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Kiehl's vs La Prairie

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

Kiehl's and La Prairie are renowned skincare brands offering distinct approaches to daily beauty rituals. Kiehl's is an American brand founded in 1851 that is beloved for its moisturizers, serums, toners, and eye products featuring glycerin and squalane, which suit dry skin and sensitive skin best. Conversely, the Swiss brand founded in 1978 is celebrated for its luxurious eye products, nourishing moisturizers, targeted serums, and refreshing toners that suit dry skin and mature skin best. Ultimately, they differ through their heritage and the specific formulations designed to address individual skincare needs.

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

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

La Prairie is a Swiss skincare brand founded in 1978 and owned by maxingvest GmbH & Co. KGaA since 2003.

en.wikipedia.orgreports.beiersdorf.combeiersdorf.com

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

Popular Kiehl's vs La Prairie products

People Say

Kiehl'sLa Prairie
  • Deep and Intense Hydration Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “gentle yet effective moisturizing — La Prairie Cellular Softening and Balancing Lotion”
    • “erased my dry patches — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
    • “skin feels plump — La Prairie Skin Caviar Liquid Lift”
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Lightweight and Non-Greasy Texture Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “works on dark skin — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly — La Prairie Skin Caviar Liquid Lift”
    • “absorbs instantly — La Prairie Skin Caviar Eye Lift”
  • Luxurious Texture and Packaging Rarely NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “feels like liquid silk — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
    • “softens skin noticeably — La Prairie Cellular Softening and Balancing Lotion”
    • “fancy design — La Prairie Skin Caviar Eye Lift”
    • “creamy serum — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
  • Glow, Radiance, and Plumping Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “woke up glowing — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “doubles as moisturizer — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “gave my face a soft glow — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
    • “skin looks radiant — La Prairie Skin Caviar Liquid Lift”
  • Lifting and Firming Effects Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “felt skin tighten immediately — La Prairie Skin Caviar Liquid Lift”
    • “opened my eyes — La Prairie Skin Caviar Eye Lift”
    • “jawline genuinely looks lifted — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
  • Gentle and Sensitive Formula Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “experienced zero irritation — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “fragrance-free — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “perfect for retinol newbies — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “calm the complexion — La Prairie Cellular Softening and Balancing Lotion”
  • High Price and Cost Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Very expensive product — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “overpriced for what it does — Kiehl's Super Multi-Corrective Cream”
    • “eye-wateringly expensive — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
  • Scent and Fragrance Issues Rarely NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “smells clinical — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “faint lab smell — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “smell is overpowering — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “smells like a rich grandma — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
  • Slow Results or Ineffectiveness Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Did absolutely nothing — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “Takes months to see — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “results were subtle — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “just a good moisturizer — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
  • Irritation, Stinging, and Breakouts Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “caused congestion — La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream”
    • “caused breakouts — La Prairie Skin Caviar Liquid Lift”
    • “burned my face immediately — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”

Kiehl's vs La Prairie routines for dry skin

Buy La Prairie routine · A$1,411.96 · 96% fitBuy Kiehl's routine · A$685.63 · 86% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Kiehl's vs La Prairie routines for oily skin

Buy La Prairie routine · A$1,632.43 · 89% fitBuy Kiehl's routine · A$767.92 · 85% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Kiehl's vs La Prairie routines for combination skin

Buy La Prairie routine · A$1,575.91 · 90% fitBuy Kiehl's routine · A$693.88 · 83% fitSee multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Questions and answers

Kiehl's or La Prairie: which is better?

La Prairie generally offers superior luxury textures and lifting effects, whereas Kiehl's provides a more gentle and sensitive formula with a lower price point across the products on this page.

What is the difference between Kiehl's and La Prairie?

Kiehl's and La Prairie both offer effective skincare routines, but Kiehl's generally provides gentler formulas with far less fragrance while La Prairie specializes in luxury anti-aging and lifting treatments. Kiehl's products on this page list no fragrance in 26 out of 28 items, whereas La Prairie features strong fragrance across its products and carries a much higher price point.

Kiehl's or La Prairie for dry skin?

For dry skin, Lovi rates Kiehl's fit as High and La Prairie's fit as Superior. Kiehl's features key ingredients like glycerin and squalane, while La Prairie relies on ginseng.

Kiehl's or La Prairie: which moisturizer is better?

La Prairie offers superior hydration and luxury with options like Skin Caviar Luxe Cream, which Lovi rates as Superior for mature skin, whereas Kiehl's provides more affordable, fragrance-free daily moisturizers like Ultra Facial Cream. Reviewers note that La Prairie delivers lifting and firming effects, while Kiehl's is often praised for lightweight, non-greasy textures.

Which is more affordable, Kiehl's or La Prairie?

Kiehl's is more affordable, whereas La Prairie is noted by reviewers for exorbitant prices.

Between Kiehl's and La Prairie, which brand performs better for lifting and firming effects?

La Prairie performs better for lifting and firming effects. Review themes show that La Prairie does better than Kiehl's in this category.

Which brand has more fragrance-free products, Kiehl's or La Prairie?

Kiehl's has significantly more fragrance-free products on this page than La Prairie, with 26 out of 28 products listing no fragrance compared to only 1 out of 5 for La Prairie.

How do the founding years and corporate ownerships of Kiehl's and La Prairie compare?

Kiehl's was founded in 1851 in the United States and has been owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 2000, whereas La Prairie was founded in 1978 in Switzerland and is owned by maxingvest GmbH & Co. KGaA.

Kiehl's or La Prairie for oily skin?

Both Kiehl's and La Prairie offer products that fit oily skin well, with Lovi fit levels reaching high across the products on this page. Kiehl's features specialized options like the Calendula Deep Cleansing Foaming Face Wash and Ultra Facial Oil-Free Gel Cream, while La Prairie provides luxurious formulas such as the Skin Caviar collection.

Kiehl's or La Prairie for sensitive skin?

Both Kiehl's and La Prairie fit sensitive skin well, with Lovi rating Kiehl's fit as High and La Prairie as Superior. Reviewers note that Kiehl's provides a more gentle and sensitive formula across the products on this page, while La Prairie features mostly fragranced options.

Kiehl's or La Prairie for acne-prone skin?

Both brands fit acne-prone skin well, but Kiehl's offers more specialized products for this skin type on this page. Kiehl's products on this page frequently feature ingredients like retinol which helps encourage skin cell turnover.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000

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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