It's true, there's nothing special in ProActiv.

I tried it for a while because I had really bad skin. It didn't seem to help at all. I talked to my derm and he said it wasn't worth it. The benzoyl peroxide levels were too small to have any real effect on moderate to severe acne and that if you had mild acne you could get away with something much cheaper from the drugstore.

It mostly works for people with the simple 'oops I've got a clogged pore because I forgot to take my makeup off" type of skin, but if you have real acne you need to see a dermatologist for stronger and more suitable treatments. Acne is rarely a case of just having dirty skin.

On the other hand, I do like ProActiv's sulpher face mask. If you use it as a spot treatment it helps a little with redness and swelling, and helps your zit clear out faster. But it's not a miracle or anything. Just useful.