Bluemercury
$115.00
We may earn a commission. It never changes a verdict.
Skincare · reviewed
SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense
vs Good Molecules Discoloration Correcting Serum
The buying question
How do the listed key actives, disclosed percentages and fragrance listing differ?
Both contain niacinamide, but at different disclosed strengths (5% vs 4%). The original's tranexamic acid, kojic acid and HEPES have no direct match in the alternative, which uses a tranexamic acid derivative instead.
Equivalent performance is not established.
How we reached this verdict ↗Original
Photo unavailable
SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense — 30 mL
$115.00
$383.33 / 100 mL
Checked
Alternative
Photo unavailable
Good Molecules Discoloration Correcting Serum (Version 2.0) — 30 mL
$12.00
$40.00 / 100 mL
Checked
Same, different, unknown.
“Same” means a recorded feature matches, not equivalent performance.
Listed key actives and disclosed percentages
Different- Original
- Tranexamic acid: 3%; Kojic acid: 1%; Niacinamide: 5%; HEPES: 5%
- Seller-stated
- Alternative
- Cetyl tranexamate mesylate (tranexamic acid derivative): 3%; Niacinamide: 4%
- Brand-stated
Both list niacinamide, at different disclosed strengths: 5% in the original, 4% in the alternative. The original uses 3% tranexamic acid; the alternative uses a different ingredient, cetyl tranexamate mesylate, so those two percentages can't be compared directly. The alternative lists no kojic acid or HEPES. A higher percentage is not a judgment of better or worse.
Sources for Listed key actives and disclosed percentages
- Original
- Dermstore product page (brand copy)
- Checked
- Bluemercury's product page states the same four percentages. The SkinCeuticals site could not be loaded on the check date.
- Alternative
- Good Molecules product page and formula table (Version 2.0)
- Checked
- Ulta's product page states 2% cetyl tranexamate mesylate; the brand's Version 2.0 formula table (released 2022-01-18) states 3%. Niacinamide is 4% on the brand, Ulta and Target pages.
Fragrance listed
Same- Original
- No
- Seller-stated
- Alternative
- No
- Brand-stated
Neither ingredient list includes fragrance or parfum. Dermstore describes the original as fragrance-free; Good Molecules says its serum has no added fragrance.
Sources for Fragrance listed
What we couldn’t check
- Listed key actives and disclosed percentages. Sources disagree on the alternative's cetyl tranexamate mesylate strength (3% on the brand site, 2% on Ulta), and it is a different ingredient from the original's tranexamic acid.
- Comparative performance. pH, stability and skin outcomes have not been compared.
Retailer options
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Shipping and tax excluded. Confirm totals at the retailer.
Lowest unit price first per version; ties alphabetical, missing prices last. Direct retailer links; no affiliate tracking added.
Original · SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense — 30 mL
Dermstore
$115.00
We may earn a commission. It never changes a verdict.
Alternative · Good Molecules Discoloration Correcting Serum (Version 2.0) — 30 mL
Good Molecules
$12.00
We may earn a commission. It never changes a verdict.
Ulta
$12.00
We may earn a commission. It never changes a verdict.
Scope & corrections
Scope version 1 · Listed key actives and disclosed percentages; Fragrance listed
This comparison uses its category’s standard scope. No scope changes are recorded.
No corrections have been recorded.
About corrections ↗