a second cleanse to remove residue
- Imported, so India price and stock vary by seller
Our read: a well-made K-beauty cleansing balm that does the important job, removing sunscreen and makeup, very well. Buy it for how it melts and rinses. Take the charcoal and green tea pore claims lightly, and skip it if essential oils bother your skin.
*We couldn't verify a stable Indian price: numbuzin No.3 is imported and sold by several marketplaces and K-beauty stores at different prices. Check the live price, the size and the "Sold by" field before buying; imports carry a higher risk of old or counterfeit stock.
Frequently asked questions about numbuzin No.3 Pore & Makeup Cleansing Balm
Is numbuzin No.3 cleansing balm good for oily skin?
Does numbuzin No.3 remove waterproof sunscreen and makeup?
Is numbuzin No.3 cleansing balm fragrance-free?
Does the charcoal in numbuzin No.3 clear blackheads?
Do I need to use a face wash after numbuzin No.3?
How much green tea and charcoal is in numbuzin No.3?
- INCIDecoder. numbuzin No.3 Pore & Makeup Cleansing Balm with Green Tea and Charcoal — ingredient list. incidecoder.com
- numbuzin No.3 Pore & Makeup Cleansing Balm, 85 g — product listing and directions. global.oliveyoung.com
- Medical News Today. Activated charcoal benefits for skin (little evidence for skincare claims). medicalnewstoday.com
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