Simple vs FRE
Simple and FRE are two skincare lines celebrated for their thoughtful compositions and gentle care. Simple is a British brand founded in 1960 and owned by Unilever PLC since 2011, known for gentle moisturizers, makeup removers, cleansers, and toners formulated with niacinamide and glycerin. The brand suits oily acne-prone skin and sensitive skin best, while the other is widely loved for targeted product types that suit acne-prone skin best, such as its Argan Oil. Both brands differ in their specific heritage and ingredient profiles, yet each offers a comforting routine that respects delicate barriers and supports the complexion.
Simple is a British skincare brand founded in 1960 and owned by Unilever PLC since 2011.
en.wikipedia.orgsec.govprnewswire.comsimple.co.uk
This page compares some of the most popular Simple and FRE products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.
Questions and answers
Simple or FRE: which is better?
Simple is the better choice on this page, as it offers a wide variety of gentle makeup removers and moisturizers with a High or Average Lovi fit for sensitive skin, whereas FRE only features an argan oil with lower fit levels for several skin types. Glycerin helps improve skin hydration, while niacinamide helps reduce cutaneous pigmentation.
What is the difference between Simple and FRE?
Simple offers a broad variety of products featuring glycerin, helping provide hydration with ratings of Average to High across multiple skin types, whereas FRE features an argan oil product with a High fit for dry sensitive skin and Low fits for oily and combination skin. Glycerin helps maintain skin hydration, and argan oil nanostructured lipid carriers may improve skin hydration.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017International Journal of Nanomedicine, 2014
Which is more affordable, Simple or FRE?
Simple features value-friendly moisturizers on the products on this page, whereas FRE offers a single argan oil product without cost highlights.
Which causes fewer breakouts, Simple or FRE?
Simple features products on this page with Average fits for acne-prone skin, while FRE lists only an argan oil product with an Average fit for this skin type. However, shoppers note that Simple products can sometimes cause breakouts or irritations.
How do the founding years and ownership structures of Simple and FRE compare?
Simple was founded in the United Kingdom in 1960 and has been owned by Unilever PLC since 2011. In contrast, FRE was founded in 2016 and operates as an independent brand.
Which brand offers more products for dry skin according to their Lovi fit levels?
Simple offers more products for dry skin on this page, as it features multiple moisturizers and cleansers with average to high Lovi fit levels for dry skin, whereas FRE only lists one argan oil product with an average fit.
What key ingredients are found across Simple's products?
Simple features key ingredients such as niacinamide and glycerin across the products on this page. Glycerin helps improve skin hydration.
Research behind their key ingredients
The effect of niacinamide on reducing cutaneous pigmentation and suppression of melanosome transfer
Apigenin inhibits UVA-induced cytotoxicity in vitro and prevents signs of skin aging in vivo
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.
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Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
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Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
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Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
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Medical Board, Medical Advisor
Dermatology MD
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Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
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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.
