La Roche Posay vs Caudalie 2024 (The Definitive Guide)

We're positive you've seen La Roche Posay and Caudalie on the shelves at your local drugstore before. But which one should you choose?

Previously, we took a look at two French skincare titans: Caudalie and Clarins; today, we will be comparing La Roche Posay vs Caudalie to help you figure out which French pharmacy brand better suits you!

2024 update: Not much has changed with the products we reviewed since we originally published this comparison in 2021 (more on that later). That said, Caudalie has since released a new best-seller we couldn't resist mentioning: the Beauty Elixir. A 100% natural face mist to prep skin, immediately tighten pores, and set makeup for dewy, glowing skin.

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La Roche Posay vs Caudalie Face Mist

A simple yet effective method of judging a French pharmacy brand is by looking at the water they use in their products, as it will tell you a lot about what is important to that brand.

For example, La Roche-Posay sources the selenium-rich water they use in all of their products from a natural spring in the town they named themselves after (La Roche-Posay in Western France). Selenium, by the way, is a powerful antioxidant that reduces inflammation and improves the elasticity and firmness of the skin. From just this tiny nugget of info, we can deduce that La Roche Posay values the comfort and protection of (sensitive) skin, and further inspection of the range of products they offer further solidifies this hypothesis. Of course, there’s more to La Roche Posay than just that, but it gives us a good general idea of them to begin with.

Applying this same technique to Caudalie and their cult-favourite Organic Grape Water - which is extracted from organic grapes during the grapevine harvest, and boasts antioxidant, moisturising, toning, and soothing benefits - one can deduce that Caudalie values the use of organic, plant-based ingredients that benefit sensitive skin. Not a million miles away from La Roche Posay’s values, but an important distinction between the two brands has been discovered (i.e. plant-based ingredients versus synthetic ingredients).

Having had both face mists sat on my desk for the past couple of weeks, liberally spritzing away whenever I felt the urge to, I would anecdotally say that I prefer the La Roche Posay Thermal Spring Water for daily use as it seemed to be the best at keeping any redness at bay. That said, I would say Caudalie’s Organic Grape Water works best when applied just before you moisturise in the morning, as it gives your skin such an amazing natural glow all day long.

2024 update: While neither brand has reformulated these sprays in the last few years since originally publishing, Caudalie's face mist now sports fancy new packaging!

La Roche Posay vs Caudalie Serum

A serum is a lightweight moisturiser that penetrates deeper to deliver high concentrations of active ingredients to the skin. We've already covered what constitutes the best French serums, with both Caudalie and La Roche Posay making appearances there, but keep scrolling to see their best sellers compared side by side here!

Hydrating serums

Given the above definition of a serum, it should be fairly obvious that serums are the *ultimate* way to provide your face with a big skin-quenching dose of hydration. And when it comes to hydrating serums, there’s arguably none better than La Roche Posay’s Hyalu B5 Serum and Caudalie’s SOS Vinosource-Hydra Thirst-Quenching Serum.

The common theme between the two is the predominance of Hyaluronic Acid in their formulas. The differentiator is the water they use to bind with this ‘sponge molecule’ to create refreshing reservoirs of moisture in the deepest layers of your skin. It should come as no surprise that the Hyalu B5 serum contains La Roche Posay’s famous Thermal Spring Water, and the Vinosource-Hydra Serum contains Caudalie’s cult-favourite Organic Grape Water.

There are two reasons why we think La Roche Posay’s Hyalu B5 Serum is the better of the two, though. First and foremost are the stats: Caudalie’s boasts a clinically proven +44% hydration boost after 8 hours, whereas La Roche Posay’s boasts a +70% hydration boost after just 4 hours. Secondly, the Hyalu B5 serum contains Vitamin B5 (the second part of its name!), which helps stimulate repair of your moisture barrier to help lock in hydration for longer.

Complexion correcting serums

Another highly sought after purpose for serums is complexion correcting. Uneven skin texture or tone? Dark spots from acne or the sun? Visible signs of ageing? We have two fantastic serum options for you.

Caudalie’s cult favourite product entrusted by millions of women globally, the Vinoperfect Radiance Serum Complexion Correcting, is renowned for its exceptional anti-dark spot and complexion correcting action. At the heart of it is Viniferine, a Caudalie patented ingredient derived from vine sap, which is proven to be 62 times more effective than vitamin C. As with all Caudalie products, it contains primarily natural-origin ingredients (98%) and is free for, parabens, phenoxyethanol, phthalates, mineral oils, PEGs, and animal-derived ingredients.

La Roche Posay’s Retinol B3 Serum is specifically formulated for those concerned with dehydration, skin irregularities, and wrinkles, but also searching for a serum suitable for sensitive skin. It combines three potent active ingredients, the foremost of which being retinol (which we have covered extensively in our best French retinol article), making it ideal for fighting the visible signs of ageing.

All in all, the Retinol B3 serum is the perfect anti-ageing serum, but for complexion correcting we very much prefer Caudalie’s Vinoperfect Radiance Dark Spot Serum.

La Roche Posay vs Caudalie Moisturizer

La Roche Posay and Caudalie each boast incredible collections of face creams that help you to unveil your natural, beautiful radiance. However, it can be a daunting task to try to figure out which collection to choose from to even begin comparing, let alone from which brand. This is a good problem to have, though; allow us to guide you through the best of the best.

Daily moisturizers

The inferences we drew from the "Face Mists" section led us to the conclusion that both La Roche Posay and Caudalie cater their products towards those with sensitive skin, and there’s a good chance that if you searched for this brand comparison you fall into that category (I certainly do at least!). If that is you, (1) you’re very much in the right place, and (2) you’ll be pleased to hear that Caudalie and La Roche Posay both boast exceedingly good moisturisers specifically suited to you.

Thanks to its potent blend of dermatologist-recommended ingredients including Prebiotic Thermal Water, ceramides, niacinamide, and glycerin, the La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair helps hydrate and keep even the most sensitive skin comfortable and looking healthy. It is free from oil, alcohol, parabens, and fragrance, and is allergy and dermatologist tested to ensure that it is suitable for everyone and anyone.

Similarly, the Caudalie Vinosource-Hydra SOS Intense Moisturizing Cream is as gentle as it is natural (and it is nearly of 100% natural origin), soothing even the most sensitive and dry skin to restore moisture and suppleness. In typical Caudalie fashion, instead of synthetic ingredients they have opted purely for plant-based ingredients such as borage oil, vinolevure, olive squalane, organic grape water, and polyphenols to deliver intense moisturizing benefits.

This matchup makes for the toughest choice. On the one hand, Caudalie’s strict ethical charter guarantees that the product is free from nasties, which makes it ideal for those with particularly sensitive skin. On the other hand, La Roche Posay’s boasts a serious number of rave reviews, is recommended by >90,000 dermatologists worldwide, and has 10 years of research and 19 clinical studies behind it. Erring on the side of long-standing popularity, our choice is La Roche Posay’s Toleriane Double Repair.

Work in progress

You have been reading a post that we are constantly updating. Be sure to bookmark this page, subscribe, and come back later to see additions to the definitive La Roche Posay vs Caudalie guide!

This article was originally published on December 28th 2021, but it has been reviewed and updated with the latest available information on January 25th 2024 by Sara Mckay, MA.