Brand Comparison
Skandinavisk vs Dr. Althea
A head-to-head comparison of two popular K-beauty brands. Which one is right for your skin?
Our Pick
Dr. Althea
Higher editor rating (8.8 vs 7.5)
Skandinavisk
The design-object Scandi brand. More perfume house than skincare house, but the hand creams and body lotions punch above their weight. Packaging is museum-grade beautiful. Fragrance-forward — skip if you want fragrance-free. If you want the Nordic minimalism aesthetic on your sink, this is the brand.
Pros
- ✓ Museum-grade packaging design
- ✓ Fragrance compositions are genuinely beautiful
- ✓ Strong body and hand-care lineup
- ✓ Small carbon-neutral operation
Cons
- ✗ Heavily fragranced
- ✗ Skincare is secondary to fragrance
- ✗ Premium pricing for what's essentially body lotion
Dr. Althea
Dr. Althea is the dermatologist-led K-beauty brand quietly outperforming its more-hyped peers on every actives-forward product. The 147 Enriched Cream (147 active and adjunct ingredients in one barrier cream) is the reason Reddit's AsianBeauty community keeps pointing new people here. No sparkly packaging, no K-pop collab — just well-built formulas with peptide, ceramide, and panthenol stacks that hold up under scrutiny.
Pros
- ✓ dermatologist-led clinical approach
- ✓ 147 Enriched Cream is a legitimate barrier workhorse
- ✓ minimalist, no-nonsense branding
- ✓ every product is actives-first
Cons
- ✗ brand voice is drier than its peers
