ComfiSkin vs ToxFox
ToxFox, from the German environmental charity BUND, checks cosmetics for a few groups of substances, such as hormone disruptors and microplastics. A green result only means none of those were found. ComfiSkin explains every ingredient and checks the product against your skin.
What that check covered
- Hormone disruptors, microplastics, nanoparticlesChecked
- Fragrance and common irritantsNot the focus
- Whether it suits your skinNot checked
The short answer
ToxFox only checks certain groups of substances, so its green “no harmful substances found” can make a product look safer than it is for your skin. Users say its product database is outdated, half of its 50 most recent German App Store reviews gave one or two stars, and the iPhone app hadn’t been updated in over a year when we checked.
What that means: a green tick from ToxFox can lull you into buying something that irritates your skin. ComfiSkin explains every ingredient, flags the ones you avoid, and tells you whether the product suits you.
Side by side
| ComfiSkin | ToxFox | |
|---|---|---|
| What it checks | Every ingredient, against your skin and avoid list | “Nur bestimmte Stoffgruppen”, only certain substance groups1 |
| What a good result means | It suits your skin, and why | None of the checked substances were found1,4 |
| Suggests better options | Shows what on your shelf already does the job | No, said Germany’s consumer advice centre5 |
| Shares your name and email | Never asks for them | With third parties, says Google Play2 |
| Last iPhone update | Updated regularly | 14 September 20253 |
| Lets you ask manufacturers about toys and textiles | No | Yes |
A green tick that checked very little
BUND says ToxFox checks “nur bestimmte Stoffgruppen”, only certain substance groups: hormone disruptors, microplastics and nanoparticles.1 That’s a narrow window. Fragrance, common irritants and the ingredients your skin specifically reacts to sit mostly outside it. The consumer site Utopia warned that the green “keine Schadstoffe gefunden” result, no harmful substances found, can mislead.4
A green screen feels like an all-clear. People see it, relax and buy. Then the product turns out to be heavily fragranced, or simply wrong for their skin type, and the app never warned them, because it was never looking.
ComfiSkin explains every ingredient in the product, flags anything on your avoid list, and checks it against your skin type and concerns.
What that means for you: “no harmful substances found” only means ToxFox didn’t find the few things it looks for. It says nothing about your skin.
An outdated database and a neglected app
ToxFox’s users are frustrated. When we checked, 25 of its 50 most recent German App Store reviews gave one or two stars, many about missing or outdated products, and it averaged 3.3 there and 2.7 on Google Play.3 The iPhone app hadn’t been updated since 14 September 2025.3
“die Produktdatenbank wird nicht gepflegt und ist veraltet”
“Es wäre angebracht, die Datenbanken aktuell zu halten!!”
Germany’s consumer advice centre also noted it doesn’t suggest safer alternatives, so even when it finds something, you’re left on your own.5 ComfiSkin can show you what on your shelf already does the job, and which shops stock a replacement.
What that means for you: scanning a new product may get you nothing at all, and finding a problem doesn’t get you a solution.
Your name goes to the manufacturer
ToxFox’s “ask the manufacturer” feature sends a request in your name, and its Google Play listing says it shares name, email and crash logs with third parties.2 If you want to ask a company a question, that’s useful. If you just wanted to check a product, it’s more than you bargained for. ComfiSkin never asks for your name or email at all.
What that means for you: using ToxFox’s request feature means handing your details to the company you’re asking about.
What to do if you use ToxFox
- Don’t read green as “safe for me”. It only covers a few substance groups.
- Check fragrance and irritants yourself, especially if your skin is sensitive.
- Scan the product in ComfiSkin for every ingredient explained and a verdict for your skin.
Sources
- BUND, ToxFox. bund.net
- ToxFox on Google Play, data safety section. play.google.com
- ToxFox on the German App Store, version history, ratings, and Apple’s public feed of its 50 most recent reviews, read 11 October 2026. apps.apple.com, itunes.apple.com
- Utopia, “ToxFox app”, 2022. utopia.de
- Verbraucherzentrale NRW, “App-Test ToxFox”, March 2024. verbraucherzentrale.nrw
More comparisons
More than a green tick
Every ingredient explained, and a verdict for your skin.
- Free, all of itNo plans, trials or paywalls. Every feature, for everyone.
- No sign-upNo account, no email, no password to lose.
- No ads, no trackingNothing about you is sold, shared or followed around the web.
- Your notes stay on your phoneWith a password-protected backup that only you control.
- Never asks for your faceIt reads the label, not you.
- Answers for your skinYour skin type, concerns, avoid list and routine, every time.