Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

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✓Yay

"An example from Paula's Choice has no glycolic acid in it, it's actually a 6% mandelic acid and a 2% lactic acid. It's a good AHA blend that will be a little more gentle on your skin. Really good exfoliation benefits from this."

Dr. Jenny Liu

324k subs

✓Yay

"They also have Paula's Choice a 6% mandelic acid plus 2% lactic acid that is also great for kind of helping with uneven tone and those who are acne-prone. I'm loving the fact that there are more products with mandelic acid because it's just such an underrated product and really ideal for those who are more sensitive, acne-prone, and struggle with hyperpigmentation, too."

Alexandra Anele

1.45M subs

✓Yay

"So I was like, 'Oh, I might as well just like try this slightly more gentle liquid exfoliant.' I just put it out on a cotton pad and wipe it on my face. [...] It's quite nice. It's gentle enough. [...] I've seen definitely like [...] an increase in positivity in my skin. It does a really good job of like just managing breakouts. And because it's nice and gentle, it's been like a very good counterpoint to my increase in tretinoin."

Dr. Vanita Rattan

1.23M subs

✓Yay

"I also like Paula's Choice 6% mandelic plus 2% lactic, so that's 8% but of gentle AHAs. They're great for skin of color and the trick is to remove enough dead skin cells to see young, juicy, glowing skin. You want to make sure you're getting hydration into the top layer, so you want humectant in the actual chemical exfoliator, and ideally want gentle tyrosine inhibitors that can go deep into the skin and can help to calm down the melanocytes, the cells producing the pigment melanin."

All 2 takes from Dr. Vanita Rattan

RATING VIRAL SKINCARE - DR V

"The smell is a bit strong but I was always going to be there, there's nothing they could do about it. They've probably done the best they can, to be honest. It's better to go with this smell I think than fragrance added. It's 35 for 88 mls, actually cheaper, and it's a third of the price of other products, which is insane. [...] Because it's an acid and they've really gone in without fragrance."

30s Haircare/Skincare Routines 2025

"I also like Paula's Choice 6% mandelic plus 2% lactic, so that's 8% but of gentle AHAs. They're great for skin of color and the trick is to remove enough dead skin cells to see young, juicy, glowing skin. You want to make sure you're getting hydration into the top layer, so you want humectant in the actual chemical exfoliator, and ideally want gentle tyrosine inhibitors that can go deep into the skin and can help to calm down the melanocytes, the cells producing the pigment melanin."

Doctorly

3.59M subs

✓Yay

"Then you add lactic acid which is slightly moisturizing and you put it in a time-release formula and this is really a great product for people who have sensitive skin but want to exfoliate. Smell this product. To me it smells like alcohol, really like vodka, and even though there's no alcohol in it I'm really enjoying the sensorial experience. It's completely fragrance free but I'm loving the smell of the ingredients. It's like wine tasting for me."

Sincerely Miss Ash

195k subs

✓Yay

"This is the one I am going with and this always does an excellent job to remove flaking, keeping my skin comfortable. It doesn't feel overly exfoliated where I have that tingling sensation to my skin. I don't experience that with this at all. In my opinion this is very, very gentle because of that 6% mandelic acid, but then of course there's only that 2% lactic acid in here and the combination just pairs so nicely together when your skin is dry and it's irritated at the same time."

All 2 takes from Sincerely Miss Ash

5 POWERFUL HYBRID CHEMICAL EXFOLIANTS - ANTI-AGING, COLLAGEN BOOSTING, IMPROVED TEXTURE & TONE!

"This is the one I am going with and this always does an excellent job to remove flaking, keeping my skin comfortable. It doesn't feel overly exfoliated where I have that tingling sensation to my skin. I don't experience that with this at all. In my opinion this is very, very gentle because of that 6% mandelic acid, but then of course there's only that 2% lactic acid in here and the combination just pairs so nicely together when your skin is dry and it's irritated at the same time."

THE PAULA'S CHOICE 6% MANDELIC ACID + 2% LACTIC ACID LIQUID EXFOLIANT REVIEW - FOR ALL SKIN TYPES!

"From my experience with using this, oh my gosh, it has been life-changing. It really is gentle. It gives my skin this beautiful glow and my skin also feels baby soft as well. This is something you can use daily, but you can overdo a good thing if you overuse your chemical exfoliants. If you're someone that has more sensitive skin, this could lead to irritation, redness, and of course you could experience skin purging and breakouts."

No BS Beauty

89k subs

✓Yay

"It will help with skin cell turnover and things like that. It's pretty effective. It's more gentle than some exfoliants and less gentle than others. [...] It's pretty friendly for all skin types including acne prone skin, [...] which is wonderful. [...] In terms of price, [...] this product is 30 milliliters for 37 dollars, putting that on the cusp of being too pricey. [...] If you're going to apply this with your fingertips it's affordable; if you're going to apply with a cotton pad it's not."

All 2 takes from No BS Beauty

Sephora Spring Beauty Sale Picks ✔ What’s in My Cart & Skincare Recommendations

"It's $37 for Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid and 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant. [...] It's got mandelic acid, it's got lactic acid. I know Paula's Choice knows how to properly pH an exfoliant so it will have the proper pH to function well. It looks like it's geared towards dry skin and it also contains Floraepis ferment. I'm going to give it a gamble and see."

Paula's Choice Skincare New! Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant

"It will help with skin cell turnover and things like that. It's pretty effective. It's more gentle than some exfoliants and less gentle than others. [...] It's pretty friendly for all skin types including acne prone skin, [...] which is wonderful. [...] In terms of price, [...] this product is 30 milliliters for 37 dollars, putting that on the cusp of being too pricey. [...] If you're going to apply this with your fingertips it's affordable; if you're going to apply with a cotton pad it's not."

Gothamista

683k subs

✓Yay

"I personally love that this is a combination of mandelic acid and time release lactic acid. As many of you know I have been a fan of mandelic acid since the beginning. My sensitive reactive skin, especially back in the day, was just not comfortable with a lot of the glycolic acid formulas out there that were just so harsh. Mandelic was so much easier to tolerate for my skin. I think for winter too this is such a great exfoliant."

AliceintheRabbitHole

59k subs

✓Yay

"I was so scared when I first got this because my skin is pretty sensitive, but I have to say I'm not at all disappointed, it's another good product from Paula's Choice. [...] Mandelic acid is a more gentle AHA, as is lactic acid, and six percent and two percent are great levels. It's fragrance-free, still an exfoliant, but a good choice for sensitive skin. It's great that Paula's Choice came out with this since otherwise they have quite a lot of rather strong exfoliating options."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Alpha hydroxy acids

Alpha hydroxy acids loosen the bonds holding dead cells at the surface. The evidence supports smoother texture and more even tone over time, and they can leave skin more sensitive to sun.

Source: NIH, National Library of Medicine

Frequently asked.

What is Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant?

A liquid chemical exfoliant combining 6% mandelic acid and 2% lactic acid in a time-release formula, designed to gently remove dead skin cells and improve skin texture and tone.

Is Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant worth it?

Yes. All 9 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 84%.

What is Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant's Guru Score?

Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 6% Mandelic Acid + 2% Lactic Acid Liquid Exfoliant holds a Guru Score of 84%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 9 expert reviewers we have collected.