SkinCeuticals vs iS Clinical 2024 (The Definitive Guide)

We're positive you've seen SkinCeuticals and iS Clinical on the shelves at your local beauty store (or online!) before. Both brands are renowned for creating luxury products with potent ingredients to treat your skin, but which products are worth spending your hard-earned on?

Today, we will be comparing their best-selling serums (SkinCeuticals vs iS Clinical) side-by-side to help you decide which brand is better for you and your skin. Enjoy!

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SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic vs iS Clinical Pro Heal Serum

Vitamin C is one of the most critical-yet-underrated ingredients in the world of skin care. It is an antioxidant that brightens your skin, reverses sun damage, corrects hyperpigmentation, and stimulates collagen production. It also helps to make your sunscreen more effective! Since vitamin C is such a powerhouse active ingredient, this is certainly an area in skincare where you don’t want to skimp.

We'll be comparing Skinceuticals C E Ferulic Serum against iS Clinical Pro Heal Serum. Keep scrolling to find out which one is best for you!

When choosing a vitamin C worthy of joining your skincare lineup, the two most important factors to keep in mind are the dosage and the type of vitamin C. Skin experts recommend a dosage between 10%-20% to reap the most benefits without experiencing irritation. The two most common types of vitamin C are l-ascorbic acid and magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, with l-ascorbic acid being the strongest.

Both Skinceuticals C E Ferulic Serum and iS Clinical Pro Heal Serum are formulated with the most effective form of vitamin C, l-ascorbic acid. They also both use the recommended dosage, each using a 15% concentration.

Both serums also contain Vitamin E, a highly effective moisturizing agent and antioxidant that helps protect against the visual effects of photodamage (i.e. skin damage as a result of exposure to the sun).

Well, that's just about where the similarities end (barring their fairly similar high-end price tags). Beyond vitamins C and E, iS Clinical adds to the roster with vitamin A (better known as retinol) and olive leaf extract - combined you get a *super*-antioxidant formulation with exceptional healing and protecting properties. SkinCeuticals instead buffs their formula with ferulic acid, another powerful antioxidant.

For us, the inclusion of retinol makes for the biggest difference. Though it means the iS Clinical Pro-Heal Serum offers marginally more benefits for blemish-prone and aging skin, it does make it less suitable for those with sensitive skin. If that's a dealbreaker for you, the SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic Acid serum will be the better option.

As an addendum for those that have never used Vitamin C serums before, we'd highly recommend using vitamin C every other day (or every few days) initially, slowly increasing the frequency over time until your skin gets used it. Using it too often can cause tingling, dry or itchy skin - so definitely look out for that!

is Clinical Active Serum vs SkinCeuticals Blemish Age Defense

Blemish-prone, aging skin is one of the most difficult skin types to find products for, and oftentimes it can feel like you need upwards of six different active treatments at any one time to even have a shot at attaining clear, radiant skin.

Fortunately, there's a couple of holy grail serums from iS Clinical and SkinCeuticals that can come to the rescue. Keep scrolling to learn more!

Allow us to compare and contrast the SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Defense Serum vs iS Clinical Active Serum to figure out which is best for you and your skin.

Though both serums target imperfections whilst improving the appearance of fine lines and uneven skin tone, as well as being primarily for those with oily, blemish-prone, and ageing skin types, the key ingredients differ massively.

And therein lies the biggest difference. iS Clinical has opted for a more botanical approach when compared to SkinCeuticals' far more clinical approach.

With each product boasting similar efficacy results and a plethora of rave reviews between them, it really does just come down to what you feel like you'd be more comfortable putting on your skin. Plant extracts? (iS Clinical Active Serum) Or finely-tuned, lab-born chemicals? (SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Defense Serum).

This article was originally published on April 22nd 2022, but it has been reviewed and updated with the latest available information on February 1st 2024 by Sara Mckay, MA.