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Estée Lauder vs SK-II

Rated by Lovi · Unbiased, science-based skincare AI trained on real user outcomes · How the Fit score works

Estée Lauder and SK-II are esteemed American and Japanese skincare houses founded in 1946 and 1980, respectively. The former brand is beloved for moisturizers, serums, eye products, and cleansers formulated with hydrating hyaluronic acid and glycerin, which suit acne-prone and mature skin best. Meanwhile, the latter brand is deeply loved for transformative moisturizers, targeted serums, restorative masks, and balancing toners elevated by its signature ingredient, pitera, which serve acne-prone and dry sensitive skin best. While both brands expertly address targeted concerns like dark spots and uneven texture, they differ in their heritage and core active ingredients.

Estée Lauder is an American skincare brand founded in 1946 and owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc..

en.wikipedia.orgelcompanies.com

SK-II is a Japanese skincare brand founded in 1980 and owned by The Procter & Gamble Company since 1991.

en.wikipedia.orgdiscoversk-ii.wixsite.comglossy.co

This page compares some of the most popular Estée Lauder and SK-II products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular Estée Lauder vs SK-II products

People Say

Estée LauderSK-II
  • Deep hydration and moisturization Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “skin drinks it up immediately — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair”
    • “The formula is incredibly hydrating and leaves my skin feeling smooth. — Estée Lauder Re-Nutriv”
    • “texture is dreamy — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Supercharged Gel-Creme”
    • “flooded my skin with moisture — SK-II Facial Treatment Mask”
  • Skin texture improvement Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin feels soft as butter — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
    • “pores became miraculously invisible — SK-II Facial Treatment Mask”
    • “Smoother skin — SK-II Facial Treatment Clear Lotion”
    • “skin feels like a baby's bottom — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair”
  • Radiance, glow and brightening Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “gives a glass skin look — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
    • “leaves me with a red carpet glow — SK-II Facial Treatment Mask”
    • “Skin looks brighter — SK-II Genoptics Spot Essence”
    • “gives me that glass skin look — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair”
  • Lightweight feel and absorption Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “drinks right into the skin — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
    • “Absorbs into the skin quickly. — SK-II Genoptics Ultraura Essence”
    • “Absorbs quickly — SK-II Genoptics Spot Essence”
    • “Absorbs quickly into the skin — Estée Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+”
  • Gentle and non-drying formula Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “doesn't strip the skin — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Cleansing Gelée”
    • “Doesn't strip my skin — Estée Lauder Soft Clean Moisture Rich Foaming Cleanser”
    • “Leaves skin feeling soft and smooth — Estée Lauder Take It Away Makeup Remover Lotion”
    • “Leaves skin soft, feels moisturized, does not dry out skin. — SK-II Facial Treatment Cleansing Oil”
  • Effective makeup removal and cleansing Sometimes NotedRarely Noted
    • “removes all my makeup effortlessly — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Cleansing Gelée”
    • “Melts away Double Wear foundation instantly — Estée Lauder Take It Away Makeup Remover Lotion”
    • “Leaves my skin very clean — Estée Lauder Soft Clean Moisture Rich Foaming Cleanser”
    • “Dissolves waterproof mascara, melts stubborn makeup, removes sunscreen easily. — SK-II Facial Treatment Cleansing Oil”
  • High price point and expensive cost Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “way too expensive for the size — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair”
    • “too pricey — Estée Lauder Micro Essence Treatment Lotion”
    • “Very expensive for the amount — Estée Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+”
    • “way too expensive — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
  • Unpleasant scent or fragrance issues Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “Scent is too overpowering — Estée Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+”
    • “strong scent — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Cleansing Gelée”
    • “smells like dirty feet — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
    • “smells slightly like saliva — SK-II Facial Treatment Mask”
  • Lack of results Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “didn't notice any difference — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair”
    • “just expensive water — Estée Lauder Micro Essence Treatment Lotion”
    • “Haven't seen the results yet. — Estée Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+ Youth Power Eye Balm”
    • “did absolutely nothing — SK-II Facial Treatment Essence”
  • Bulky or poor packaging design Sometimes NotedRarely Noted
    • “cotton is too thick and heavy — SK-II Facial Treatment Mask”
    • “lid is hard to open — Estée Lauder Advanced Night Cleansing Gelée”

Estée Lauder vs SK-II routines for dry skin

Buy SK-II routine · AED 2,470.10 · 82% fitBuy Estée Lauder routine · AED 1,653.06 · 77% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Estée Lauder vs SK-II routines for oily skin

Buy SK-II routine · AED 2,468.63 · 88% fitBuy Estée Lauder routine · AED 1,743.92 · 75% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Estée Lauder vs SK-II routines for combination skin

Buy SK-II routine · AED 2,424.45 · 88% fitBuy Estée Lauder routine · AED 1,225.96 · 75% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

Estée Lauder or SK-II: which is better?

When comparing Estée Lauder and SK-II, both brands achieve High routine fit levels across most skin types, while Estée Lauder features key ingredients like hyaluronic acid and glycerin. Topical hyaluronic acid helps improve skin quality and signs of aging.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015

What is the difference between Estée Lauder and SK-II?

Estée Lauder offers products on this page that are mostly recognized for deep hydration and gentle, non-drying formulas, while SK-II features key ingredients like Pitera and performs better in improving skin texture and radiance. Reviewers note that Estée Lauder has a higher price point, whereas SK-II has fewer fragrance concerns across its range.

Estée Lauder or SK-II for dry skin?

Both Estée Lauder and SK-II achieve a High routine fit for dry skin on this page, but they differ in key ingredients and user feedback. Estée Lauder relies on hyaluronic acid and glycerin to help provide deep hydration, while SK-II features its signature Pitera ingredient.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Estée Lauder or SK-II: which moisturizer is better?

When comparing moisturizers, Estée Lauder provides a High Lovi routine fit for dry, oily, combination, sensitive, and mature skin, while SK-II also achieves a High Lovi routine fit across these same skin types. Reviewers note that Estée Lauder is better for deep hydration and moisturization, whereas SK-II offers a more lightweight feel and better absorption.

Which is more affordable, Estée Lauder or SK-II?

Reviewers on this page frequently mention a high price point and expensive cost as a negative for Estée Lauder products, while pricing details for SK-II are not highlighted as a primary drawback in the feedback.

Between Estée Lauder and SK-II, which brand is better suited for mature skin?

For mature skin, both Estée Lauder and SK-II achieve a High routine fit on this page, while Estée Lauder also lists mature skin as a brand-focused best fit. Both brands offer products with solid Lovi fit levels for mature skin, such as Estée Lauder's DayWear Moisturizer at a Superior fit and SK-II's Skinpower Advanced Cream at a High fit.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Do Estée Lauder products contain fragrance, and how does that compare to SK-II?

Most Estée Lauder products on this page list no fragrance, though two items include it, whereas every SK-II product on this page lists no fragrance in its ingredients.

Which brand performs better for skin texture improvement and radiance according to reviewers?

According to reviewers, SK-II performs better for both skin texture improvement and radiance, glow and brightening.

Estée Lauder or SK-II for oily skin?

For oily skin, both Estée Lauder and SK-II achieve a High routine fit level on this page. Estée Lauder's products on this page frequently feature hyaluronic acid and glycerin, which helps provide deep hydration.

Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Estée Lauder or SK-II for sensitive skin?

Both Estée Lauder and SK-II achieve a High routine fit for sensitive skin on this page. Reviewers note that Estée Lauder provides gentle and non-drying cleansers, while SK-II lists no fragrance across all products on this page.

Estée Lauder or SK-II for acne-prone skin?

For acne-prone skin, SK-II achieves a Superior routine fit, while Estée Lauder achieves a High routine fit. The products on this page for SK-II help target this skin type effectively with options like the Genoptics Ultraura Essence.

Research behind their key ingredients

Behind this comparison

Lovi compares products by their fit scores, calculated from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.

  • Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Co-founder, Medical Director

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer

  • Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Co-founder, CEO and CTO

    PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex

  • Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Medical Board

    Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine

  • Aishani Shah, MD

    Aishani Shah, MD

    Medical Board

    Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD

  • Asya Zubkova, MS

    Asya Zubkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member

  • Hanna Kurets, MD

    Hanna Kurets, MD

    Medical Board, Medical Advisor

    Dermatology MD

  • Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Medical Board

    Dermatology and diagnostic consultant

  • Victoria Derkova, MS

    Victoria Derkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist

How does it fit your skin?

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