🇬🇧United Kingdom

Clarins vs The INKEY List

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

Clarins and The INKEY List are distinct skincare brands offering a range of moisturizers, serums, toners, and eye products designed to address various complexion needs. The French brand, founded in 1954 and owned by Famille C, is renowned for luxurious formulas enriched with nourishing shea and hydrating squalane that suit sensitive and dry sensitive skin best. Conversely, the British brand, founded in 2018 and owned by Brand Evangelists for Beauty Limited, builds its offerings around glycerin to best fit sensitive and combination skin. While both cater to sensitive skin, they differ in their heritage, specific treatments, and primary active ingredients, with the former utilizing shea and squalane and the latter relying on glycerin.

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

groupeclarins.comen.wikipedia.orghappi.com

The INKEY List is a British skincare brand founded in 2018 and owned by Brand Evangelists for Beauty Limited.

cosmeticsbusiness.comprnewswire.comtheinkeylist.comtracxn.com

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

Popular Clarins vs The INKEY List products

People Say

ClarinsThe INKEY List
  • Hydration and moisture Mostly MentionedOften 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”
    • “Super hydrating — The INKEY List Polyglutamic Acid Serum”
  • Lightweight and fast-absorbing texture Often MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “sits beautifully under makeup — The INKEY List Caffeine Eye Cream”
    • “Gel consistency — The INKEY List Tranexamic Acid Serum”
    • “feels like applying straight up water to the skin — The INKEY List Omega Water Cream”
    • “absorbs immediately — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
  • Affordable price and value Not notedMostly Mentioned
    • “Good for the price — The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser”
    • “One of the best balms for quality and also price — The INKEY List Oat Cleansing Balm”
    • “unbeatable value — The INKEY List Hyaluronic Acid Serum”
  • Good makeup base and primer Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “concealer glides on smoothly — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “Perfect primer for any foundation, which all glide on smoothly. — Clarins Beauty Flash Balm”
    • “concealer sits better — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “Brilliant makeup base — The INKEY List Polyglutamic Acid Serum”
  • Texture smoothing and exfoliation Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Great for sensitive skin — The INKEY List PHA Toner”
    • “Skin feels softer — The INKEY List PHA Toner”
    • “Glass skin — The INKEY List Polyglutamic Acid Serum”
    • “makes skin silky smooth — Clarins Hydrating Toning Lotion”
  • Acne clearing and blemish control Not notedOften Mentioned
    • “Free of active acne — The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser”
    • “calms redness instantly — The INKEY List 10% Azelaic Acid Serum”
    • “Skin instantly looks less oily — The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser”
  • Fragrance and scent issues Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “Smells like BBQ/meat — The INKEY List Tranexamic Acid Serum”
    • “Smells like chemicals — The INKEY List Polyglutamic Acid Serum”
    • “smells plasticky — The INKEY List ECTOIN HYDRO-BARRIER SERUM”
    • “smells like perfume — Clarins Multi-Active Jour”
  • Packaging and pump design flaws Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “dispenses too much product — Clarins Total Eye Lift”
    • “dispenses too much — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “Pump breaks easily — The INKEY List Tranexamic Acid Serum”
    • “Very difficult to squeeze out at first — The INKEY List Oat Cleansing Balm”
  • High price point Mostly MentionedNot noted
    • “way too expensive — Clarins Double Serum”
  • Skin irritation and breakouts Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “caused cystic acne — Clarins Double Serum”
    • “caused redness — Clarins Double Serum Eye”
    • “made my face burn — Clarins Cryo-Flash Cream-Mask”
    • “did cause major breakouts — The INKEY List Omega Water Cream”

Clarins vs The INKEY List routines for dry skin

Buy Clarins routine · £170.89 · 83% fitBuy The INKEY List routine · £92.69 · 82% fitSee multi-brand routine · 99% fit

Clarins vs The INKEY List routines for oily skin

Buy The INKEY List routine · £160.15 · 86% fitBuy Clarins routine · £249.57 · 74% fitSee multi-brand routine · 97% fit

Clarins vs The INKEY List routines for combination skin

Buy The INKEY List routine · £130.06 · 88% fitBuy Clarins routine · £201.99 · 73% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

Clarins or The INKEY List: which is better?

The INKEY List is a better choice for oily and sensitive skin, where Lovi rates its routines as High and Superior compared to Clarins' Average and High, while both brands offer High routine fit for dry, acne-prone, and mature skin. The INKEY List also provides more affordable options and fragrance-free products on the products on this page.

What is the difference between Clarins and The INKEY List?

Clarins and The INKEY List both offer high routine fit for dry skin, mature skin, and acne-prone skin, but Clarins features a luxurious approach best suited for sensitive and dry skin types with key ingredients like shea butter and squalane, whereas The INKEY List provides more affordable, fragrance-free products that achieve superior fit levels for sensitive skin and high fit for combination skin.

Clarins or The INKEY List for dry skin?

Both Clarins and The INKEY List achieve a High Lovi fit for dry skin on the products on this page. Clarins focuses on hydrating and smoothing moisturizers with a high price point, whereas The INKEY List offers affordable hydrating moisturizers with lightweight and fast-absorbing textures.

Clarins or The INKEY List: which cleanser is better?

The INKEY List ranks better for cleansers on this page, with the Salicylic Acid Cleanser achieving a high fit across combination, oily, and acne-prone skin.

Which is more affordable, Clarins or The INKEY List?

The INKEY List is more affordable than Clarins, as reviewers frequently mention its affordable prices and value for money, whereas a high price point is a commonly noted downside for Clarins on the products on this page.

Clarins or The INKEY List: which has better options for fragrance-free skincare?

The INKEY List has better options for fragrance-free skincare because every product on this page lists no fragrance in its ingredients, whereas almost all Clarins products contain fragrance. Reviewers note that fragrance and scent issues are a downside for Clarins.

Which brand performs better for hydration and moisture, Clarins or The INKEY List?

Clarins performs better for hydration and moisture, featuring hydrating and smoothing moisturizers and glowing serums across the products on this page. Topical hyaluronic acid helps improve skin quality and signs of skin aging.

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

Clarins or The INKEY List: which offers better results for acne clearing and blemish control?

The INKEY List does better for acne clearing and blemish control on the products on this page.

Clarins or The INKEY List for oily skin?

The INKEY List is a better fit for oily skin, offering a High routine fit compared to Clarins and its Average fit for oily skin on the products on this page.

Clarins or The INKEY List: which moisturizer is better?

The INKEY List offers better moisturizers on this page for oily or combination skin with a High Lovi fit level, whereas Clarins moisturizers are more suited for dry skin.

Clarins or The INKEY List for sensitive skin?

The INKEY List has a Superior routine fit for sensitive skin on Lovi, whereas Clarins has a High routine fit for this skin type.

Clarins or The INKEY List for acne-prone skin?

Both Clarins and The INKEY List achieve a High Lovi fit level for acne-prone skin with the products on this page. However, The INKEY List does better for acne clearing and blemish control.

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