Brand Comparison

ILIA Beauty vs The History of Whoo

A head-to-head comparison of two popular K-beauty brands. Which one is right for your skin?

Our Pick

The History of Whoo

Higher editor rating (8.8 vs 8.2)

ILIA Beauty The History of Whoo

Rating8.2/108.8/10

Price RangeMid-Range ($$)Premium ($$$)

Founded20112003

OriginUnited StatesSouth Korea

Products15

Best Fornormal, Combo, DryMature, Dry

PhilosophyClean-beauty cosmetics with enough skincare overlap to matter — the Super Serum Skin Tint is the crossover.Royal-court hanbang for the woman who wants her anti-aging to feel ceremonial.

ILIA Beauty

ILIA blurs the line between makeup and skincare, and the Super Serum Skin Tint is the reason we're including it. Light-to-medium coverage, SPF 40, hyaluronic acid base — it's replaced many people's BB creams and foundations. The rest of the line is makeup-forward but all built on clean-beauty-certified formulas.

Pros

✓ Excellent Super Serum Skin Tint
✓ Clean-beauty certified
✓ Wide shade range for tinted SPF

Cons

✗ More makeup than skincare
✗ Premium pricing
✗ SPF filters vary by market

The History of Whoo

Price tags that make you wince and packaging that belongs in a palace museum — but the Bichup Self-Generating Anti-Aging Essence is legitimately good, and the Gongjinhyang:Seol brightening line has receipts. You're paying for the ritual as much as the results, which is either the point or the problem, depending on who you are.

Pros