October 04, 2026
In brief: With age, pores look bigger mainly because the skin around them loses support, not because they produce more oil. Collagen and elastic fibres around each follicle thin out, sun damage adds up, and the rim of the pore stretches into an oval or teardrop shape that catches shadow. Oil output actually falls in many people after midlife, which is why pores that were oily in your twenties can look larger in your fifties while the skin feels drier.
The age effect is real but less simple than the mirror suggests. In 1,204 Indian women aged 18 to 84, pore size increased with age alongside a loss of elasticity, a rougher skin surface and, after menopause, a drop in sebum production (Colomb 2018). A much larger imaging study of cheek pores in 2,585 women across several countries found that pore size, density and coverage varied greatly between ethnic groups and plateaued with age in most groups; the authors concluded that pores as the eye perceives them depend less on the sebaceous gland than on other features of the skin (Flament 2015). In a smaller study of 60 adults in Seoul, larger pores went with male sex, higher sebum and lower skin elasticity, while age alone showed no definite relationship (Kim 2013).
Put together, the evidence says this: pores do not simply grow year by year. What changes is the tissue around them, and that change makes the openings more visible.
Each pore is the opening of a hair follicle held in place by the dermis around it. Collagen and elastic fibres keep that funnel round and tight. As they thin, the rim loses its tension and the opening stretches, most visibly on the cheeks, where round pores become oval and then teardrop-shaped as the skin sags slightly downward. Lower elasticity went with larger pores in the Seoul study (Kim 2013), and elasticity fell as pore size rose across age groups in the Indian study (Colomb 2018). This kind of pore does not respond to oil control, because oil is not the problem.
Ultraviolet exposure breaks down collagen and leaves disorganized elastic material in the dermis. That is why pores on the cheeks and nose of someone who spent years outdoors often look larger than those on the same person's protected skin. The encouraging part is that this component responds, slowly, to treatment. In a randomized, double-blind study of 120 women with photoaged skin, both a 0.025% tretinoin cream and a 0.2% retinol combination, used nightly for three months with daily SPF 50, considerably improved pores along with wrinkles and mottled pigment (Bouloc 2015).
Sebum is driven largely by androgens. It peaks in the late teens and twenties, stays high longer in men, and falls in women after menopause (Colomb 2018). Someone whose pores were enlarged by oil when young may find the oil drops but the openings stay, because years of a stretched funnel have left the rim less elastic. For someone whose skin is still oily at 45, oil remains part of the picture, and the plan below includes both. Whether pores can actually shrink explains the oil and plug side in more detail.
Older skin sheds its surface cells more slowly and holds water less well, so the microrelief roughens. A rough, dry rim scatters light and deepens the shadow at the pore opening, while a smooth, well-hydrated surface softens it. This is the fastest-moving factor: a better-hydrated surface can make pores look smaller within weeks, and a harsh routine can make them look bigger within days. If your skin has become drier and more reactive with age, why sensitive skin gets drier with age describes the barrier changes behind it.
Pore strips, squeezing and suction devices on thinning skin: they stretch the rim you are trying to support and can break small vessels. Alcohol-heavy "tightening" toners. Daily scrubs and stacked acids, which roughen the surface. Clay masks on skin that is no longer oily.
See a physician or dermatologist if pores enlarge alongside new, persistent oiliness and acne in adulthood, new facial hair or scalp thinning, which can point to a hormonal cause; if you notice a single enlarged, crusting or bleeding pore-like spot, which needs examination rather than cosmetic care; or if the skin around the nose has become thickened, red and bumpy, which can be a form of rosacea. Energy-based treatments for photoaged pores, such as lasers or radiofrequency, belong with a qualified provider after an in-person assessment.
The studies disagree on how much age itself matters, partly because they use different imaging, different thresholds and different populations, and several were run by cosmetic companies. None followed the same people's pores over decades; all compared different people of different ages. The retinoid trial measured pores as one of several graded signs of photoaging and did not include a placebo group. Mechanisms such as loss of pore-rim support come from histology and correlation rather than from trials. What is consistent: elasticity, sun exposure and surface condition matter more for older pores than oil does. This article is educational and is not a diagnosis or a substitute for care from a physician or dermatologist.
Literature retrieved from PubMed.
Clara Song formulates for skin that has changed with age and also reacts easily; you can read more about her background. If your pores have become more visible while your skin has become drier or more sensitive, email info@completeelixir.com with a daylight photo of your cheeks and your current routine, and she will tell you whether oil, support or the surface is the main thing to work on.
For more on oily and breakout-prone skin that also reacts easily, visit the Sensitive Acne-Prone Skin Resource Centre.
Written and reviewed by Clara Song, Ph.D.
Founder and in-house formulator, COMPLETE ELIXIR
Ph.D. in Data Science · Medical Aesthetician Diploma
Last reviewed: October 4, 2026
This article distinguishes ingredient evidence, formulation rationale, finished-product evidence and professional observation. It is educational and does not replace medical diagnosis or treatment.
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