SKIN1004 Centella vs. Anua Heartleaf

Both lean on a single headline calming botanical, centella for one, heartleaf for the other, but they diverge sharply on whether that calming focus comes with an active exfoliant, and on price.

Both are marketed around a single calming botanical rather than an aggressive-sounding ingredient list, which puts them in direct competition for the same shopper. What actually separates them is whether that calming focus is paired with an active BHA or kept completely inactive, plus a real, sizeable price gap.

SKIN1004 runs $0.14 per milliliter ($17.00 for 125mL). Anua runs $0.09 per milliliter ($14.00 for 150mL). SKIN1004 costs roughly 55% more per mL.

SKIN1004 centers on Madagascar-sourced centella asiatica alongside sodium hyaluronate and cacao extract, no active exfoliant, a genuinely minimal ingredient list. Anua builds heartleaf at 33.4% alongside quercetin and betaine salicylate (BHA), combining calming with active pore-care exfoliation in the same formula.

SKIN1004's higher per-mL price doesn't come from a longer or more complex ingredient list, its list is actually shorter than Anua's. What it buys is confirmed fragrance-free status. Anua contains fragrance via eucalyptus globulus leaf oil, on top of its active BHA.

If you want calming benefits without any active exfoliant, and fragrance-free is a requirement, SKIN1004 delivers exactly that, worth the premium if those two things matter to you specifically. If you want calming plus real pore-care exfoliation at a meaningfully lower price, and fragrance isn't a concern, Anua is the more purposeful, better-value pick.

For the double-cleanse method and what low pH actually means, see how to double cleanse, or browse the rest of our cleanser coverage.