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Kiehl's vs Clarins

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

Kiehl's and Clarins are respected skincare brands that offer thoughtful arrays of moisturizers, serums, toners, and eye products. The American brand is cherished for anchoring its formulations with glycerin and squalane, suiting skin with dark spots and mature skin best, whereas the French brand is loved for enriching its gentle products with shea and squalane to suit sensitive skin and dry sensitive skin best. While both utilize squalane, they differ in their heritage, secondary key ingredients, and primary skin type suitability, giving each a distinct approach to targeted relief.

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

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

Clarins is a French skincare brand founded in 1954 and owned by Famille C (Groupe Clarins).

groupeclarins.comen.wikipedia.orghappi.com

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

Popular Kiehl's vs Clarins products

People Say

Kiehl'sClarins
  • Deep hydration Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin drinks it up — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “keeps skin moist — Clarins Multi-Active Jour”
    • “woke up with baby soft skin — Clarins Multi-Active Nuit”
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Lightweight and non-greasy texture Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly without residue — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Gel Cream”
    • “absorbs immediately — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “sinks in immediately — Clarins Double Serum Light Texture”
  • No white cast and glowing skin Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “works on dark skin — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “woke up glowing — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “skin looks brighter immediately — Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask”
    • “Gives off the most stunning natural radiance I've ever come across. — Clarins Beauty Flash Balm”
  • Skin barrier and texture improvement Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “leaves skin feeling silky — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
    • “skin feels smoother — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “neck feels smoother — Clarins Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté Cream”
    • “visibly tighter, lifted skin — Clarins Super Restorative Night Cream”
  • Makeup base and primer compatibility Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
    • “no pilling — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “Perfect primer for any foundation, which all glide on smoothly. — Clarins Beauty Flash Balm”
  • Rich and creamy texture Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “melting non-oily texture — Clarins Extra-Firming Neck & Décolleté Cream”
    • “Creamy texture feels luxurious upon application — Clarins Extra-Firming Day Cream”
    • “feels like silk — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “feels luxurious and thick — Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado”
  • High price point and poor value Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Very expensive product — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “way too expensive — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “too expensive for results — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
  • Scent and fragrance complaints Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “smells clinical — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “faint lab smell — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “smells like perfume — Clarins Multi-Active Jour”
  • Breakouts and skin irritation Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “caused cystic acne — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “caused redness — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “made my face burn — Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask”
    • “burned my face immediately — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
  • Ineffective or slow results Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Did absolutely nothing — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “Takes months to see — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “didn't see a lift — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “no change in circles — Clarins Double Serum Eye”

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 98% fit

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Kiehl's vs Clarins routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 94% fit

Questions and answers

Kiehl's or Clarins: which is better?

Kiehl's is better for dry, oily, combination, and oily acne-prone skin on the products on this page, while both brands are a High fit for sensitive skin, mature skin, skin with dark spots, and dry sensitive skin.

What is the difference between Kiehl's and Clarins?

Kiehl's offers a higher routine fit for dry, oily, combination, and oily acne-prone skin compared to Clarins, while both brands perform equally well for sensitive skin, acne-prone skin, mature skin, skin with dark spots, and dry sensitive skin.

Kiehl's or Clarins for dry skin?

Kiehl's is a better fit for dry skin on this page, achieving a High routine fit compared to Clarins' Average level. Kiehl's offers more products well-suited for dry skin, such as the Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate which has a Superior fit.

Kiehl's or Clarins: which cleanser is better?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins offer effective cleansers, but Kiehl's may be better suited for oily and acne-prone skin types based on the products on this page. Kiehl's features cleansers with Superior fit levels for oily and acne-prone skin, whereas Clarins cleansers generally reach Average fit levels for those skin types.

Which is more affordable, Kiehl's or Clarins?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins share a high price point as a commonly mentioned drawback for the products on this page.

Between Kiehl's and Clarins, which brand has a higher percentage of fragrance-free products?

Kiehl's has a significantly higher percentage of fragrance-free products on the page, with 26 out of 28 products listing no fragrance, compared to Clarins where only 1 out of 24 products is fragrance-free.

How do the founding countries and parent companies of Kiehl's and Clarins compare?

Kiehl's was founded in the United States in 1851 and has been owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 2000, whereas Clarins was founded in France in 1954 and is owned by Famille C through Groupe Clarins.

Which brand performs better for deep hydration and texture preferences according to reviewers?

Clarins performs better for deep hydration and texture preferences on the products on this page, as reviewers mention it more often for deep hydration, rich and creamy textures, and luxurious formulas. Both brands are equal for lightweight and non-greasy textures and skin texture improvements.

Kiehl's or Clarins for oily skin?

For oily skin, Kiehl's is the better choice on this page. Lovi rates the Kiehl's routine fit for oily skin as High, while the Clarins routine fit is Average.

Kiehl's or Clarins: which moisturizer is better?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins offer well-rated moisturizers, but Kiehl's is particularly recognized for its lightweight, non-greasy options on the products on this page. Clarins tends to lean toward luxurious textures and deeper hydration, though Lovi rates Kiehl's routine fit slightly higher for dry skin.

Kiehl's or Clarins for sensitive skin?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins provide a High Lovi routine fit for sensitive skin. However, Kiehl's lists no fragrance across most of its products on this page, whereas almost all Clarins products contain fragrance.

Kiehl's or Clarins for acne-prone skin?

Both Kiehl's and Clarins offer an average routine fit for acne-prone skin on the products on this page.

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?

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