Microbial cells per cm²
on human skin

Microbiome-matched skincare

Build a routine
your skin actually needs

We sequence your skin's microbiome and match what we find to a complete, dermatologist-verified routine — new products or ones you already own.

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Skin, closely observed

Full-bleed editorial image · 1440 × 650px recommended
Macro skin texture · neutral light · no product in frame
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4

Primary microbial
condition profiles

38+

Species identified
per sequencing panel

$199

Test kit + full
skin profile report

6mo

Recommended
retest interval

"Most routines are built on trial and error. Yours should be built on what's actually on your skin."

Method

From sample
to routine

01

Collect and ship

Sterile swab kit arrives in 3–5 days. Two minutes to collect, prepaid envelope to return.

02

16S rRNA sequencing

Species identified at genus and species level by relative abundance. Results in 10–14 days.

03

Read your biology

Raw composition first. Then reference ranges — so you see exactly how far from normal each reading sits.

04

Understand the mechanism

Before products: the ingredient classes the literature supports for your profile, and how each one works.

05

Build your routine

Products as conclusions. All reasoning made explicit. Nothing recommended that isn't earned by the biology.

Your results

Enter your report code

Your code appears in the confirmation email sent when your sample was received at the lab. It begins with SKN-.

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Step 1 of 4 · Raw data

Microbial composition

Species sorted by relative abundance. No interpretation — just what the sequencer found.

Species	Relative abundance	%

Normal range band

Your level — elevated

Your level — depleted

Your level — within range

Step 4 of 4 · Your routine

Your routine, matched to your profile

Three tiers — the same ingredient rationale at every level. Tap why this? on any product to see the mechanism.

04 · SPF

UV protection matters for every profile. Recommended SPF matches your tier.

Cabinet analysis

Map your existing products to your profile

Enter products you already own — we'll show what fits, what conflicts, and what steps are still missing.

Press Enter to add each product. Separate multiple products by comma or enter one at a time.

Affiliate disclosure: Skintellect earns a commission on purchases made through the links above. This does not influence product selection — every recommendation is determined by your microbiome data and the published evidence base for each ingredient class. Affiliate relationships are listed transparently at skintellect.nyc/affiliates.

Six-month retest

Track whether your microbiome has responded

The microbiome is not static. A follow-up panel at six months will show whether the species profile has shifted, whether diversity has recovered, and whether a different routine approach is warranted. The data collected over time is what makes the recommendations increasingly precise.

The science

How we read your skin's microbial ecosystem

How we sequence your skin, what the data means, how products are selected, and what microbiome testing can and cannot currently tell you.

1.8M

Microbial cells per cm²
on human skin surface

Method

16S rRNA amplicon sequencing

We amplify and sequence the V3–V4 hypervariable regions of the 16S rRNA gene from your swab.1 Reads are matched against a curated reference database to identify species and calculate relative abundance — how much of the total community each one represents.

Relative abundance, not absolute count. A species at 38% is 38% of what the sequencer detected — not 38% of everything on your skin.

01

Swab collection. Sterile swab applied to forehead, cheek, and nasolabial fold. Sample stabilised immediately.

02

DNA extraction. Bead-beating protocol optimised for skin samples, which have lower microbial biomass than gut samples.2

03

PCR amplification. V3–V4 region amplified with validated primers. Illumina paired-end sequencing; ~50,000–100,000 reads per sample.

04

Bioinformatic analysis. DADA2 denoising generates ASVs,3 classified against the SILVA ribosomal RNA database.4

05

Report generation. Species abundances calculated, diversity indices computed, profile compared against reference ranges.

1 Klindworth A, et al. (2013). Evaluation of general 16S ribosomal RNA gene PCR primers for classical and next-generation sequencing-based diversity studies. Nucleic Acids Res. 41(1):e1.

2 Grice EA & Segre JA (2011). The skin microbiome. Nature Reviews Microbiology 9, 244–253.

3 Callahan BJ, et al. (2016). DADA2: High-resolution sample inference from Illumina amplicon data. Nature Methods 13, 581–583.

4 Quast C, et al. (2013). The SILVA ribosomal RNA gene database project: improved data processing and web-based tools. Nucleic Acids Res. 41(D1):D590–D596.

Reference data

How normal ranges are constructed

Ranges are derived from published skin microbiome literature — primarily Human Microbiome Project cohorts5 and studies from Grice et al. (2009)6 and Findley et al. (2013).7 We use the 10th–90th percentile across healthy adult populations as the reference band.

Population statistics, not clinical thresholds. Being outside the reference range describes where you sit relative to a distribution — it is not a clinical finding.

The barrier index is a composite score calculated from the species profile, weighting barrier-disrupting pathogens against commensal reference proportions. It is inferential, not a direct TEWL measurement.8

5 Human Microbiome Project Consortium (2012). Structure, function and diversity of the healthy human microbiome. Nature 486, 207–214.

6 Grice EA, et al. (2009). Topographical and temporal diversity of the human skin microbiome. Science 324(5931):1190–1192.

7 Findley K, et al. (2013). Topographic diversity of fungal and bacterial communities in human skin. Nature 498, 367–370.

8 Nakatsuji T, et al. (2017). Antimicrobials from human skin commensal bacteria protect against Staphylococcus aureus and are deficient in atopic dermatitis. Science Translational Medicine 9(378).

Product criteria

How products are selected and tiered

Two-stage filter: does the product carry the ingredient class identified for this condition at an efficacious concentration?9 Does it avoid ingredients that would counteract the mechanism or disrupt the broader community?

Tier assignment reflects price and formulation refinement — not efficacy ranking. The same actives are present at every tier. Products are reviewed by a board-certified dermatologist before inclusion. Affiliate commission rates do not influence selection.

9 Zaenglein AL, et al. (2016). Guidelines of care for the management of acne vulgaris. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 74(5):945–973. Referenced for BHA, BPO, and retinoid evidence grades.

Limitations

What this test cannot tell you

Microbiome science applied to skincare is a relatively recent field. We are transparent about where the evidence is strong and where it is preliminary.

Not a clinical finding

This is not a medical test and cannot diagnose skin conditions. Elevated C. acnes is associated with acne — it is not a diagnosis of acne. If you have active skin disease, consult a dermatologist.

Snapshot, not longitudinal

A single test reflects one point in time. The microbiome fluctuates with season, hormonal cycle, product use, and stress. The six-month retest is recommended to establish a trend, not a static profile.

16S has resolution limits

16S rRNA sequencing identifies species well but has limited strain-level resolution. Pathogenic and commensal strains of C. acnes are phylogenetically distinct but may not be differentiated by this method.10

Correlation, not causation

Elevated S. aureus correlates with barrier dysfunction — the direction of causality is bidirectional and context-dependent.11 We present correlations accurately and avoid overclaiming mechanistic certainty where the literature is equivocal.

10 Scholz CFP & Kilian M (2016). The natural history of cutaneous propionibacteria, and reclassification of selected species within the genus Cutibacterium gen. nov. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol. 66(11):4422–4432.

11 Kong HH, et al. (2012). Temporal shifts in the skin microbiome of atopic dermatitis patients correlate with disease flares. Genome Research 22(5):850–859.

Product catalog

All products, by condition

Browse the full recommendation set without entering a report code. Each product is listed with its condition rationale and the specific mechanism it addresses. Affiliate links are included and disclosed.

48

Products across
4 conditions × 3 tiers

Test kit

Understand what's actually living on your skin

A complete at-home swab kit, 16S rRNA sequencing, and a full five-step skin profile matched to your microbiome. Results in 10–14 days from sample receipt.

What's included

Swab kit

Sterile collection swabs, stabilisation buffer, prepaid return envelope

16S sequencing

V3–V4 amplicon sequencing, 50,000–100,000 reads, SILVA-classified

Skin profile report

Species composition, reference ranges, condition profile, five-step results flow

Product routine

Four-step routine in three price tiers, matched to your specific condition

Six-month retest

Retest recommended at six months to track longitudinal change (separate order)

Report access

Permanent access via your report code, no account required

$199

Test kit — one-time

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Build a routine
your skin actually needs

From sample
to routine

Enter your report code

Microbial composition

Where you sit relative to normal

Symptom correlation, mechanisms & routine

Does this match what you observe?

Your routine, matched to your profile

How we read your skin's microbial ecosystem

16S rRNA amplicon sequencing

How normal ranges are constructed

How products are selected and tiered

What this test cannot tell you

All products, by condition

Understand what's actually living on your skin

Build a routine your skin actually needs

From sampleto routine

Enter your report code

Microbial composition

Where you sit relative to normal

Symptom correlation, mechanisms & routine

Does this match what you observe?

Your routine, matched to your profile

How we read your skin's microbial ecosystem

16S rRNA amplicon sequencing

How normal ranges are constructed

How products are selected and tiered

What this test cannot tell you

All products, by condition

Understand what's actually living on your skin

Build a routine
your skin actually needs

From sample
to routine