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Paula's Choice vs Neutrogena

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

Paula's Choice and Neutrogena are American skincare brands offering serums, cleansers, moisturizers, toners, and more. The former brand features hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and vitamin c, suiting oily and combination skin best, while the latter brand is widely loved for thoughtfully formulated products featuring glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and dimethicone, which suit mature skin and skin with dark spots best. Both brands harness glycerin to significantly increase skin hydration and restore barrier function, yet they differ in their specific formulations and target concerns.

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

unilever.comtracxn.com

Neutrogena is an American skincare brand founded in 1930 and owned by Kimberly-Clark Corporation since 2026.

investor.kimberly-clark.comen.wikipedia.orginvestors.kenvue.com

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

Popular Paula's Choice vs Neutrogena products

People Say

Paula's ChoiceNeutrogena
  • Lightweight and fast absorbing Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Absorbs quickly and leaves no greasy residue behind. — Paula's Choice Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer”
    • “absorbs instantly — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “Absorbs instantly without sticky residue — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel”
    • “absorbs instantly — Neutrogena COLLAGEN BANK Moisturizer”
  • Smoothes skin texture and pores Mostly MentionedRarely Noted
    • “skin becomes very smooth — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “pores look smaller — Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster”
    • “bumps be gone — Paula's Choice Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA”
    • “Skin is looking smoother — Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream”
  • Glow, radiance, and brightening Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “visible glow — Paula's Choice C15 Super Booster”
    • “Discoloration almost gone — Paula's Choice 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Clinical Serum”
    • “spots barely visible — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
    • “Spots have definitely lightened — Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream”
  • Deeply hydrating Not notedOften Mentioned
    • “Skin looked plumper and radiant — Neutrogena HYDRO BOOST WATER CREAM”
    • “It also hydrates my skin. This cream has been so easy to add to my routine. — Neutrogena Retinol Regenerating Cream”
    • “Quenches dry skin instantly — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Hydrogel Mask”
  • Anti-aging and firming Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “skin looks plumper — Paula's Choice Pro-Collagen Multi-Peptide Booster”
    • “softens lines and wrinkles — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “improved neck texture — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
    • “Deep lines have softened — Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream”
  • Fragrance-free formula Not notedOften Mentioned
    • “love that it has no scent — Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Daily Cleanser”
    • “Perfect for sensitive eyes, no stinging — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Eye Gel-Cream”
    • “Perfect for sensitive skin — Neutrogena HYDRO BOOST WATER CREAM”
  • High price and value Mostly MentionedRarely Noted
    • “Jar is too small for the price — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel”
    • “Runs out quickly — Neutrogena HYDRO BOOST WATER CREAM”
    • “Pricey for just one mask — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Hydrogel Mask”
    • “surprisingly small bottle — Paula's Choice Skin-Smoothing Retinol Body Treatment”
  • Unpleasant smell or strong fragrance Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “Smell is too overpowering and lingering — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel”
    • “Scent is so off-putting — Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream”
    • “has a weird plastic smell — Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Daily Cleanser”
    • “smells like grain — Paula's Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster”
  • Drying and flaking Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “peeling and flaking — Paula's Choice 1% Retinol Treatment”
    • “Not hydrating enough for winter. — Paula's Choice Clear Oil-Free Moisturizer”
    • “Not moisturizing enough for winter months — Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel”
    • “balls up under foundation — Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen”
  • Skin irritation and burning Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “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”
    • “burns my eyes terribly — Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen”

Paula's Choice vs Neutrogena routines for dry skin

Buy Paula's Choice routine · SAR 1,588.72 · 79% fitBuy Neutrogena routine · SAR 854.76 · 69% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Paula's Choice vs Neutrogena routines for oily skin

Buy Paula's Choice routine · SAR 1,883.71 · 89% fitBuy Neutrogena routine · SAR 811.22 · 70% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Paula's Choice vs Neutrogena routines for combination skin

Buy Paula's Choice routine · SAR 1,601.99 · 89% fitBuy Neutrogena routine · SAR 817.79 · 74% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Questions and answers

Paula's Choice or Neutrogena: which is better?

Paula's Choice is better for dry, sensitive, oily, combination, and dry sensitive skin, where Lovi rates its routines as High compared to Neutrogena's Average. For acne-prone skin, mature skin, and skin with dark spots, both brands perform equally well with High fit levels.

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

Paula's Choice has a High routine fit across almost all skin types on this page, while Neutrogena's fit varies from High to Average depending on the skin type. Paula's Choice is entirely fragrance-free across the products on this page, whereas a few Neutrogena products contain fragrance.

Paula's Choice or Neutrogena for dry skin?

Paula's Choice is a better fit for dry skin, offering High routine fit compared to Neutrogena's Average routine fit. Paula's Choice provides more superior-rated hydrating products for dry skin, such as the Advanced Replenishing Toner and Skin Recovery Enriched Calming Toner.

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

Paula's Choice offers a better selection of cleansers for most skin types, featuring products that Lovi rates as Superior for oily, combination, and acne-prone skin. Meanwhile, Neutrogena provides budget-friendly options with strong hydration benefits.

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

Neutrogena is more affordable than Paula's Choice, as Paula's Choice has mostly mentioned high price and packaging issues while Neutrogena has better value. Reviewers note that Paula's Choice products come with a high price tag.

Between Paula's Choice and Neutrogena, which brand has better anti-aging and firming benefits?

Paula's Choice delivers better anti-aging and firming benefits than Neutrogena. Topical retinol helps stimulate collagen accumulation in naturally aged human skin.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000

How do the fragrance options compare between Paula's Choice and Neutrogena products?

Paula's Choice products on this page list no fragrance at all in their ingredients, while Neutrogena includes fragrance in four of its products. This means shoppers seeking completely fragrance-free options may prefer Paula's Choice.

Which brand performs better for mature skin routines, Paula's Choice or Neutrogena?

Both Paula's Choice and Neutrogena achieve a High Lovi fit level for mature skin routines. Paula's Choice often features higher concentrations of anti-aging ingredients like retinol and peptides across the products on this page.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000

Paula's Choice or Neutrogena for oily skin?

Paula's Choice is a better fit for oily skin, as Lovi rates its routine as High compared to Neutrogena's Average fit level. Neutrogena's products on this page may cause more heavy or greasy feelings for oily skin, whereas Paula's Choice helps balance oil production with lightweight formulations.

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

Paula's Choice offers a better overall moisturizer fit for most skin types, reaching High levels on this page, whereas Neutrogena moisturizers often rate Average or lower. However, Neutrogena products on this page are more likely to deliver deeply hydrating benefits and feature a wider range of widely used hydrators like hyaluronic acid.

Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Paula's Choice or Neutrogena for sensitive skin?

Paula's Choice fits sensitive skin better, as the routine fit on this page is High compared to Neutrogena's Average level. Additionally, every product on the Paula's Choice page lists no fragrance in its ingredients.

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

Neutrogena is better for sunscreens on this page, as the products on this page offer a higher Lovi fit level for sun protection compared to Paula's Choice.

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

Both brands are a High fit for acne-prone skin on this page, with Paula's Choice focusing on targeted exfoliants and serums while Neutrogena offers effective daily cleansers and treatments. Topical salicylic acid and retinoids in these products help clear pores and reduce breakouts.

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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