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Paula's Choice vs Bioderma

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

Paula's Choice and Bioderma are esteemed skincare brands that offer serums, cleansers, moisturizers, toners, and makeup removers. The American brand, founded in 1995, features products built around hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and vitamin c that suit oily skin and acne-prone skin best. Meanwhile, the French brand, founded in 1977, provides gentle yet effective formulas containing glycerin that care for sensitive skin and oily acne-prone skin. While both brands actively improve skin hydration and restore barrier function through their key ingredients, they differ in their specific formulations and targeted regional origins.

Paula's Choice is an American skincare brand founded in 1995 and owned by Unilever since 2021.

unilever.comtracxn.com

Bioderma is a French skincare brand founded in 1977 and owned by Jean-Noël Thorel Foundation since 2018.

bioderma.usnaos.com

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

Popular Paula's Choice vs Bioderma products

People Say

Paula's ChoiceBioderma
  • Non-irritating and gentle Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “doesn't sting my eyes — Bioderma Sensibio H2O”
    • “doesn't cause any irritation — Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Cleansing Oil”
    • “mildest face wash I've tried — Bioderma Sensibio Gel Moussant”
    • “Finally a vitamin C product I can use — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
  • Lightweight and fast absorption Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “Absorbs quickly and leaves no greasy residue behind. — Paula's Choice Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer”
    • “absorbs instantly — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “watery consistency — Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster”
    • “absorbs instantly — Bioderma Hydrabio Serum”
  • Smoothes skin texture Mostly MentionedNot noted
    • “skin becomes very smooth — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “skin is insanely soft — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
    • “skin never been this silky — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
  • Hydrating and moisturizing Not notedOften Mentioned
    • “healed my dry skin — Bioderma Sébium Hydra”
    • “skin feels plump — Bioderma Atoderm Crème Ultra”
    • “leaves skin feeling hydrated — Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Cleansing Oil”
  • Unclogs pores and clears acne Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “cleared my bumps — Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant”
    • “Helped clear my cystic acne — Paula's Choice CLEAR Pore Normalizing Cleanser”
    • “heals blemishes faster — Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant”
    • “It removed my acne from my face. — Bioderma Sébium Gel moussant”
  • Balances oily skin and minimizes pores Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “pores look smaller — Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster”
    • “It works great to balance oil and is very refreshing, especially in the summer. — Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Pore-Reducing Toner”
    • “Keeps you shine free — Bioderma Sébium Pore Refiner”
    • “Noticeable difference in size of pores — Bioderma Sébium Pore Refiner”
  • High price and value issues Mostly MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “pricier than other brands — Bioderma Sensibio Gel Moussant”
    • “finished too quickly — Bioderma Hydrabio Serum”
    • “pricey for water — Bioderma Sensibio H2O”
    • “surprisingly small bottle — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
  • Drying and flaking Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “peeling and flaking — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “Not hydrating enough for winter. — Paula's Choice Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer”
    • “Skin looks like sandpaper — Bioderma Sébium Pore Refiner”
    • “It isn't a cleanser I can use every day... it can be very drying. — Bioderma Sébium Gel moussant”
  • Unpleasant smell or scent Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “Very unpleasant chemical smell. You definitely don't want this accidentally going into your mouth. — Bioderma Sébium Gel moussant”
    • “scent is too strong — Bioderma Hydrabio Serum”
    • “strong scent — Bioderma Sébium Hydra”
    • “smells like grain — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”

Paula's Choice vs Bioderma routines for dry skin

Buy Bioderma routine · A$287.21 · 87% fitBuy Paula's Choice routine · A$343.82 · 86% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Paula's Choice vs Bioderma routines for oily skin

Buy Paula's Choice routine · A$561.22 · 92% fitBuy Bioderma routine · A$436.63 · 82% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Paula's Choice vs Bioderma routines for combination skin

Buy Paula's Choice routine · A$437.74 · 89% fitBuy Bioderma routine · A$362.59 · 83% fitSee multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Questions and answers

Paula's Choice or Bioderma: which is better?

Paula's Choice is better for unclogging pores, smoothing texture, and lightweight absorption, while Bioderma is better for soothing, barrier-repairing, and non-irritating care. Paula's Choice achieves a Superior fit level for oily, sensitive, acne-prone, mature, and oily acne-prone skin on this page, whereas Bioderma achieves a High fit level for those skin types.

What is the difference between Paula's Choice and Bioderma?

Paula's Choice is a superior fit for oily, sensitive, acne-prone, mature, and oily acne-prone skin on this page, while Bioderma offers a high fit across those same types. Reviewers note that Paula's Choice delivers lightweight textures and smooths skin texture better, whereas Bioderma is praised for being non-irritating and providing soothing, barrier-repairing moisturizers.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for dry skin?

Paula's Choice and Bioderma both fit dry skin well, with Lovi rating their routines as High. Paula's Choice helps dry skin with products like its Advanced Replenishing Toner, while Bioderma is known for soothing moisturizers.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma: which cleanser is better?

Paula's Choice offers a Superior Lovi fit for oily and acne-prone skin with its cleansers, while Bioderma achieves a High fit for those skin types. Reviewers mention that Paula's Choice is better at unclogging pores and clearing acne, whereas Bioderma excels with gentle and effective cleansers.

Which is more affordable, Paula's Choice or Bioderma?

Bioderma is sometimes noted by reviewers for high price point and value concerns, while Paula's Choice mostly mentions high price and packaging issues.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for oily skin?

Paula's Choice is a Superior fit for oily skin, whereas Bioderma has a High fit level. Paula's Choice features fragrance-free formulas with key ingredients like salicylic acid and niacinamide that help unclog pores and balance oil production.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma: which moisturizer is better?

Paula's Choice and Bioderma both offer effective moisturizers, but Paula's Choice is a better fit for oily skin with a Superior Lovi rating compared to Bioderma's High level, while both brands reach a High level for dry skin.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for sensitive skin?

Paula's Choice has a Superior routine fit for sensitive skin, while Bioderma has a High fit. Paula's Choice relies on fragrance-free formulations with key ingredients like niacinamide and salicylic acid that help soothe the skin.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for acne-prone skin?

Paula's Choice is a Superior fit for acne-prone skin, while Bioderma is a High fit. Paula's Choice features fragrance-free formulas with active ingredients like salicylic acid that help unclog pores and clear acne.

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for mature skin?

Paula's Choice has a Superior routine fit for mature skin, whereas Bioderma has a High fit. Paula's Choice features fragrance-free formulas with key ingredients like retinol, which helps stimulate collagen accumulation in naturally aged skin.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for skin with dark spots?

Paula's Choice is a better fit for skin with dark spots, achieving a High routine fit compared to Bioderma's High fit level, and it features targeted treatments with niacinamide which may help suppress pigmentation.

The British Journal of Dermatology, 2002Antioxidants, 2021

Paula's Choice or Bioderma for dry sensitive skin?

Paula's Choice and Bioderma both fit dry sensitive skin at a High level. Paula's Choice features fragrance-free formulas with key ingredients like hyaluronic acid and niacinamide, which helps hydrate and soothe dry skin.

Drug Delivery, 2017Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

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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