🇬🇧United Kingdom

Simple vs Taro

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

Simple and Taro are distinct skincare choices that offer reliable daily care for modern routines. The British brand founded in 1960 and owned by Unilever PLC since 2011 is beloved for its gentle moisturizers, makeup removers, cleansers, and toners crafted with niacinamide and glycerin, which suit acne-prone skin and skin with dark spots best. Meanwhile, the other option is warmly embraced for its targeted serums and carefully crafted formulas that suit sensitive, dry, and combination skin best, including standout products like the Tretinoin Cream for acne-prone skin. Both differ as the former relies on niacinamide to reduce hyperpigmentation and improve aging signs and glycerin to improve hydration and barrier function, whereas their product types, ingredient focuses, and ideal skin types vary.

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 Taro products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular Simple vs Taro products

Questions and answers

Simple or Taro: which is better?

Simple is a better fit for overall gentle hydration and sensitive skin, featuring products on this page with High and Average Lovi ratings across most skin types. Taro offers Tretinoin Cream, which achieves a High fit for combination and acne-prone skin but has a Low fit for dry and sensitive skin types.

What is the difference between Simple and Taro?

Simple offers a broad selection of fragrance-free cleansers, makeup removers, and moisturizers featuring niacinamide and glycerin, where Lovi rates its Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner as Superior for mature skin. In contrast, Taro provides a single fragrance-free Tretinoin Cream that Lovi rates as High for combination and acne-prone skin.

Which is more affordable, Simple or Taro?

Simple offers budget-friendly moisturizers on the products on this page, whereas Taro features a specialized tretinoin serum. Reviewers frequently note that Simple products are value-friendly.

Which causes fewer breakouts, Simple or Taro?

Simple features products on this page that are generally gentle, though reviewers sometimes note breakouts or irritations, while Taro offers Tretinoin Cream which helps treat acne-prone skin with a High Lovi fit level.

The New England Journal of Medicine, 1993Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2020

Which brand offers a wider variety of product types like cleansers, moisturizers, and toners compared to the other?

Simple offers a wider variety of product types on this page, including cleansers, moisturizers, and toners, whereas Taro features only a Tretinoin Cream serum.

How do the founding years and corporate ownership of Simple and Taro compare?

Simple was founded in the United Kingdom in 1960 and has been owned by Unilever PLC since 2011. Taro was founded earlier in 1950, with its corporate ownership under Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited since 2010.

Which brand's products are better suited for sensitive or dry skin according to their Lovi fit levels?

Simple products are better suited for sensitive and dry skin, as its Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner achieves a High fit level for sensitive skin and an Average fit level for dry skin, whereas Taro's Tretinoin Cream has a Low fit level for both sensitive and dry 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

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