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Kiehl's vs Clarins

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

Kiehl's and Clarins are esteemed skincare brands that offer beloved moisturizers, serums, toners, and eye products enriched with ingredients like squalane and glycerin or shea. The American house suits dry and sensitive skin best through nourishing formulations like its Calendula Herbal-Extract Toner and Ultra Facial Toner, while the French label caters to sensitive and dry sensitive skin with luxurious treatments such as the Double Serum Light Texture and Extra-Firming Day Cream. These selections differ in their specific botanical profiles, yet both brands actively increase hydration, restore the epidermal barrier, and fight skin damage.

Kiehl's is an American skincare brand founded in 1851 and owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 2000.

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

Clarins is a French skincare brand founded in 1954 and owned by Famille C (Groupe Clarins).

groupeclarins.comen.wikipedia.orghappi.com

This page compares some of the most popular Kiehl's and Clarins products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular Kiehl's vs Clarins products

People Say

Kiehl'sClarins
  • Deep hydration Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin drinks it up — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “keeps skin moist — Clarins Multi-Active Jour”
    • “woke up with baby soft skin — Clarins Multi-Active Nuit”
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Lightweight and non-greasy texture Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly without residue — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Gel Cream”
    • “absorbs immediately — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “sinks in immediately — Clarins Double Serum Light Texture”
  • No white cast and glowing skin Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “works on dark skin — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “woke up glowing — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “skin looks brighter immediately — Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask”
    • “Gives off the most stunning natural radiance I've ever come across. — Clarins Beauty Flash Balm”
  • Skin barrier and texture improvement Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “leaves skin feeling silky — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
    • “skin feels smoother — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “neck feels smoother — Clarins Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté Cream”
    • “visibly tighter, lifted skin — Clarins Super Restorative Night Cream”
  • Makeup base and primer compatibility Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
    • “no pilling — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “Perfect primer for any foundation, which all glide on smoothly. — Clarins Beauty Flash Balm”
  • Rich and creamy texture Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “melting non-oily texture — Clarins Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté Cream”
    • “Creamy texture feels luxurious upon application — Clarins Extra-Firming Day Cream”
    • “feels like silk — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “feels luxurious and thick — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
  • High price point and poor value Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Very expensive product — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “way too expensive — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “too expensive for results — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
  • Scent and fragrance complaints Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “smells clinical — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “faint lab smell — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “smells like perfume — Clarins Multi-Active Jour”
  • Breakouts and skin irritation Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “caused cystic acne — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “caused redness — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “made my face burn — Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask”
    • “burned my face immediately — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
  • Ineffective or slow results Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Did absolutely nothing — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “Takes months to see — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “didn't see a lift — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “no change in circles — Clarins Double Serum Eye”

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for dry skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · A$685.63 · 86% fitBuy Clarins routine · A$394.74 · 78% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for oily skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · A$767.92 · 85% fitBuy Clarins routine · A$585.59 · 71% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for combination skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · A$693.88 · 83% fitBuy Clarins routine · A$557.60 · 70% fitSee multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Questions and answers

Kiehl's or Clarins: which is better?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins are great choices, as Lovi rates their routines as having equal high levels of fit for dry, sensitive, mature, and dark spot-prone skin. Kiehl's may be the better option for oily or acne-prone skin, where it holds a high routine fit compared to Clarins' average rating, and nearly all its products are fragrance-free.

What is the difference between Kiehl's and Clarins?

Kiehl's offers mostly fragrance-free products and performs better for oily and acne-prone skin, whereas almost all Clarins products contain fragrance and feature luxurious textures for deep hydration. Both brands are owned by large parent companies and share key ingredients like Shea butter and Squalane across their lines.

Kiehl's or Clarins for dry skin?

Both brands offer High routine fit for dry skin on this page. Kiehl's features key ingredients like glycerin and squalane to help hydrate dry skin, while Clarins also utilizes squalane alongside shea butter and hyaluronic acid.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Kiehl's or Clarins: which cleanser is better?

Kiehl's offers a wider selection of cleansers on this page, and Lovi rates products like the Calendula Deep Cleansing Foaming Face Wash and Rare Earth Deep Pore Daily Cleanser with Superior fits for oily and oily acne-prone skin. Clarins provides hydrating gentle options, but reviewers note that its cleansers may cause dryness or have a lower fit for sensitive or blemish-prone types.

Which is more affordable, Kiehl's or Clarins?

Neither brand is more affordable on the products on this page, as both share a high price point according to reviewers.

Between Kiehl's and Clarins, which brand has fewer complaints about strong fragrance?

Between Kiehl's and Clarins, Kiehl's has fewer complaints about strong fragrance because most of the products on this page list no fragrance.

How do the founding years and corporate owners of Kiehl's and Clarins compare?

Kiehl's was founded in 1851 in the United States and has been owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 2000, whereas Clarins was founded in 1954 in France and is owned by Famille C (Groupe Clarins).

Which brand performs better for deep hydration according to review themes?

Clarins performs better for deep hydration compared to Kiehl's according to review themes.

Kiehl's or Clarins for oily skin?

For oily skin, Kiehl's is the better choice because Lovi rates its routine as High, compared to Average for Clarins. Reviewers also note that Clarins has more fragrance complaints on this page.

Kiehl's or Clarins: which moisturizer is better?

When comparing moisturizers, Kiehl's and Clarins both offer effective hydration with formulas that feature ingredients like squalane and glycerin, though Kiehl's features a high fit for a broader range of skin types.

Kiehl's or Clarins for sensitive skin?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins are a High fit for sensitive skin on this page, but they differ in formulation; almost all products on the Kiehl's page list no fragrance, whereas almost all Clarins products contain fragrance. Kiehl's is unlikely to cause scent-related irritation for shoppers with sensitive skin.

Kiehl's or Clarins for acne-prone skin?

Kiehl's fits acne-prone skin better than Clarins, as Lovi rates Kiehl's routines high for acne-prone skin while Clarins routines average.

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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