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Paula's Choice vs Kiehl's

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

Paula's Choice and Kiehl's are American skincare brands offering serums, cleansers, moisturizers, and toners. Paula's Choice is built around hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and vitamin c, fitting oily and mature skin best, while the brand is loved for its nourishing moisturizers, targeted serums, soothing toners, and revitalizing eye products formulated with glycerin and squalane that suit mature and combination skin. Both differ as their key ingredients vary, with glycerin increasing skin hydration and restoring barrier function, and squalane additionally counteracting oxidative stress and stimulating fibroblast migration.

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

unilever.comtracxn.com

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 Paula's Choice and Kiehl's products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular Paula's Choice vs Kiehl's products

People Say

Paula's ChoiceKiehl's
  • Fast Absorption and Lightweight Texture Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Provides an internal level of hydration without leaving any heavy finish. — Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Pore-Reducing Toner”
    • “Absorbs quickly and leaves no greasy residue behind. — Paula's Choice Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer”
    • “absorbs instantly — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
  • Skin Texture Improvement Mostly MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “skin becomes very smooth — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “skin is insanely soft — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
    • “skin never been this silky — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
    • “leaves skin feeling silky — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
  • Glow, Brightening, and Radiance Often MentionedOften 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”
    • “visible glow — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
  • Deep and Intense Hydration Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “skin feels incredibly soft afterwards — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
    • “Feels like a drink of water — Kiehl's Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate”
  • Non-Irritating and Gentle Formula Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “Finally a vitamin C product I can use — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
    • “no stinging — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “experienced zero irritation — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “fragrance-free — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Acne and Blemish Clearing Often MentionedNot noted
    • “Helped clear my cystic acne — Paula's Choice CLEAR Pore Normalizing Cleanser”
    • “heals blemishes faster — Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant”
    • “controlled my back and chest acne — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
  • High Price and Value Concerns Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “surprisingly small bottle — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
    • “tiny tube — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Very expensive product — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
  • Purging and Breakouts Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “skin purged — Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant”
    • “caused cystic acne — Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster”
    • “caused cystic acne — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “cystic acne for some — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Unpleasant Scent or Smell Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “smells clinical — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “faint lab smell — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “smells like hot dog water — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
    • “smells like grain — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”
  • Irritation and Burning Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “burnt skin off — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “ruined my skin barrier — Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant”
    • “stung my face — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”
    • “burned my face immediately — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”

Paula's Choice vs Kiehl's routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 98% fit

Paula's Choice vs Kiehl's routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Paula's Choice vs Kiehl's routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Questions and answers

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's: which is better?

Paula's Choice is better for oily and acne-prone skin, where Lovi rates its products as superior compared to Kiehl's. For dry, combination, sensitive, and dark-spot-prone skin, both brands offer a high level of fit. Additionally, the products on this page by Paula's Choice contain no fragrance, whereas two Kiehl's moisturizers contain fragrance.

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

Paula's Choice is a US brand founded in 1995 and owned by Unilever, whereas Kiehl's was founded in 1851 and is owned by L'Oreal. Paula's Choice achieves a Superior routine fit for oily, acne-prone, oily acne-prone, and mature skin, while Kiehl's fits mature skin, combination skin, and skin with dark spots best. Furthermore, the products on this page by Paula's Choice are entirely fragrance-free, unlike two products from Kiehl's.

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's for dry skin?

Both Paula's Choice and Kiehl's offer a High routine fit for dry skin on this page. Reviewers report that Kiehl's provides deep and intense hydration, while Paula's Choice delivers fast absorption and a lightweight texture.

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

Paula's Choice is better for acne-prone skin, as the products on this page achieve a Superior routine fit compared to Kiehl's Average fit. Reviewers specifically note that Paula's Choice excels at acne and blemish clearing, whereas Kiehl's is frequently associated with causing breakouts and skin irritation.

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

Both brands face similar reviewer concerns regarding high prices, so neither is clearly more affordable based on the products on this page.

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's for acne and blemish clearing?

Paula's Choice is better for acne and blemish clearing, offering superior routine fit for acne-prone skin compared to Kiehl's average fit. The products on this page help target blemishes with key ingredients like salicylic acid.

Which brand offers better deep and intense hydration between Paula's Choice and Kiehl's?

Kiehl's does better for deep and intense hydration. Paula's Choice is formulated with ingredients like hyaluronic acid and glycerin, but Kiehl's is noted by reviewers to excel specifically in deep hydration.

Drug Delivery, 2017Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's: which is better for improving skin texture?

Paula's Choice does better than Kiehl's for improving skin texture based on reviewer feedback on the products on this page. Topical retinol, a key ingredient found in the products on this page, may help improve skin texture in naturally aged human skin.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's for oily skin?

Paula's Choice is better for oily skin, as Lovi rates its routine as Superior compared to Kiehl's High level.

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

Paula's Choice offers a superior fit for oily skin and acne-prone skin, while Kiehl's provides a high fit for combination skin and mature skin. Both brands feature fragrance-free moisturizer options on this page, with Kiehl's often noted for lightweight hydration and Paula's Choice focused on targeted ingredient performance.

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's for sensitive skin?

Both Paula's Choice and Kiehl's offer a high fit for sensitive skin based on the products on this page. Reviewers note that both brands provide gentle formulas, though Paula's Choice features fragrance-free options across its entire range.

Paula's Choice or Kiehl's: which sunscreen is better?

Paula's Choice offers the Youth-Extending Daily Hydrating Fluid SPF 50, which has a High fit level for dry skin, combination skin, and dry sensitive skin, and an Average fit level for acne-prone skin, oily skin, oily acne-prone skin, skin with dark spots, sensitive skin, and mature skin. Kiehl's offers the Better Screen UV Serum, which has a High fit level for skin with dark spots, combination skin, sensitive skin, acne-prone skin, and mature skin, and an Average fit level for oily skin, dry skin, oily acne-prone skin, and dry sensitive skin.

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

Paula's Choice fits acne-prone skin better, achieving a Superior routine fit compared to an Average fit for Kiehl's on this page. Reviewers report that Paula's Choice does better with acne and blemish clearing, while Kiehl's is more often associated with causing breakouts and skin irritation.

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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