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Kiehl's vs L'Oreal Paris

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

Kiehl's and L'Oreal Paris are well-established beauty houses that offer thoughtfully crafted products for diverse daily routines. Kiehl's is cherished for its moisturizers, serums, toners, and eye products anchored by glycerin and squalane, suiting skin with dark spots and mature skin best. Meanwhile, L'Oreal Paris is widely loved for its serums, moisturizers, masks, and eye products formulated with hyaluronic acid and glycerin, making both its offerings and those of the American brand distinct from one another. The French brand suits acne-prone skin and oily acne-prone skin best through its balanced, non-greasy formulations.

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

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

L'Oreal Paris is a French skincare brand founded in 1909 and owned by L'Oréal S.A..

en.wikipedia.orgloreal.comloreal-paris.co.ukcosmeticsbusiness.com

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

Popular Kiehl's vs L'Oreal Paris products

People Say

Kiehl'sL'Oreal Paris
  • Deep hydration and moisture Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Feels like a drink of water — Kiehl's Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate”
    • “wake up with soft skin — L'Oreal Paris Age Perfect Cell Renewal Midnight Cream”
    • “Leaves my face feeling plump and dewy all day. — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift”
  • Lightweight and non-greasy texture Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “feels like nothing — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “absorbs instantly without residue — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Oil-Free Gel Cream”
    • “Absorbs quickly — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Absorbs fast — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Anti-Wrinkle + Firming Night Cream”
  • Skin barrier and texture improvements Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “skin is a lot smoother — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Laser Pure Retinol Night Serum”
    • “My skin feels silky and soft to the touch. — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift”
    • “Smooth and creamy texture that spreads very nicely. — L'Oreal Paris Pure-Clay Mask”
    • “leaves skin feeling silky — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
  • Dark spot fading and brightening Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “skin looks luminous — L'Oreal Paris Glycolic Bright”
    • “significant reduction in the appearance of dark spots — L'Oreal Paris Bright Reveal 12% Niacinamide Dark Spot Serum”
    • “skin looks glowing — L'Oreal Paris Age Perfect Cell Renewal Midnight Cream”
    • “Acne marks are gone — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
  • Gentle formula and suitability for sensitive skin Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “experienced zero irritation — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “fragrance-free — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “perfect for retinol newbies — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “very gentle, didn't irritate my skin — L'Oreal Paris Bright Reveal 12% Niacinamide Dark Spot Serum”
  • Plumping and fine line reduction Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “diminished fine lines, under-eye discoloration as well Crow's feet — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Pressed Night Cream”
    • “fine lines around eyes less noticeable — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Laser Pure Retinol Night Serum”
    • “reduces puffiness under the eyes — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Anti-Wrinkle + Firming Eye Cream”
    • “Skin looks noticeably more plump — Kiehl's Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate”
  • High price and poor value Mostly MentionedRarely Noted
    • “a little bit pricy — L'Oreal Paris Glycolic Bright”
    • “taken aback by the price — L'Oreal Paris Bright Reveal 12% Niacinamide Dark Spot Serum”
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Burning, stinging, and irritation Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “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”
    • “left my face bright red — Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque”
    • “slight tingling the first few times — L'Oreal Paris Dark Spot Exfoliant Peel”
  • Unpleasant scent or strong fragrance Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “smells clinical — Kiehl's Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum”
    • “faint lab smell — Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum”
    • “smell is overpowering — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
    • “The perfume smell is overwhelming and lingers. — L'Oreal Paris Revitalift”

Kiehl's vs L'Oreal Paris routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 98% fit

Kiehl's vs L'Oreal Paris routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 95% fit

Kiehl's vs L'Oreal Paris routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 94% fit

Questions and answers

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris: which is better?

L'Oreal Paris is better for routine fit on most skin types on this page, including oily, acne-prone, and mature skin, while Kiehl's is better for avoiding added fragrance. Lovi rates L'Oreal Paris as superior for acne-prone skin and mature skin, whereas Kiehl's routines fit those skin types at a high level.

What is the difference between Kiehl's and L'Oreal Paris?

Kiehl's has a High routine fit for sensitive skin and dry sensitive skin, while L'Oreal Paris has a Superior routine fit for acne-prone skin, mature skin, and skin with dark spots. Lovi rates Kiehl's routine fit as High for dry skin and oily skin, whereas L'Oreal Paris rates as Superior for both.

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris for dry skin?

Lovi shows that L'Oreal Paris has a Superior routine fit for dry skin, whereas Kiehl's has a High fit. Both brands offer products on this page that provide deep hydration and moisture.

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris: which moisturizer is better?

L'Oreal Paris offers a Superior routine fit for dry skin with products like Age Perfect Cell Renewal Midnight Cream, whereas Kiehl's provides a High fit for dry skin on this page. L'Oreal Paris is noted for deep hydration and moisturization.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Which is more affordable, Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris?

L'Oreal Paris offers better value and affordability among the products on this page, whereas reviewers often mention Kiehl's as having a high price point.

Which brand has more fragrance-free skincare products, Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris?

Kiehl's has more fragrance-free skincare products than L'Oreal Paris, with 26 out of 28 products listing no fragrance on this page compared to 5 out of 10 for L'Oreal Paris.

Which brand has better performance for dark spot fading and brightening, Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris?

L'Oreal Paris has better performance for dark spot fading and brightening according to the review themes on this page. Lovi rates L'Oreal Paris as having a Superior routine fit for skin with dark spots, whereas Kiehl's routine fit is High.

Which brand is better suited for mature skin, Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris?

L'Oreal Paris is better suited for mature skin, as Lovi rates its routine fit as Superior while Kiehl's is High.

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris for oily skin?

For oily skin, L'Oreal Paris has a superior routine fit compared to Kiehl's. The products on this page help provide deep hydration and oil control.

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris for sensitive skin?

Both Kiehl's and L'Oreal Paris offer a High routine fit for sensitive skin, making them equally good options. Kiehl's features a lower percentage of fragranced products on this page, which helps reduce the likelihood of irritation.

Kiehl's or L'Oreal Paris for acne-prone skin?

For acne-prone skin, L'Oreal Paris has a superior routine fit compared to Kiehl's. Lovi rates the routine fit for L'Oreal Paris as Superior, while Kiehl's has an Average routine fit for acne-prone skin.

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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