🇩🇪Germany

Paula's Choice vs Elemis

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

Paula's Choice and Elemis are established skincare brands offering serums, cleansers, moisturizers, and toners built around ingredients like glycerin and shea. The American brand pairs hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and vitamin c to suit combination skin and oily skin best, while the British brand weaves together glycerin and shea to serve dry skin and mature skin best. Both utilize glycerin to significantly increase skin hydration and improve barrier function, yet they differ as Paula's Choice relies on salicylic and retinol treatments for concerns like acne and dark spots, whereas Elemis employs marine and peptide infusions for restorative care.

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

unilever.comtracxn.com

Elemis is a British skincare brand founded in 1989 and owned by L'Occitane Group since 2019.

elemis.comau.elemis.comen.wikipedia.org

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

Popular Paula's Choice vs Elemis products

People Say

Paula's ChoiceElemis
  • Improving Skin Texture and Smoothness Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “skin becomes very smooth — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “bumps be gone — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
    • “skin is insanely soft — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
    • “baby soft — Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Pads”
  • Fast Absorption and Lightweight Texture 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”
    • “Absorbs almost immediately, and my skin feels well hydrated all day. — Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream”
    • “weightless serum — Elemis Pro-Collagen Advanced Eye Treatment”
  • Instant and Deep Hydration Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “The cream really hydrates and my face looks amazing. — Elemis Pro-Collagen Night Cream”
    • “Quenches thirsty skin... immediate improvement. — Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream”
    • “skin feels baby soft — Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm”
  • Glow, Radiance, and Brightening Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “visible glow — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “Discoloration almost gone — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
    • “healthy glow — Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Pads”
    • “instantly fresh glow — Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Wash”
  • Pleasant Scent Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “smells like a spa — Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm”
    • “smells like a holiday — Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel”
    • “smells like a tropical cocktail — Elemis Superfood Midnight Facial”
    • “Doesn't smell at all — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
  • Anti-Aging and Firming Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “skin looks plumper — Paula's Choice Pro-Collagen Multi-Peptide Booster”
    • “softens lines and wrinkles — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “improved neck texture — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
    • “My neck doesn't sag... plumps my skin to look more youthful. — Elemis Pro-Collagen Night Cream”
  • High Price and Value Issues Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “tiny tube — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”
    • “Sooooo expensive — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
    • “Complete waste of money for me. — Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream”
    • “very expensive — Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm”
  • Packaging Issues and Small Size Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “jar looks half empty — Elemis Superfood Midnight Facial”
    • “tube feels half empty — Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel”
    • “pump broke quickly — Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Wash”
    • “surprisingly small bottle — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
  • Unpleasant Smell or Scent Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “smell is overpowering — Elemis Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Wash”
    • “smells like grain — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”

Paula's Choice vs Elemis routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 99% fit

Paula's Choice vs Elemis routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Paula's Choice vs Elemis routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

Paula's Choice or Elemis: which is better?

Both brands are great choices, as Lovi rates their routines as having High fit across all skin types. Paula's Choice is better for improving skin texture and anti-aging, while Elemis stands out for instant and deep hydration.

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

Paula's Choice focuses on improving skin texture and anti-aging with fragrance-free formulas, while Elemis leans toward luxurious textures and hydrating moisturizers that often contain fragrance.

Paula's Choice or Elemis for dry skin?

Both Paula's Choice and Elemis achieve a High routine fit level for dry skin. Paula's Choice relies on fragrance-free formulations with key ingredients like hyaluronic acid and ceramides to repair the skin barrier, while Elemis offers luxurious, highly hydrating moisturizers that may sometimes feature strong fragrances.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

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

Paula's Choice offers cleansers like the CLEAR Pore Normalizing Cleanser that have a High to Superior Lovi fit across oily, acne-prone, and combination skin types. Elemis also provides cleansers like the Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Wash with High fit levels for mature, oily acne-prone, and sensitive skin on this page.

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

Both Paula's Choice and Elemis share a similar price level, as high prices are mentioned for both brands on this page. Reviewers report high prices and value issues equally for the products on this page.

Between Paula's Choice and Elemis, which brand is better for anti-aging and firming?

Paula's Choice does better for anti-aging and firming on the products on this page. Retinol helps stimulate collagen accumulation in naturally aged human skin.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000Archives of Dermatology, 2007

How do the fragrance ingredients compare between Paula's Choice and Elemis products?

Paula's Choice lists no fragrance for the products on this page, whereas most Elemis products contain fragrance. This means Elemis may carry a higher likelihood of scent-related skin irritation for sensitive skin types.

Which brand performs better for improving skin texture and smoothness?

Paula's Choice performs better for improving skin texture and smoothness. Its products on this page feature active ingredients like retinol and AHAs, which help refine skin texture.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000Archives of Dermatology, 2007

Paula's Choice or Elemis for sensitive skin?

Both Paula's Choice and Elemis achieve a High Lovi fit level for sensitive skin, making them equally suitable options. Paula's Choice features fragrance-free formulations across all products on this page, whereas Elemis includes fragrance in several of its options.

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

When it comes to moisturizers, Elemis is better for deep hydration and dry skin, while Paula's Choice is better suited for oily and acne-prone skin types. Both brands offer products on this page with high routine fit levels, but Elemis specializes in nourishing formulas like the Pro-Collagen Marine Cream whereas Paula's Choice focuses on lightweight options like the Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer.

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

Both Paula's Choice and Elemis fit acne-prone skin well at a High level. Paula's Choice products on this page list no fragrance, which helps reduce the risk of irritation for acne-prone users.

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