Versus

Paula's Choice Regular Strength Daily Skin Clearing Treatment with 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide Versus acne.org Treatment (Benzoyl Peroxide – 2.5%)

Facial Treatment
Facial Treatment
American Brand United States
American Brand United States

Overview

What they are

These products are both cruelty-free, 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 and dry skin

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 needs an update? Let us know.

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and see relevant ingredients

What's inside (and what isn't)

What's inside (and what isn't)

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Skin Conditioning, Solvent

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. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Stay hydrated!

Learn more about Water

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
Buffering

Sodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.

In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.

Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.

"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.

Learn more about Sodium Hydroxide
Preservative

Phenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.

It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.

When to use

183 Routines
39% use in am
61% use in pm
74% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->
65 Routines
35% use in am
65% use in pm
86% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->

Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

Paula's Choice Regular Strength Daily Skin Clearing Treatment with 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide 14 ingredients

4.8 /5
from 4 ratings
Absorbs Well (2) No Scent (2) Works Well (2)
joji_blossom_tree's avatar

joji_blossom_tree

5 months ago
Review

genuinely stabilized my acne, don’t get much too any breakouts anymore and i have oily acne prone skin (only con would be that it has lightened my skin over time)

#great value
#absorbs well
#no scent
#works well

acne.org Treatment (Benzoyl Peroxide – 2.5%) 8 ingredients

4.0 /5
from 4 ratings
Works Well (3) No Scent (3) Great Value (3)
BubbIes's avatar

BubbIes

1 year ago
Review

Solid benzoyl peroxide product with good ingredients and at a great price. I had some issues with irritation with this, but I'm fairly certain it's because I'm sensitive to benzoyl peroxide so I don't blame this product.

#great value
#no scent
#works well
alyafsahira's avatar

Al

4 months ago
Review

Use this as my acne spot treatment and it does a great job. It healed my active breakout in 1-2 days. Of course it’s drying since it’s an acne treatment product so you need to paired it with moisturizer after. Haven’t try using adapalene before so i can’t compare which one are more effective (please tell me the comparison if you already using both ☺️)

#great value
#no scent
#works well