Versus

Topicals Faded Serum Versus La Roche-Posay Effaclar Adapalene Gel 0.1% Topical Retinoid For Acne

Serum
Facial Treatment
American Brand United States
French Brand France

Updated on March 17, 2025

Overview

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne, anti aging, dry skin, oily skin, reducing pores, scar healing and better texture

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, common allergens, fragrances, 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

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What's inside (and what isn't)

What's inside (and what isn't)

At a glance

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Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

found in both products
Faded Serum

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

When to use

938 Routines
32% use in am
68% use in pm
70% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->
406 Routines
6% use in am
94% use in pm
67% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->

Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

Topicals Faded Serum 35 ingredients

4.0 /5
from 11 ratings
Works Well (5) Strong Scent (4) Hydrating (3)
AshN.'s avatar

AshN.

1 year ago
Review

(Tried Nov 2022) One of the few brightening creams that I tried where I actually saw results. I only ever applied this as a spot treatment and not all over. Giving it 4 stars because I did find it slightly irritating and the smell was rather strong, so I ended up switching over to applying it as needed. I think the $18 Mini version was more than enough for me!

#great value
#irritating
#strong scent
#works well
bsabrina's avatar

bsabrina

2 years ago
Review

give it time to fade dark spots-glowy skin comes faster
Love this product. I was worried about all the actives in it because of my sensitive skin, but I had no reactions or breakouts. It takes some time to fade dark spots & acne scars but after a few weeks (3-4) they should be noticeably lighter or almost gone. I noticed my skin seemed glowier and more clarified within a week or two. No noticeable Show more

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Adapalene Gel 0.1% Topical Retinoid For Acne 8 ingredients

4.5 /5
from 6 ratings
Drying (1) Irritating (1) No Scent (1)
Petrichoria's avatar

Petrichoria

2 years ago
Review

Tremendously helped me control my acne due to PCOS and is fungal-acne safe. It caused a bit of a purge in the first few weeks as my skin acclimated, but it definitely calmed any active acne down, as well controlled my oily skin. 100/10.

Wren1358's avatar

Wren P

8 months ago
Review

update: i did not find the right balance, my skin became too dry and irritated to use any makeup while using this, even while moisturizing a lot, and i also realized this was a rosacea trigger for me. i'm sure it's a good product for some people, just didn't work for me. it did seem to help with my acne.

original review: seems to really help with my acne, and I tolerate it much better than Show more

#drying
#irritating
#no scent
#works well