🇨🇦Canada

Skintific vs MAC

Skintific and MAC are two distinct skincare lines known for thoughtful formulations, reliable daily care, and balanced ingredients. Skintific offers targeted moisturizers, potent serums, and protective sunscreens that suit dry skin and dry sensitive skin best, while the Canadian brand MAC provides daily moisturizers and makeup removers that suit balanced skin best. Both brands carefully balance every component to address specific concerns, such as acne-prone skin, dark spots, and mature skin. Ultimately, the two differ primarily in their core product types and the specific skin types they suit best.

MAC is a Canadian skincare brand founded in 1984 and owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. since 1994.

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

People Say

SkintificMAC
  • Lightweight texture Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “absorbs quickly — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
    • “Absorbs in a snap — MAC Mineralize Timecheck Lotion”
    • “Emulsifies beautifully and rinses off without a greasy film. — MAC Hyper Real Fresh Canvas Cleansing Oil”
    • “absorbs instantly — Skintific 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel”
  • Excellent makeup base and primer Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “foundation glides on — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
    • “Sits beautifully under makeup — MAC Mineralize Timecheck Lotion”
    • “Reduces appearance of pores — MAC Mineralize Timecheck Lotion”
  • Deep cleansing and non-drying Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Removes waterproof mascara completely without needing a separate remover. — MAC Hyper Real Fresh Canvas Cleansing Oil”
    • “Leaves skin feeling soft and supple, never tight. — MAC Hyper Real Fresh Canvas Cleansing Oil”
    • “Doesn't sting my eyes or blur my vision. — MAC Hyper Real Fresh Canvas Cleansing Oil”
    • “skin feels fresh — Skintific MUGWORT”
  • Calms redness and repairs skin Mostly MentionedNot noted
    • “calm my acne instantly — Skintific MUGWORT”
    • “redness berkurang — Skintific 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel”
    • “healed my skin barrier — Skintific 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel”
  • Oil control and pore care Mostly MentionedNot noted
    • “controls shine for 8 hours — Skintific MATE FIT”
    • “Pori tampak lebih bersih — Skintific AHA BHA PHA LHA Peeling Solution”
    • “oil control is good — Skintific 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel”
  • Smoother skin texture and radiance Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Kulit terasa lebih halus — Skintific AHA BHA PHA LHA Peeling Solution”
    • “Tampak lebih cerah — Skintific AHA BHA PHA LHA Peeling Solution”
    • “lit-from-within look — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
    • “petal-soft skin — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
  • High price point Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “too expensive — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
  • Scent and fragrance dislike Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “scent is actually quite strong — Skintific All Day Light Sunscreen Mist”
    • “Bau jamu/rempah — Skintific AHA BHA PHA LHA Peeling Solution”
    • “scent is overpowering — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”
    • “Has a scent that might irritate very sensitive noses. — MAC Hyper Real Fresh Canvas Cleansing Oil”
  • Breakouts and skin irritation Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “broke me out so bad — Skintific 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel”
    • “caused tiny bumps — Skintific MUGWORT”
    • “caused acne — MAC Hyper Real Serumizer”

Questions and answers

Skintific or MAC: which is better?

Skintific is better for sensitive skin because the products on this page list no fragrance, whereas every MAC product contains fragrance. Shoppers often mention scent sensitivity as a downside for MAC, while Skintific helps calm redness and repair skin.

What is the difference between Skintific and MAC?

Skintific focuses on fragrance-free options that help calm redness, control oil, and support dry or sensitive skin, whereas MAC offers popular lightweight textures and makeup bases that often include added fragrance. Reviewers note that MAC tends to have a higher price point while providing excellent deep cleansing and priming benefits.

Skintific or MAC: which moisturizer is better?

Both brands offer solid options, but Skintific stands out for barrier care with its 5X Ceramide Barrier Moisture Gel, which Lovi rates as a High fit for dry and dry sensitive skin. Meanwhile, MAC provides luxurious lightweight hydration like the Mineralize Timecheck Lotion, which also achieves a High fit for dry, sensitive, and dry sensitive skin.

Scientific Reports, 2022International Journal of Dermatology, 2008

Which is more affordable, Skintific or MAC?

MAC has a high price point while Skintific does not have this issue, making Skintific the more affordable option.

Which causes fewer breakouts, Skintific or MAC?

MAC may cause fewer breakouts because reviewers often mention strong fragrance and sensitivity issues with MAC, while Skintific products on this page have reported issues with breakouts and skin irritation.

Which brand has products that are entirely free of fragrance according to their ingredient lists?

Skintific has products that are entirely free of fragrance on this page, as every product lists no fragrance in its ingredients, whereas MAC has fragrance in all of its products on this page.

How do the founding years and parent companies of Skintific and MAC compare?

Skintific was founded recently in 2021 and is owned by Guangzhou Feimei Network Technology Co., Ltd., whereas MAC was founded earlier in 1984 in Canada and has been owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. since 1994.

Which brand has a peeling solution serum that receives a caution rating for dry skin types?

Skintific features the AHA BHA PHA LHA Peeling Solution, which receives a caution rating for dry skin and dry sensitive skin types.

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.

How does it fit your skin?

Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.