🇩🇪Germany

Avène vs Olay

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

Avène and Olay are skincare brands offering gentle care suited to complex needs. The French brand, founded in 1990 and owned by Fondation Pierre Fabre, is known for gentle moisturizers, protective sunscreens, targeted serums, and soothing cleansers formulated with glycerin, suiting oily acne-prone skin and combination skin best. Conversely, the other brand is warmly loved for its targeted moisturizers, eye products, serums, cleansers, and more, which thoughtfully pair niacinamide and glycerin to suit acne-prone skin and mature skin best. While both brands share glycerin to improve skin hydration and restore barrier function, they differ because the latter also pairs niacinamide to improve wrinkles, pigmentation, and skin aging.

Avène is a French skincare brand founded in 1990 and owned by Fondation Pierre Fabre.

pierre-fabre.comavene.co.ukaveneusa.com

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

Popular Avène vs Olay products

People Say

AvèneOlay
  • Gentleness and Soothing Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “Calmed my angry red skin overnight — Avène Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream”
    • “Nothing has ever worked to soothe or heal my skin like these before. — Avène Tolerance Control Soothing Skin Recovery Balm”
    • “Perfect cleanser for sensitive skin. — Avène Milk Cleanser”
    • “doesn't strip my skin — Olay Regenerating Cream Cleanser”
  • Texture and Absorption Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “sinks in quickly — Olay Super Serum”
    • “absorbs quickly — Olay Vitamin C Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly — Olay Super Serum Night Repair”
    • “Thick but absorbs well eventually — Avène Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream”
  • Hydration and Moisture Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Instantly smoother, softer, and more hydrated — Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream”
    • “light and smooth — Olay Ultimate Eye Cream”
    • “hydrates the skin — Olay Advanced Eye Cream”
    • “Saves my skin in winter — Avène Cold Cream”
  • Skin Smoothing and Anti-Aging Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin feels baby soft — Olay Retinol24”
    • “Skin feels like silk — Olay Regenerist Retinol 24 Night Moisturizer”
    • “hydrates the skin — Olay Advanced Eye Cream”
    • “skin instantly felt firmer — Avène Hyaluron Activ B3 Concentrated Plumping Serum”
  • Brightening and Radiance Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “iridescent glow — Olay Super Serum”
    • “hides dark shadows — Olay Ultimate Eye Cream”
    • “skin looks brighter — Olay Vitamin C Serum”
    • “immediate radiance boost — Avène Vitamin Activ Cg Radiance Concentrated Serum”
  • Makeup Compatibility and Removal Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “absorbs instantly — Olay Eye Lifting Serum”
    • “acts as primer — Olay Super Serum”
    • “concealer sits better — Olay Ultimate Eye Cream”
    • “Remove a all of the makeup with ease. — Avène Milk Cleanser”
  • Strong Fragrance and Scents Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “The fragrance is very present. — Avène Milk Cleanser”
    • “smell is too strong — Avène Cleanance”
    • “Fragrance can be an irritant — Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream”
    • “floral scent — Olay Super Serum”
  • Packaging Issues Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Tube cracked on the side — Avène Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream”
    • “Cap leaks in bag — Avène Cleanance Cleansing Gel”
    • “Good product bad packaging. — Avène RetrinAL EYES”
    • “hard to dispense — Olay Super Serum”
  • Product Ineffectiveness Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “no difference — Avène Antirougeurs Fort Relief Concentrate”
    • “no difference after month — Avène Vitamin Activ Cg Radiance Concentrated Serum”
    • “didn't work for me — Avène Hyaluron Activ B3 Concentrated Plumping Serum”
    • “no difference — Olay Vitamin C Serum”

Avène vs Olay routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 99% fit

Avène vs Olay routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Avène vs Olay routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

Avène or Olay: which is better?

Both Avène and Olay are great brands, with Avène excelling in gentleness and soothing while Olay outperforms in texture, hydration, anti-aging, brightening, and makeup compatibility. Reviewers note that the products on this page for both brands achieve equal high fit levels for dry, oily, combination, sensitive, acne-prone, mature, and dark spot skin types, while Olay achieves a High fit for dry sensitive skin compared to Avène's Average fit.

What is the difference between Avène and Olay?

Both brands offer routines with equal fit levels for most skin types, but Olay provides a High fit for dry sensitive skin while Avène offers an Average fit. Reviewers note that Avène does better with gentleness and soothing, whereas Olay performs better in areas like texture, hydration, and anti-aging.

Avène or Olay for dry skin?

Both Avène and Olay share a High routine fit level for dry skin on the products on this page. Olay may provide extra benefits for dry sensitive skin, where its routine fit is High compared to Avène at an Average level.

Avène or Olay: which cleanser is better?

Both Avène and Olay offer cleansers that provide a high fit level for oily acne-prone, acne-prone, and oily skin on the products on this page. Reviewers note that Avène cleansers provide gentle deep cleans, while Olay products help improve skin texture and smoothness.

Which is more affordable, Avène or Olay?

This page does not provide pricing information for Avène or Olay, so affordability cannot be compared here.

Which brand has more fragrance-free products, Avène or Olay?

Olay has more fragrance-free products than Avène, with twenty-six out of twenty-seven products on this page listing no fragrance. Avène has seven out of fifteen products on this page that list no fragrance.

Avène or Olay for anti-aging and skin smoothing?

Olay does better for anti-aging and skin smoothing because the products on this page frequently provide intense hydration and improved texture with key ingredients like retinol, niacinamide, and peptides that help reduce signs of skin aging.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2005

Avène or Olay for oily skin?

Both brands achieve a High routine fit for oily skin on the products on this page. Avène stands out for gentle oil control and non-stripping cleansers, while Olay offers lightweight feel and fast absorption.

Avène or Olay: which moisturizer is better?

Both Avène and Olay offer strong moisturizers, with Olay standing out for intense hydration and anti-aging benefits while Avène focuses on soothing sensitive skin. Reviewers note that Olay delivers better results for smoothing and texture, whereas Avène provides gentler options for easily irritated skin.

Avène or Olay for sensitive skin?

Both Avène and Olay offer a High routine fit for sensitive skin. Reviewers note that Avène does better for gentleness and soothing, while Olay products on this page are mostly fragrance-free.

Avène or Olay: which sunscreen is better?

Both Avène and Olay offer sunscreens on this page, with Avène featuring sunscreens that reviewers mostly mention as gentle and non-stripping. Olay also provides options like the Regenerist Whip Face Moisturizer SPF 25, which achieves a High fit level for mature, sensitive, and acne-prone skin types.

Avène or Olay for acne-prone skin?

Both Avène and Olay fit acne-prone skin at a High level on the products on this page. Avène stands out for gentleness and soothing, while Olay scores better for texture, absorption, and hydration.

Avène or Olay for dry sensitive skin?

Olay achieves a High routine fit for dry sensitive skin, whereas Avène reaches an Average level. Olay offers deep moisture with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, which helps hydrate and maintain skin barrier quality.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022Drug Delivery, 2017

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?

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

QR code: get the Lovi app
Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play