Background/aim: One of the factors that affect the occurrence of acne is the presence of Propionibacterium acnes. The present study was conducted to compare the culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods for identifying P. acnes in lesions isolated from patients with acne. Materials and methods: To examine the presence of P. acnes, 70 samples of acne lesions were collected. Microbial culture and the PCR molecular technique were used to identify P. acnes. Results: Of the total of 70 samples, 14 cases (20%) were identified as P. acnes positive using microbial culture and 58 cases (82.85%) using PCR. The results obtained showed the lack of a relationship between the frequency of P. acnes and factors such as sex, family history of acne, and history of treatment with either of the techniques examined (i.e. the microbial culture and PCR). In contrast, a significant relationship was observed between the frequency of P. acnes and age with the culture method. Conclusion: Given the limitations in the identification of P. acnes using microbial culture, PCR is proposed as a better method with a higher efficiency.