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Product Comparison

Last updated on July 20, 2023. Published on February 09, 2022

Overview

What they are

These products are both fungal acne (malassezia) safe and reef safe facial treatments. They have a total of 4 ingredients in common

Cool Features

They both contain benzoyl peroxide

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, common allergens, fragrances, oils, parabens, silicones or sulfates

We independently verify ingredients, and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Spot a product that need an update? Let us know.

Facial Treatment American Brand United States
Facial Treatment French Brand France

Facial Treatment

Facial treatments are specially designed to treat a skin concern. Acne treatments and anti-aging products are common examples of facial treatments.

Facial Treatment

Facial treatments are specially designed to treat a skin concern. Acne treatments and anti-aging products are common examples of facial treatments.

Price

Shop

Buy Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine

Starts at $12.97
Shop

Buy Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment

Starts at $22.99

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and view relevant ingredients.
alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free
alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Notable Ingredients

Benzoyl Peroxide

Benefits

Acne Fighting

Concerns

Drying
May Worsen Oily Skin
Irritating
Rosacea
Eczema

Notable Ingredients

Vitamin E
Exfoliators
Benzoyl Peroxide

Benefits

Hydrating
Acne Fighting
Brightening (2)

Concerns

Drying
Irritating
Rosacea (2)
Eczema (2)
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Ingredients Side-by-side

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

Learn more about what what Com. / Irr. ratings are

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Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

1
What it does:
Community Rating: Disliked

Benzoyl Peroxide is famous for fighting acne. This is because it does a variety of tasks on the skin: it helps reduce excess oil, kill bacteria, and clear out dead skin cells. In other words, it is effective at unclogging pores.

These properties make it great at fighting different types of acne, including cystic and inflammatory types of acne.

When targeting the bacteria in your pores, Benzoyl Peroxide has been shown to kill the bacteria without causing sensitivity. It also helps keep your skin's natural bacteria and biome balanced. Having a healthy biome protects your skin from external harmful factors.

Once Benzoyl Peroxide is absorbed into the skin, our bodies turn it into benzoic acid and quickly exits in urine.

When using Benzoyl Peroxide, it may be irritating for some people due to a variety of reasons, such as a broken skin barrier or just an allergic reaction. We recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient if you have concerns.

Learn more about Benzoyl Peroxide

Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine contains this as ingredient number 1.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment contains this as ingredient number 1.

2
What it does: Skin Conditioning, Solvent
Community Rating: Loved

Water. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.

So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. Talk about multi-purpose! If you see this, drink a glass of water. Stay hydrated!

Learn more about Water

Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine contains this as ingredient number 2.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment contains this as ingredient number 2.

3
What it does: Emulsion Stabilising, Gel Forming
Community Rating: Disliked

Carbomer is a polymer of acrylic acid. Its main role is to create gel consistency within products.

Carbomer is commonly found in many types of cosmetics products. It is found to be safe in concentrations up to 15%. However, a high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Most products contain 1% of less of carbomer.

Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine contains this as ingredient number 3.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment contains this as ingredient number 7.

4
What it does:
Community Rating: Disliked

Disodium EDTA plays a role in making products more stable by aiding other preservatives.

It is a chelating agent, meaning it neutralizes metal ions that may be found in a product.

Disodium EDTA is a salt of edetic acid and is found to be safe in cosmetic ingredients.

Learn more about Disodium EDTA

Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine contains this as ingredient number 7.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment contains this as ingredient number 12.

Here's what our community thinks of the ingredients in these two products.

11% are loved or liked
22% have mixed ratings
44% are disliked or very disliked
22% have no rating yet
31% are loved or liked
8% have mixed ratings
54% are disliked or very disliked
8% have no rating yet

Usage

Here's some more info on how this product is used by our community.

Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine 9 ingredients

5.0 /5
from 2 ratings
Great Value (1) No Scent (1) Works Well (1)
Clover's avatar

Clover

5 months ago · Dry Skin
Review

MICRONIZED benzoyl peroxide is a miracle worker!
This product was a dermatologist recommendation to me, and I’m so so so grateful because it has...

MICRONIZED benzoyl peroxide is a miracle worker!
This product was a dermatologist recommendation to me, and I’m so so so grateful because it has done wonders for my skin. Micro BPO is able to penetrate the skin deeper while also being more gentle than regular BPO. This is a leave on product with a creamy consistency, and since it is Neutrogena it is very affordable and accessible (which are both things I LOVE). It’s not a spot treatment, but I’ve used it on spots and as a preventative and it works very well at tackling both my active acne and preventing new breakouts. Occasionally it will tingle on my skin if my skin barrier is not in the best state, but most of the time I can’t feel this at all. I also like to apply this in a similar way to how I would strong retinoids; buffering or sandwiching. Apply a thick moisturizer on first before applying this product (buffering), and if desired you can add on another layer of moisturizer after applying this BPO cream (sandwiching).
This is a must try! Especially if you know benzoyl peroxide works for your skin, but you also struggle with it being too drying. However, if you are particularly sensitive, it may be best to make sure you always remember to buffer this, don’t use it everyday, and when you do use it, do so sparingly rather than over large patches of skin.
I recommend this product to anyone with acne prone skin. It’s AMAZING.

Ericj89's avatar

Ericj89

3 months ago · Oily Skin
Review

Texture: Gel cream texture.
Scent: No scent
Performance: Benzoyl peroxide, my staple ingredient to treat acne.
Pros: Effective for acne/blind...

Texture: Gel cream texture.
Scent: No scent
Performance: Benzoyl peroxide, my staple ingredient to treat acne.
Pros: Effective for acne/blind pimple
Cons: None
WRP/WNRP: WRP

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Dual Action Acne Treatment 13 ingredients

4.4 /5
from 12 ratings
Works Well (2) Absorbs Well (1) Expensive (1) Light (1) Light Scent (1) No Scent (1)
Mirq's avatar

Mirq

12 months ago · Combination Skin
Review

Great spot treatment but expensive
I used it as a spot treatment and it worked beautifully for me. I have sensitive combo skin and every time I’ve...

Great spot treatment but expensive
I used it as a spot treatment and it worked beautifully for me. I have sensitive combo skin and every time I’ve got some whitehead i used it on it and in it disappeared. Definitely wouldn’t use it every day or as a moisturiser. The only reason why i don't like it is, because it's really expensive.

betterskinpls's avatar

betterskinpls

8 months ago · Combination Skin
Review

This calmed down my sudden acne

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Our Dupe Finder has found 48 potential alternatives that have similar ingredients to Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Face Treatment with 2.5% Micronized Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Medicine.

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