Skin apps ยท Facts checked
Skinli vs Skan
Skinli and Skan both read a face photo and suggest a routine. Skan is a phone app for iPhone and Android that scans for acne, redness, pores, pigmentation, wrinkles and eye bags, and matches products to you, with paid plans in the App Store from $1.99 a week to $39.99 a year. Skinli runs in any web browser with nothing to install and focuses on acne only. Its acne score is free, and its plan is from $19.99 for 4 weeks or $39.99 for 12 weeks, and it stops by itself. Pick Skinli if acne is your main worry. Pick Skan if you want one app for many skin concerns and product scanning.
By Nick, Founder of Skinli. We make Skinli, so read this knowing that. Every fact about Skan links to where we found it.
For acne alone, Skinli needs no install and stops charging by itself. Skan covers more skin concerns and charges weekly, monthly or yearly.
Pick Skinli if
- Acne is your main concern.
- You do not want to install an app or pay weekly.
- You want a routine that names ingredients, with no brands to buy.
Pick Skan if
- You care about wrinkles, pores or eye bags as well as acne.
- You want to scan products on a shelf and check if they suit you.
- You prefer a phone app to a website.
Skinli and Skan side by side
| What we compared | Skinli | Skan |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | A morning and night acne routine built on products sold without a prescription, with a plain reason for each step. | A selfie scan with scores for several skin concerns, product matches and a routine tracker. |
| Focus | Acne only: pimples, blackheads, marks and oil. | Acne, redness, pores, pigmentation, wrinkles and eye bags, according to Skan's App Store listing. |
| Who looks at your skin | An AI reads your photo and your answers. No doctor or nurse looks at it. If you save a photo, you and the Skinli site owner can see it. | The app's AI. No doctor. |
| Price | The acne score and photo summary are free, with no sign-up. The 4 week plan is $19.99 once, for 4 weeks. The 12 week plan is $39.99 once, for 12 weeks. Nothing renews and nothing else is charged. The products are extra. | In-app purchases in the US App Store: weekly $1.99 to $5.99, monthly $9.99, yearly $19.99 to $39.99. |
| Device | Any web browser. Nothing to install. | iPhone and Android app. Install needed. |
| Account | Not needed to see your score or to buy a plan. Needed only to save it or store daily photos. | Guest access since April 2025, according to the app's release history. Sign up with email to save. |
| Products | A shopping list of words to look for on the box, such as "adapalene 0.1%". No brands, no shop, no paid links. | Matches products to your skin and scans products you hold up to the camera. |
| Progress tracking | One photo a day on the progress page, with an optional daily reminder email. | Saves skin scans so you can compare over time. |
| Prescription medicine | No. | No. |
| App Store rating | No app. Skinli runs in the browser. | 4.79 from 9,832 ratings in the US App Store on November 5, 2026. |
| Company | Skinli. | Skan Beauty Inc, the seller named in the App Store. |
| When to see a doctor | If your photo shows deep, sore pimples, the plan says at the top to see a doctor. | Skan's App Store listing says it is not a medical device, and to talk to a licensed healthcare professional about severe acne, irritation, allergic reactions or skin conditions. |
Is Skan free?
Skan is free to download, and the US App Store lists paid plans inside the app: weekly plans from $1.99 to $5.99, a $9.99 monthly plan, and yearly plans from $19.99 to $39.99. We could not find which features stay free without paying.
Skinli's acne score and photo summary are free. The full acne plan is one payment. The 4 week plan is $19.99 once, for 4 weeks. The 12 week plan is $39.99 once, for 12 weeks. Nothing renews and nothing else is charged.
Which one is better for acne?
Skan scores many skin concerns at once, from acne to wrinkles and eye bags. That suits someone who wants a general skin app.
Skinli looks at acne only. It counts pimples, blackheads and marks, gives an acne score out of 100, and writes a morning and night plan around benzoyl peroxide 2.5% and adapalene 0.1%. It also says when your acne looks like it needs a doctor instead of another product.
Do you need to install anything?
Skan is an app for iPhone and Android, so you download it from the App Store or Google Play.
Skinli runs in your web browser on any phone or computer. You open the page, take a photo, answer a few questions and see your score. The plan opens after you pay.
What Skan looks like
Screenshots and logo from Skan's US App Store listing. They belong to Skan Beauty Inc and are shown only to identify the product.
See what Skinli gives you before you decide.
One photo and a few quick questions, with no account needed. Your acne score and what your photo shows are free. The 4 week plan is $19.99 once, for 4 weeks. The 12 week plan is $39.99 once, for 12 weeks. Nothing renews and nothing else is charged.
Get my free acne scoreHow Skinli works, and how far to trust a photo
Is Skinli cheaper than Skan?
Skinli
- Free acne score, with no sign-up
- 4 week plan: $19.99 once, for 4 weeks
- 12 week plan: $39.99 once, for 12 weeks
- Nothing to install
Skan
- Free download
- Weekly: $1.99 to $5.99
- Monthly: $9.99
- Yearly: $19.99 to $39.99
For 3 months, Skinli's 12 week plan ($39.99 in all) costs $10.02 more than 3 months of Skan's monthly plan ($29.97). If the app offers you Skan's $19.99 yearly plan, that costs $20.00 less than Skinli's 12 week plan and lasts a full year. Skan also lists weekly plans from $1.99. The price you see in Skan can depend on which offer the app shows you.
What 3 months costs
Lowest listed price for each option, checked September 25, 2026. Skinli's bar is its whole 12 week plan, $39.99 once, for 12 weeks. Prescription services include their cream. Products you buy at a store are extra for every option. Hover or tap a bar to see how it was worked out.
- SkinPal AIfrom $23.97
- Skan$29.97
- AcneTrack$29.97
- Pimpl$38.97
- Skinli$39.99
- Thea$59.97
- Curology$65.35
- Hims & Hersfrom $87
- MDacne$87
- Musely$96
- Nurxfrom $118
Show as a table
| Option | 3 months | How we worked it out |
|---|---|---|
| SkinPal AI | from $23.97 | The lowest monthly price in the US App Store list, $7.99, for 3 months. The app's own description lists $12.99 a month. |
| Skan | $29.97 | The $9.99 monthly plan for 3 months. A $19.99 yearly plan costs less if the app offers it to you. |
| AcneTrack | $29.97 | The $9.99 monthly plan for 3 months. Yearly plans start at $19.99. |
| Pimpl | $38.97 | The $12.99 monthly plan for 3 months. A $29.99 yearly discount costs less if the app offers it to you. |
| Skinli | $39.99 | The 12 week plan: $39.99 once, for 12 weeks. It stops by itself after 12 weeks. The drugstore products are extra: you buy them yourself, in any brand. |
| Thea | $59.97 | The $19.99 monthly plan for 3 months. The dermatologist upgrade costs extra. |
| Curology | $65.35 | $5.45 trial shipping, then one $59.90 shipment that covers the next 60 days. Includes the prescription cream. |
| Hims & Hers | from $87 | The "starting at $29 a month" price for 3 months. The visit and shipping are free. The exact price shows only after the online visit. |
| MDacne | $87 | $9 trial shipping in the US, then one $78 refill that covers the next 2 months, before tax. Includes MDacne's cleanser, moisturizer and night cream. |
| Musely | $96 | The listed $32 a month for 3 months. Includes the prescription cream. Musely ships 2 months of cream at a time. |
| Nurx | from $118 | $40 visit, the lowest listed cream at $25 a month for 3 months, and one $3 support fee, without insurance. |
Which one fits your situation?
You want an acne routine today, without installing anything
Pick: Skinli
Open the page in your browser. Your plan appears in the same visit, right after you pay.
You want to track wrinkles and pores along with acne
Pick: Skan
Skan scores several skin concerns. Skinli covers acne only.
You want to scan products in a store
Pick: Skan
Skan scans products with your camera. Skinli gives you words to look for on the box.
You want a routine that names ingredients instead of brands
Pick: Skinli
Skinli's list gives you words to look for on the box, such as "adapalene 0.1%". Skan's App Store screenshots show a routine with a named cleanser and a named serum.
Looking for a Skan alternative?
If you are looking for a Skan alternative for acne without a weekly or yearly payment, Skinli runs in your browser. It gives you a free acne score, a daily photo tracker, and a morning and night routine from $19.99 that stops by itself.
Other skin apps we compare are Thea and AcneTrack. Each has its own page.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Skan cost?
Skan is free to download. On September 25, 2026, the US App Store listed in-app purchases for Skan of $1.99 to $5.99 a week, $9.99 a month, and $19.99 to $39.99 a year. We could not find which features stay free. Skinli's plan is from $19.99, stops by itself, and runs in your browser.
Is Skinli a good Skan alternative for acne?
For acne alone, yes. Skinli looks only at acne, gives you a score out of 100, and writes a morning and night routine around benzoyl peroxide and adapalene. The plan is from $19.99, stops by itself and needs no install. If you also want to track wrinkles, pores and eye bags, Skan covers more concerns.
Do I need an account for Skan or Skinli?
Skan added guest access in April 2025, according to its App Store release history, and you sign up with email to save. Skinli shows your score with no account, and you can buy a plan without one. You sign in only to save your plan or store daily progress photos on the progress page.
Does Skan recommend products?
Yes. Skan's App Store listing says it matches products to your skin and can scan products with your camera. Skinli names no brands. It gives you the exact words to look for on each box, such as "adapalene 0.1%", so you can pick any brand.
What is Skan's App Store rating?
On November 5, 2026, Skan had an average of 4.79 out of 5 from 9,832 ratings in the US App Store, according to Apple's own listing data. Skinli has no App Store rating, because it runs in the web browser and has no app to install.
Can Skan or Skinli diagnose acne?
Only a doctor can diagnose a skin condition. Skan and Skinli both use AI to describe what a photo shows. Skan's App Store listing says it is not a medical device and tells you to see a licensed healthcare professional about severe acne. Skinli says it is not a doctor on every plan, and puts a see-a-doctor line at the top when your photo shows deep, sore pimples.
Sources
Checked on November 5, 2026. Prices and plans change, so check Skan's own site before you pay.
How we checked this: we read the company's own pages, its app store listing and Apple's own catalog data on the date above, and copied the prices as listed. We have not bought or used this company's product, so nothing here is a hands-on review, and we do not rate how well it works. Facts that come only from the company are marked as its own site in the list below.
- Skan in the US App Store (prices, description, release history) (Skan's own site)
- Apple catalog data for Skan (rating and rating count) (independent source)
- Skan on Google Play (Skan's own site)
Get a routine built from your own photo.
One photo and a few quick questions. You do not need an account to see your routine.
Get my free acne scoreSkinli gives simple tips for skin with pimples. It is not a doctor. It cannot tell you what is wrong the way a doctor can. If your pimples hurt, are deep under the skin, are getting worse, or will not go away, see a doctor.