The closest Paula’s Choice dupe is The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution for the Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant: both are water-based leave-ons with 2% salicylic acid, and The Ordinary’s costs about $7. Next is The INKEY List 10% Niacinamide Serum for the 10% Niacinamide Booster, the same strength in a bigger bottle for about a quarter of the price. Third, Naturium Glycolic Acid Resurfacing Gel 10% stands in for the 8% AHA Gel, a leave-on glycolic gel that’s a little stronger. For the 10% Azelaic Acid Booster, the dupe is The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%. Paula’s Choice is easier to dupe than most brands because it prints the percentage on the bottle, and a percentage is something a cheaper brand can match. What a dupe won’t give you is everything else in the formula, and the last of the six matches below is a loose one.
The six at a glance
| Splurge | Price | Dupe | Price | How the dupe compares |
| Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant | About $37 | The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution | About $7 | Same acid, same 2% |
| Paula’s Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster | About $53 | The INKEY List 10% Niacinamide Serum | About $13 | Same 10%, bigger bottle |
| Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 8% AHA Gel Exfoliant | About $37 | Naturium Glycolic Acid Resurfacing Gel 10% | About $23 | Same acid in a gel, stronger |
| Paula’s Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster | About $42 | The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10% | About $12 | Same 10%, no salicylic acid |
| Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Cleansing Balm | About $32 | e.l.f. Holy Hydration! Makeup Melting Cleansing Balm | About $12 | Same type, scented |
| Paula’s Choice Clinical 1% Retinol Treatment | About $49 | The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane | About $12 | Loose: same 1%, oil base |
Prices are approximate, and they change often. Bottle sizes aren’t always equal.
1. Paula’s Choice 2% BHA dupe: The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution
Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant is the product Paula’s Choice is known for. It’s a thin leave-on liquid with eight ingredients: water, two glycols, salicylic acid, polysorbate 20, green tea, sodium hydroxide and tetrasodium EDTA. There’s no added fragrance. Paula’s Choice gives its pH as 3.2 to 3.8 and says you can use it up to twice a day if your skin doesn’t get irritated.
The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution has the same acid at the same 2%, in a water-based serum with a pH of 3.2 to 4.0. It’s alcohol-free and oil-free, with glycerin where Paula’s Choice has green tea. One real difference is the label. The Ordinary’s bottle is sold as an over-the-counter acne treatment, with salicylic acid 2% as the active ingredient. Paula’s Choice sells its liquid as a cosmetic exfoliant for pores and texture. The other difference is size: 30 ml against 4 ounces. Per ounce that’s about $6.70 against about $9.25, so the saving is real but smaller than the two price tags suggest. Our Paula’s Choice 2% BHA review names The Ordinary as the dupe too.
2. Paula’s Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster dupe: The INKEY List 10% Niacinamide Serum
The 10% Niacinamide Booster is a thin liquid that Paula’s Choice describes as light as water. Niacinamide comes right after water in the formula, followed by acetyl glucosamine, a vitamin C derivative, licorice root extract, sodium hyaluronate and panthenol. You use two or three drops, alone or mixed into a moisturizer. The bottle is 0.67 ounces.
The INKEY List 10% Niacinamide Serum has the same 10% niacinamide, also second on the list after water, with hyaluronic acid, squalane, panthenol and allantoin. It’s fragrance-free, and the bottle is 30 ml, about half again as much as the booster, for roughly a quarter of the price. What’s missing is the vitamin C derivative, the licorice and the longer list of antioxidants. If niacinamide is the reason you buy the booster, this is the easiest swap on the page. Our niacinamide guide explains what the ingredient is good for, and our serum dupes roundup makes the same match.
3. Paula’s Choice 8% AHA Gel dupe: Naturium Glycolic Acid Resurfacing Gel 10%
Skin Perfecting 8% AHA Gel Exfoliant is a leave-on gel with 8% glycolic acid, the second ingredient after water. Around it are chamomile, aloe and green tea extracts, sodium hyaluronate and panthenol. Paula’s Choice gives a pH of 3.5 to 3.9 and directions for once or twice a day. The bottle is 3.3 ounces.
Naturium Glycolic Acid Resurfacing Gel 10% is the same kind of product: a fragrance-free, leave-on gel with glycolic acid second on the list and sodium hyaluronate further down. The bottle is 3 ounces and it costs about a third less. Stronger isn’t automatically better here. Naturium’s gel is 10% to Paula’s Choice’s 8%, it adds fruit extracts from bilberry, sugar cane, orange and lemon, and Naturium says to start a few times a week and never use it more than once a day. It has no chamomile, aloe, green tea or panthenol. If the 8% already makes your skin tingle, the dupe isn’t a step in the right direction. Both brands tell you to wear sunscreen while you’re using a glycolic acid, and our glycolic acid guide covers why.
4. Paula’s Choice Azelaic Acid Booster dupe: The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%
The 10% Azelaic Acid Booster is a cream-gel that pairs 10% azelaic acid with 0.5% salicylic acid, then adds licorice root extract, allantoin and bisabolol. Paula’s Choice describes the texture as lightweight and oil-free, and says the formula reduces the look of blemishes, smooths bumpy texture and fades post-breakout marks. It comes in a 1-ounce size, to use once or twice a day, alone or mixed into a moisturizer.
The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10% matches the headline number in the same 30 ml size for under a third of the price. It’s a cream-like suspension in a silicone base, with vitamin E, and The Ordinary aims it at uneven tone and texture. It’s oil-free and alcohol-free. The second acid is what you give up: there’s no salicylic acid, and no licorice or bisabolol either. If you already use a BHA, you may not miss it. If the booster is your only exfoliant, you might. Our azelaic acid guide has more on where it fits.
5. Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Cleansing Balm dupe: e.l.f. Holy Hydration! Makeup Melting Cleansing Balm
Omega+ Complex Cleansing Balm is a short formula, eleven ingredients, with no added fragrance. The base is ethylhexyl palmitate and caprylic/capric triglyceride, with meadowfoam seed oil, jojoba oil and vitamin E. You massage it onto wet or dry skin and rinse. It comes in a 3.5-ounce size.
e.l.f. Holy Hydration! Makeup Melting Cleansing Balm is the same type of product, a solid balm that melts to an oil and turns milky when you add water. Two of its first four ingredients are also in the Paula’s Choice base: caprylic/capric triglyceride and PEG-20 glyceryl triisostearate. From there the two go different ways. e.l.f. adds ceramides, two peptides and hyaluronic acid, uses sunflower oil where Paula’s Choice has jojoba and meadowfoam, and contains fragrance. The 2-ounce jar is about $12, and the 3.5-ounce jumbo jar, the same size as the Paula’s Choice, is about $19. If fragrance-free is why you chose Omega+, stay with it. Our cleansing balm guide walks through how to use one.
6. Paula’s Choice 1% Retinol dupe: The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane
Clinical 1% Retinol Treatment is a lightweight lotion in a pump. Besides the retinol, it has four peptides, a vitamin C derivative, a ceramide, sodium hyaluronate, and licorice, oat and willow bark extracts, which Paula’s Choice includes to calm redness. The brand says to start three nights a week and build up.
The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane is the loosest match here. The retinol percentage is the same, the size is the same 30 ml, and it costs about a quarter as much. Everything around the retinol is different. It’s a water-free oil serum of squalane, caprylic/capric triglyceride and jojoba oil, eight ingredients in all, with no peptides, vitamin C or soothing extracts. The Ordinary calls it an expert-level formula and suggests working up from its 0.2% and 0.5% versions first. That advice applies to either bottle. For a gentler way in, see our guide to the retinol sandwich method.
How we picked
We started with the Paula’s Choice products, then matched each to one cheaper product of the same type. A match had to share the main active at a similar strength, or the main base ingredients, and cost clearly less. Pairs are ranked by how much of the formula they share, closest first.
C15 Super Booster isn’t on this list. Our C15 review covers it, along with the cheaper serum we’d compare it to.
When the expensive one is still worth it
When the supporting ingredients are the point. The retinol treatment is a full formula built to cushion a strong active, and its dupe is retinol in oil. The azelaic booster has a second acid in it. Those extras are what the higher price pays for.
Size changes the math as well. The 4-ounce BHA comes within a few dollars an ounce of The Ordinary. And if you chose Paula’s Choice because the line is fragrance-free, check each swap: the e.l.f. balm contains fragrance.
If I Were You
- If you only swap one thing, I’d swap the niacinamide booster for The INKEY List. It’s the same strength, more product, and about $40 less.
- If you’ve never used an acid, I’d buy The Ordinary Salicylic Acid first and use it a few nights a week. Seven dollars is a fair price for finding out how your skin responds.
- If you already own the Paula’s Choice BHA and like it, I’d keep it and buy the 4-ounce size. The per-ounce gap is small.
- If your skin is sensitive, I’d keep the 8% AHA Gel instead of moving up to a 10% gel, and I’d skip 1% retinol from either brand until a lower strength feels easy. For redness or stinging that doesn’t settle, see a dermatologist.
- If you want the retinol with the extras, I’d stay with Paula’s Choice. The Ordinary’s version is a good bottle of retinol, but it isn’t the same treatment.
- If you wear heavy makeup and go through cleansing balm fast, I’d get the e.l.f. jumbo jar, unless fragrance bothers your skin.
FAQ
Is The Ordinary Salicylic Acid the same as Paula’s Choice 2% BHA?
No, but it’s similar where it counts: the same acid, at the same 2%, in a water-based leave-on with an overlapping pH range. The rest of the two formulas is different, and The Ordinary’s is labeled as an acne treatment while Paula’s Choice’s is a cosmetic exfoliant. Our guide to benzoyl peroxide vs salicylic acid explains what salicylic acid does.
What’s the best dupe for the Paula’s Choice niacinamide booster?
The INKEY List 10% Niacinamide Serum. Both have 10% niacinamide in a lightweight, fragrance-free formula. Paula’s Choice adds a vitamin C derivative and licorice root extract.
Can I use these dupes together?
Not all at once. A salicylic acid, a glycolic acid and a 1% retinol in the same routine is a lot of exfoliation, whichever brand makes them. Add one at a time, use the acids and the retinol on different nights, and wear sunscreen in the daytime. Our piece on the signs of over-exfoliating shows what too much looks like. If you’re pregnant or nursing, ask your doctor before using a retinol.
Are Paula’s Choice dupes as gentle as the originals?
It depends on the product. The INKEY List serum and the Naturium gel are fragrance-free, the same as Paula’s Choice, and no fragrance appears in the ingredients of the three picks from The Ordinary. Two of the dupes are stronger or plainer than the original: the Naturium gel has more glycolic acid, and The Ordinary retinol has none of the soothing extracts. Patch test anything new. Our skin care archive has more on building a routine around actives.
Bottom line
Paula’s Choice sells percentages, and percentages are easy to shop. Dupe the BHA, the niacinamide and the azelaic acid without much thought. Think harder about the AHA gel and the cleansing balm, where the cheaper one is stronger or scented. Keep the retinol treatment if your skin has ever argued with a retinoid.
