DHC Deep Cleansing Oil: ¥1,100–2,725 in Japan vs $31.50 US

Q: Is the Japanese version different from the one sold abroad?

Potentially. The current Japanese domestic version is registered as a quasi-drug, a Japanese regulatory category with no direct US equivalent. Products for export are formulated and labelled to the destination market's rules.

Direct Answer

Japanese manufacturer list prices are ¥1,100 for 70 mL, ¥1,635 for 120 mL and ¥2,725 for 200 mL, tax included. The 6.7 fl oz bottle sells for $31.50 in the US, so the 200 mL bottle is roughly 45% cheaper in Japan. The 120 and 200 mL sizes cost the same per millilitre; the 70 mL costs about 15% more and is a trial size rather than a value buy.

If you have tried it and found it greasy, the cause is almost certainly a skipped step. Apply on dry hands and dry face, massage for 30–60 seconds, then add a little lukewarm water and keep massaging until the oil turns milky before rinsing. That emulsification step is what the formula is built around, and skipping it is what leaves the film that most negative reviews describe. Note too that the current Japanese domestic version is registered as a quasi-drug, a category with no direct US equivalent — so the export bottle is not guaranteed to be the same formula.

1. The price, by size, in both markets

This is the number most people arrive looking for, so it goes first. Japanese prices are manufacturer list, tax included.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil — Japan List Prices

Size	Japan	Per 100 mL
70 mL (SS)	¥1,100	¥1,571
120 mL	¥1,635	¥1,363
200 mL (L)	¥2,725	¥1,363

The US price for the 6.7 fl oz bottle — roughly the 200 mL size — is $31.50. At about ¥157 to the dollar, the Japanese ¥2,725 works out to roughly $17. That is a gap of around 45%, and it is one of the larger export markups in Japanese mass-market skincare.

Bar chart comparing DHC Deep Cleansing Oil 200 mL at the Japanese list price against the US retail price, with per-100-millilitre rates for all three Japanese sizes

The buying rule: the 120 mL and 200 mL sizes cost the same per millilitre, and the 70 mL costs 15% more per millilitre than either. The small bottle is a trial size and a travel size, not a value purchase. If you know you want it, buy the 200 mL; if you are unsure whether oil cleansing suits your skin, the 70 mL is a sensible ¥1,100 test.

2. What it is, and the one thing that surprises people

It is an olive-oil-based cleansing oil that emulsifies with water, made by DHC — a Japanese mail-order company whose origin product was imported Spanish olive oil. It removes makeup, including most point makeup, and rinses off without a residue film. That is the whole product.

The detail that surprises people: the current Japanese domestic version is registered as a quasi-drug (医薬部外品, iyakubugaihin) rather than as a plain cosmetic. Quasi-drug is a Japanese regulatory category between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, requiring approval of an active ingredient for a stated effect. It has no direct US equivalent, and it is one reason the Japanese and export bottles are not necessarily identical products in the same packaging.

What Is Actually In It

Component	Role
Olive oil (Spanish, organically grown)	The cleansing base. Dissolves makeup and sebum
Emulsifier system	What lets it rinse clean with water rather than leaving a film
Rosemary extract	Listed as a moisturising component
Vitamin E	Antioxidant, standard in oil formulations

3. How to actually use it — where most people go wrong

Oil cleansers fail for a predictable reason, and it is almost always technique rather than the product.

The Sequence That Works

Step	Do	Common mistake
1. Dry hands, dry face	Both must be dry before the oil goes on	Wet hands break the emulsion early and the oil stops dissolving makeup
2. Massage	30–60 seconds. Longer on eye makeup	Ten seconds and straight to the tap. Nothing has dissolved yet
3. Emulsify	Add a little lukewarm water and keep massaging until it turns milky	Rinsing straight from oil. This is the step that leaves the film people complain about
4. Rinse	Lukewarm, thoroughly	Hot water, which strips and irritates
5. Second cleanse	Optional. A foam cleanser if you wore heavy makeup or sunscreen	Skipping it after a heavy sunscreen day

The emulsify step is the whole product. Nearly every "it left my face greasy" review describes step 3 being skipped. The oil is designed to turn milky with water before it goes down the drain. If it has not gone milky, it has not finished working.

Pair it with a foam cleanser for the second step if you double cleanse — Senka Perfect Whip is the Japanese default and costs about ¥500.

Five-step illustrated sequence showing dry-hands application, massage, emulsification turning the oil milky, rinsing and optional second cleanse

4. Who it suits, and who should skip it

Honest Fit Assessment

Buy it if	Skip it if
You wear sunscreen daily and need it off properly	You wear no makeup and little sunscreen — a foam cleanser is enough
You wear long-wear or waterproof makeup	You have found oil cleansers reliably trigger congestion on your skin
You want one product that handles face and eye makeup	You prefer micellar water or balm textures — this is a thin, runny oil
You are in Japan and the 45% gap appeals	You are sensitive to fragrance in cleansers

Two honest caveats. First, the texture is unusually thin — closer to cooking oil than to the thicker cleansing oils many people expect — and several reviewers find it runs off the hands and pushes their usage up. Second, if you have active acne, rosacea or a diagnosed barrier condition, cleanser choice is a dermatology question and not something a product page can answer for you. Nothing here is medical advice.

5. What else does the same job

The cleansing oil category in a Japanese drugstore is crowded and cheap, and DHC is not automatically the best pick — it is the best known one.

If you are already in a Japanese drugstore with a basket, it is worth knowing that competing oil cleansers from the domestic mass market sit in a similar or lower price band, and several use thicker textures that some people prefer. Our Japanese skincare guide covers the wider category with prices, and Japanese beauty products covers what is genuinely worth the luggage allowance.

What DHC has that the alternatives do not is availability outside Japan, a very long track record, and the fact that you already know the name — which is worth something when you are standing in an unfamiliar aisle reading Japanese labels.

6. Buying it in Japan

Where to Get It

Where	Notes
Drugstore chains	Matsumoto Kiyoshi, Welcia, Sundrug and similar. The practical route. Tax-free where offered
Convenience stores	Small sizes only, and not in every store
DHC online (Japan)	Full size range at list price. Japanese-only, needs a delivery address
Airport duty-free	Available, narrow selection, not reliably cheaper than a city drugstore's tax-free price

Liquids over 100 mL cannot go in cabin baggage, so the 200 mL bottle has to be checked. Tax-free processing needs your passport and a per-store minimum spend, so consolidate the cosmetics purchase into one shop rather than spreading it across a trip.

Background on the brand itself — the mail-order model, the supplement business, and the ownership change that people ask about — is in our DHC brand guide.

7. Removing Japanese sunscreen, which is the real use case

If you are in Japan and wearing Japanese sunscreen, this section matters more than anything else on the page. Japanese sun care is formulated for humidity and sweat, and the water-resistant and long-wear formulations that make Anessa and its competitors good at their job also make them genuinely difficult to remove with a foaming cleanser alone.

This is the reason oil cleansing is standard practice in Japan rather than an optional extra. It is not a beauty ritual; it is what the local sunscreen requires.

What Needs an Oil Cleanser

What you wore	Oil cleanse needed?
Water-resistant sunscreen	Yes. This is the case oil cleansing exists for
Everyday tinted or gel sunscreen	Usually yes, and certainly if you applied properly
Long-wear or transfer-proof makeup	Yes
Light makeup, no sunscreen	Optional. A foaming cleanser is enough
Nothing at all	No. Oil cleansing bare skin nightly is unnecessary

Sunscreen left on overnight is the actual cost of skipping this. Not a moral failing — a practical one. Water-resistant filters are designed to stay put, and a residue that survives your cleanser sits on the skin for eight hours alongside the day's sebum and particulate. If you take one thing from this page, it is that heavy Japanese sunscreen and a foaming cleanser alone are a poor pairing.

The thin texture, and why it divides people

DHC's oil is noticeably runnier than most competitors — closer to a cooking oil than to the thicker cleansing oils many people expect. Two consequences follow, and which one you experience depends mostly on technique.

Thin Texture: Both Sides

Advantage	Disadvantage
Spreads with almost no friction — good for the eye area	Runs off the hands and down the wrists if you dispense over a sink
Emulsifies quickly and rinses clean	Easy to use more than you need, which pushes the real cost per bottle up
Does not feel heavy on the skin	Feels less "substantial" than balm-format competitors, which some read as ineffective

Two pumps, cupped palm, face first. Dispense into a cupped hand rather than a flat one, and go to the face immediately rather than warming it between the palms. Most of the "this bottle disappeared in three weeks" complaints are dispensing losses rather than genuine consumption — at four to five pumps a night, the 200 mL bottle should last months.

8. FAQ

How much is DHC Deep Cleansing Oil in Japan?

Manufacturer list prices are ¥1,100 for 70 mL, ¥1,635 for 120 mL and ¥2,725 for 200 mL, tax included. The 120 mL and 200 mL sizes work out the same per millilitre; the 70 mL costs about 15% more per millilitre and is really a trial or travel size.

Is DHC Deep Cleansing Oil cheaper in Japan than in the US?

Yes, by roughly 45%. The 200 mL bottle lists at ¥2,725 in Japan — about $17 at around ¥157 to the dollar — against $31.50 for the 6.7 fl oz bottle on DHC's US store. That is one of the larger export markups in Japanese mass-market skincare.

Why does it leave my face greasy?

Almost always because the emulsification step was skipped. After massaging the oil in on dry skin, add a little lukewarm water and keep massaging until the oil turns milky, then rinse. If it has not gone milky, it has not finished working and it will leave a film.

Do I need to double cleanse after it?

Not always. A foam cleanser afterwards is worth it on days with heavy makeup or a lot of water-resistant sunscreen; on a light day the oil alone is enough for most people. Senka Perfect Whip is the Japanese default second step and costs around ¥500.

Is the Japanese version different from the one sold abroad?

Potentially, yes. The current Japanese domestic version is registered as a quasi-drug — a Japanese regulatory category between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals with no direct US equivalent. Products for export are formulated and labelled to the destination market's rules, so the same name does not guarantee the same formula.

Will it break me out?

Some people find oil cleansers trigger congestion and some do not, and there is no way to predict which you are from a product page. The ¥1,100 70 mL bottle exists precisely as a low-cost test. If you have active acne, rosacea or a diagnosed barrier condition, treat cleanser choice as a dermatology question rather than a shopping one.

Sources & Method

Japanese size and list-price figures are manufacturer prices for the current Japanese line, and the US price is the listed price on DHC's own US store, both checked on 7 August 2026. Per-millilitre figures are our own arithmetic on those prices. The yen-to-dollar conversion uses roughly ¥157 to the dollar at the time of checking; rely on the yen and dollar figures rather than the conversion. The quasi-drug classification is the manufacturer's own labelling. Application technique, the fit assessment and the alternatives view are our own editorial position, not sourced claims.

Manufacturer sources

Source	Used for
DHC Deep Cleansing series brand page (Japan) DHC Corporation · primary · accessed 7 Aug 2026	Current Japanese line composition, the quasi-drug labelling in section 2, and the Spanish organically grown olive oil claim
Deep Cleansing Oil, 6.7 fl oz (US) DHC Skincare (US) · primary · accessed 7 Aug 2026	The $31.50 US price in section 1 and the FAQ
DHC corporate site DHC Corporation · primary · accessed 7 Aug 2026	Company background and catalogue structure referenced in section 2

ClinicJapan editorial

Source	Used for
Japanese list prices by size ClinicJapan Research Team · Manufacturer list prices, tax included · retail varies	Section 1. Street prices at discounters and drugstores run below list; treat these as the reference figures, not a guaranteed shelf price
Application technique and the emulsification diagnosis ClinicJapan Research Team · Our own synthesis, not a cited source	Section 3 in full. Our attribution of most greasiness complaints to a skipped emulsification step is editorial judgement from the product's design, not a measured finding
The sunscreen-removal case ClinicJapan Research Team · General cosmetic-chemistry reasoning, not a removal test	Section 7. That water-resistant sunscreen filters resist water-based cleansers follows from how they are formulated; we have not run comparative removal testing on any specific product pairing
Fit assessment and texture note ClinicJapan Research Team · Editorial opinion	Section 4. The thin-texture observation reflects widely reported user experience rather than a manufacturer specification
Per-millilitre figures Editorial calculation · Our arithmetic on list prices	Section 1. Rounded to the nearest yen

About this guide: This is an independent guide. We receive no commission from DHC, any retailer, or any brand named or linked above, and nobody paid to be included. Prices, sizes and formulations change and currency moves — confirm before buying. Cleanser choice for active acne, rosacea or a diagnosed skin condition is a question for a dermatologist. Informational only; not medical advice.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil: Real Japan Prices and How to Use It Properly