Simple and Anessa are distinct skincare houses that cater to different daily needs. The British brand founded in 1960 offers gentle moisturizers, makeup removers, cleansers, and toners with niacinamide and glycerin that suit oily skin and acne-prone skin best. Meanwhile, the Japanese brand founded in 1992 is widely loved for its advanced sunscreens and sophisticated formulas that suit all skin types best. They differ primarily in their core offerings, as the former focuses on foundational cleansing and hydration while the latter provides reliable daily protection.
Simple is a British skincare brand founded in 1960 and owned by Unilever PLC since 2011.
This page compares some of the most popular Simple and Anessa products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.
Simple and Anessa serve different needs, so neither is universally better. Simple fits oily and acne-prone skin best with budget-friendly cleansers and makeup removers, while Anessa specializes in sunscreens. Glycerin in Simple helps hydrate the skin.
What is the difference between Simple and Anessa?
Simple offers budget-friendly cleansers, toners, moisturizers, and makeup removers featuring niacinamide and glycerin, with Lovi fit levels ranging from Low to Superior depending on the product and skin type. In contrast, Anessa focuses on sunscreens that achieve High Lovi fits for oily, combination, mature, and acne-prone skin types.
Simple features lightweight and value-friendly moisturizers on this page.
Which causes fewer breakouts, Simple or Anessa?
Simple features products on this page that are noted for sometimes causing breakouts, whereas Anessa has no such drawbacks mentioned. Both brands use formulations that lack fragrance, but shoppers often report irritation with Simple.
Which brand offers a wider variety of product types like cleansers, toners, and moisturizers compared to sunscreens?
Simple offers a wider variety of product types on this page, including cleansers, toners, and moisturizers, whereas Anessa features only sunscreens.
How do the founding years and parent companies of Simple and Anessa compare?
Simple was founded in 1960 in the United Kingdom and is owned by Unilever PLC, whereas Anessa was founded in 1992 in Japan and is owned by Shiseido Company, Limited.
What do reviewers say about the hydration and makeup-removing effectiveness of Simple products?
Reviewers frequently mention that Simple products include lightweight, value-friendly moisturizers alongside gentle, sensitive-skin-friendly makeup removers. They also note that these makeup removers are effective and hydrating for daily use, though the products on this page sometimes lack sufficient hydration or moisture.
Dipotassium glycyrrhizate · Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2026
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.
