An absorbent article that prevents back flow and that uses cotton fibers in the surface sheet thereof, wherein the water retention of the surface sheet is reduced as much as possible. The absorbent article is an incontinence pad (1) having at least a medium volume for absorbing at least 20cc of urine. A surface sheet (3) is formed by coating, with a water-repellent, a spunlace non-woven fabric comprising 100wt% of cotton fibers. The skin-facing surface side is provided with: a plurality of protrusions (20) that extend along the longitudinal direction of the incontinence pad (1) and are formed with gaps therebetween in the widthwise direction； and a plurality of recesses (21) that extend along the longitudinal direction of the incontinence pad (1) and are formed between adjacent protrusions (20). The recesses (21) are formed thinner than the protrusions (20). A plurality of openings (10), which penetrate the incontinence pad (1) from the front to the rear thereof, is formed along the recesses (21) in at least a section (H) corresponding to an excretory opening.
