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La Roche-Posay vs Kiehl's

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

La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's are enduring skin-care brands that offer nourishing serums, rich moisturizers, gentle cleansers, and targeted eye products. The French brand uses soothing thermal water, glycerin, and niacinamide to suit mature skin and skin with dark spots best, while the American brand incorporates glycerin and squalane to suit combination and mature skin. Both feature standout options for acne-prone skin, dark spots, and mature concerns, differing in their signature active ingredients and founding heritage.

La Roche-Posay is a French skincare brand founded in 1975 and owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 1989.

laroche-posay.com.aufr.wikipedia.org

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

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

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

Popular La Roche-Posay vs Kiehl's products

People Say

La Roche-PosayKiehl's
  • Texture Improvement and Skin Softness Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin feels incredibly soft afterwards — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly without residue — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Gel Cream”
    • “lightweight and absorbs quickly — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
  • Skin Sensitivity and Irritation Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Great retinol for beginners — La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum”
    • “Only cream that doesn't sting — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermallergo Eye Cream”
    • “experienced zero irritation — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “works on dark skin — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
  • Hydration and Moisture Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “absorbs instantly — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “skin feels plump — La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Serum”
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Feels like a drink of water — Kiehl's Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate”
  • Brightening and Dark Spots Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Acne marks are gone — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “woke up glowing — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “Skin looks radiant — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “skin looks brighter — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
  • Tint and Makeup Compatibility Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
    • “no pilling — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “no pilling — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “makeup sits perfectly — La Roche-Posay Anthelios”
  • Value and Pricing Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “expensive for the size — La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Serum”
    • “Too expensive for the size — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermallergo Eye Cream”
    • “Tube is tiny for the price — La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Gel B5”
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Texture and Pilling Issues Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “pills like crazy — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “Very sticky — La Roche-Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum”
    • “hard to spread — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
    • “too radiant for oily skin — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
  • Stinging and Adverse Reactions Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “burns my eyes — La Roche-Posay Anthelios”
    • “burned my face — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “burned my face immediately — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
    • “stings my face and feels like burning — Kiehl's Super Multi-Corrective Cream”
  • Packaging and Design Issues Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “dipping fingers is unsanitary — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Dropper doesn't reach bottom — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “pump stops working — La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+M Triple Repair Moisturizing Cream”

La Roche-Posay vs Kiehl's routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 97% fit

La Roche-Posay vs Kiehl's routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 95% fit

La Roche-Posay vs Kiehl's routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's: which is better?

Both brands are great options, as La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer an equal level of routine fit across nearly all skin types, though La Roche-Posay has a High routine fit for acne-prone skin compared to Kiehl's Average level. Niacinamide helps reduce cutaneous pigmentation and suppresses melanosome transfer.

The British Journal of Dermatology, 2002

What is the difference between La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's?

La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's both offer high routine fit levels for dry, oily, combination, sensitive, mature, and dark spot-prone skin, but La Roche-Posay is rated High for acne-prone skin while Kiehl's is rated Average. Niacinamide helps reduce cutaneous pigmentation and suppress melanosome transfer.

The British Journal of Dermatology, 2002

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's for dry skin?

Both La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer a High fit for dry skin on this page. Niacinamide helps reduce pigmentation and supports skin health.

The British Journal of Dermatology, 2002Antioxidants, 2021

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's: which cleanser is better?

Both La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer effective cleansers, with Lovi fit levels reaching High or Superior for various skin types among the products on this page. Kiehl's performs better in texture improvement and skin softness, while La Roche-Posay offers better value and pricing.

Which is more affordable, La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's?

La Roche-Posay is more affordable, as Kiehl's has more frequent price and value concerns. Review themes show that La Roche-Posay does better on value and pricing.

Between La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's, which brand is better for improving skin texture and softness?

Kiehl's is better for improving skin texture and softness. The products on this page for both brands help support skin quality.

How do the foundation and makeup compatibility compare between La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's?

Kiehl's does better than La Roche-Posay for tint and makeup compatibility based on the products on this page.

Which brand has more products formulated without added fragrance, La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's?

La Roche-Posay has 21 products on this page that list no fragrance, whereas Kiehl's has 26 products on this page formulated without added fragrance.

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's for oily skin?

Both La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer products on this page that have a High fit for oily skin. Reviewers note that Kiehl's does better for texture improvement and skin softness, while La Roche-Posay is better for value and pricing.

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's: which moisturizer is better?

Both La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer excellent moisturizers with high fit levels for most skin types, so the better choice depends on your specific skin concerns and budget. La Roche-Posay is generally better for value and sensitive skin, while Kiehl's often provides better texture improvement and makeup compatibility.

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's for sensitive skin?

Both La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's offer products on this page that are a High fit for sensitive skin. Reviewers note that both brands provide gentle serums and soothing moisturizers, though Kiehl's has more fragrance-free options as only 2 of its 28 products list fragrance compared to 14 of 35 for La Roche-Posay.

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's: which sunscreen is better?

La Roche-Posay and Kiehl's both offer sunscreens on this page that provide a Superior fit for sensitive skin, but La Roche-Posay achieves a Superior fit across a wider range of skin types including combination, acne-prone, and mature skin.

La Roche-Posay or Kiehl's for acne-prone skin?

La Roche-Posay is a better fit for acne-prone skin, offering a High routine fit compared to Kiehl's Average level. The products on this page from La Roche-Posay include multiple specialized treatments that help target blemishes effectively.

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

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