🇸🇬Singapore

Kiehl's vs Shiseido

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

Kiehl's and Shiseido are heritage skincare institutions founded in the nineteenth century, with the American label celebrated for nourishing moisturizers, targeted serums, soothing toners, and gentle eye products featuring glycerin and squalane, while the Japanese brand is beloved for a thoughtful array of moisturizers, cleansers, sunscreens, and serums formulated with glycerin. Kiehl's suits dry skin and mature skin best through thoughtful formulations addressing moisture loss, whereas Shiseido suits sensitive skin and mature skin best by offering gentle yet effective daily care. Ultimately, the brands differ through their distinct heritage and specific ingredient profiles, as the first relies on glycerin and squalane to restore barrier function and counteract oxidative stress, while the latter utilizes glycerin to significantly improve stratum corneum hydration.

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

loreal.comen.wikipedia.org

Shiseido is a Japanese skincare brand founded in 1872 and owned by Shiseido Company, Limited.

corp.shiseido.comen.wikipedia.orgmarketscreener.com

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

Popular Kiehl's vs Shiseido products

People Say

Kiehl'sShiseido
  • Deep hydration and moisturization Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Immediate sensation of comfort — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “skin feels plump, soft and nourished, eliminates dryness, bouncy feel — Shiseido VITAL PERFECTION”
    • “Skin feels more hydrated — Shiseido Activating Essence”
    • “Keeps skin moisturized for 24+ hours — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • 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”
    • “Airy-soft texture — Shiseido Essential Energy Hydrating Cream”
  • Skin barrier and texture improvement Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “Velvety smooth — Shiseido FUTURE SOLUTION LX”
    • “makes skin baby soft — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Cream Enriched”
    • “smoothes rough skin — Shiseido Eudermine Revitalizing Essence”
    • “leaves skin feeling silky — Kiehl's Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate”
  • Radiance and relaxing experience Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “Skin looks brighter, more radiant, and "glowy." — Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate”
    • “Pleasant floral fragrance, relaxing, luxurious smell. — Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate”
    • “spa-like scent, high-quality packaging, little goes a long way — Shiseido VITAL PERFECTION”
    • “woke up glowing — Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate”
  • Luxurious texture and formula Not notedOften Mentioned
    • “silky smooth, rich but non-greasy, absorbs quickly, melts into skin — Shiseido VITAL PERFECTION”
    • “Velvety, rich cream texture — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “Velvety texture — Shiseido FUTURE SOLUTION LX”
  • Plumping and anti-aging Rarely NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Smoothed out crow's feet — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “tighter jawline, lifted appearance, improved elasticity, less sagging — Shiseido VITAL PERFECTION”
    • “wrinkles look softer — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Cream Enriched”
    • “Skin looks noticeably more plump — Kiehl's Hydro-Plumping Serum Concentrate”
  • High price and cost value Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “pricy daily staple — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
    • “Very expensive product — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”
    • “Very expensive for the size — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “Expensive, pricey, high cost for the amount. — Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate”
  • Unpleasant or strong scent 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”
    • “old lady smell — Shiseido Eudermine Revitalizing Essence”
  • Greasy residue and oiliness Sometimes NotedRarely Noted
    • “Stays tacky and shiny — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “feels a bit oily — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Cream Enriched”
    • “A little too much (too greasy) — Shiseido Bio-Performance Advanced Super Revitalizing Cream”
    • “oil slick in summer — Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream”
  • Lack of results or effectiveness Sometimes NotedRarely Noted
    • “No change in deep wrinkles — Shiseido Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Cream”
    • “No noticeable difference, not moisturizing enough on its own. — Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate”
    • “no visible lifting, just a moisturizer, didn't erase deep wrinkles — Shiseido VITAL PERFECTION”
    • “Did absolutely nothing — Kiehl's Clearly Corrective™ Dark Spot Solution”

Kiehl's vs Shiseido routines for dry skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · S$209.58 · 92% fitBuy Shiseido routine · S$256.58 · 74% fitSee multi-brand routine · 99% fit

Kiehl's vs Shiseido routines for oily skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · S$287.99 · 90% fitBuy Shiseido routine · S$355.43 · 82% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Kiehl's vs Shiseido routines for combination skin

Buy Kiehl's routine · S$287.99 · 90% fitBuy Shiseido routine · S$355.43 · 82% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Questions and answers

Kiehl's or Shiseido: which is better?

Kiehl's and Shiseido both offer products on this page with strong benefits, but Kiehl's achieves a Superior routine fit for dry skin, oily skin, combination skin, sensitive skin, mature skin, and oily acne-prone skin.

What is the difference between Kiehl's and Shiseido?

Kiehl's and Shiseido differ mainly in their formulation focus, with Kiehl's offering a fragrance-free approach across most products alongside lightweight textures, while Shiseido emphasizes luxurious, deeply hydrating formulas that often include added fragrance. For dry skin, Lovi rates Kiehl's routine as Superior and Shiseido's routine as Average.

Kiehl's or Shiseido for dry skin?

For dry skin, Kiehl's is better because Lovi rates its routine fit as Superior, whereas Shiseido is rated as Average.

Kiehl's or Shiseido: which cleanser is better?

When comparing cleansers, Kiehl's offers a superior routine fit for oily skin, oily acne-prone skin, and combination skin compared to Shiseido. The products on this page for Kiehl's cleansing range are mostly unfragranced, whereas Shiseido features several cleansers with added fragrance.

Which is more affordable, Kiehl's or Shiseido?

Both Kiehl's and Shiseido are considered to have a high price point among the products on this page, meaning neither brand is more affordable than the other.

Between Kiehl's and Shiseido, which brand offers a better routine fit for mature skin?

For mature skin, Kiehl's offers a Superior routine fit, whereas Shiseido provides a High fit.

How do the fragrance options differ between Kiehl's and Shiseido products?

Kiehl's products on this page generally have fewer added scents, as 26 of 28 options list no fragrance, whereas most Shiseido products include fragrance.

Which brand has more fragrance-free products on the page, Kiehl's or Shiseido?

Kiehl's has more fragrance-free products on the page, with 26 of its 28 products listing no fragrance, compared to only 5 of Shiseido's 20 products.

Kiehl's or Shiseido for oily skin?

For oily skin, Kiehl's has a Superior routine fit, while Shiseido has a High routine fit. Reviewers mention that Kiehl's provides lightweight, non-greasy moisturizers.

Kiehl's or Shiseido: which moisturizer is better?

Both brands offer effective moisturizers, but Kiehl's is particularly well-known on this page for lightweight, non-greasy hydration and features a superior routine fit for dry skin.

Kiehl's or Shiseido for sensitive skin?

Kiehl's is better suited for sensitive skin, as Lovi rates its routine fit as Superior compared to High for Shiseido. The products on this page for Kiehl's also tend to feature fewer added fragrances than Shiseido.

Kiehl's or Shiseido: which sunscreen is better?

Both Kiehl's and Shiseido offer sunscreens on this page, and Lovi rates Kiehl's Better Screen UV Serum as having High fit for skin with dark spots, combination skin, sensitive skin, acne-prone skin, and mature skin, with Average fit for oily skin, dry skin, oily acne-prone skin, and dry sensitive skin. Meanwhile, Shiseido features options such as Benefiance Wrinkle Smoothing Day Cream, which Lovi rates as having Superior fit for dry sensitive skin, mature skin, and sensitive skin, and High fit for dry skin, skin with dark spots, acne-prone skin, combination skin, oily acne-prone skin, and oily skin.

Kiehl's or Shiseido for acne-prone skin?

Both Kiehl's and Shiseido are well suited for acne-prone skin, as the routine fit for this skin type is High for both brands.

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?

Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.

QR code: get the Lovi app
Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play