Tatcha The Rice Polish vs Suisai Beauty Clear Powder: Both Enzyme Cleansing Powders are very hyped, but which one is better?
What’s a cleansing powder?
Both powders are touted to clean and gently exfoliate the skin. Suisai is a Japanese brand (mother company is giant Kanebo), while US-based Tatcha claims that they’re inspired by Japanese tradition.
Enzyme cleansing powders aren’t new: they’ve been promoted especially for people with sensitive skin who want gentle exfoliation with their cleansing. The main exfoliation action in this case doesn’t stem from rough particles, but enzymes. Tatcha uses papaya enzymes AND finely ground rice bran, while Suisai uses soybean milk filtrate for the enzyme action and silk powder for additional exfoliation.
Tatcha says:
A water-activated exfoliant of nourishing Japanese Rice Bran that transforms to a creamy foam for smooth, polished skin with a healthy glow. (…) The Rice Polish gives your skin a new beginning through non-abrasive exfoliation and pure Japanese ingredients delivered in a cloud-like foam.
Tatcha
I got the normal to dry version. You can find the ingredients here (incidecoder). Please note that I did an in-depth review of my fave Tatcha products here, where you can also find a review of the Rice Polish Classic.
Susai says:
The suisai brand is deeply rooted in time-tested processes that uproot impurities lodged in pores and richly hydrate the skin’s surface, leaving the skin with silky smooth perfection.
susai
suisai Beauty Clear Powder face wash is catching the eye of the worldwide audience with an enzyme-activated formula that whisks away impurities and unclogs pores as it protects the skin’s natural moisture. A popular choice for tourists who desire the Japanese secret to even, finely textured skin.
Hah, worldwide audience is right! In fact, Dorit brought this back from Japan because it was so hyped (and very cheap in Japan). Find the exact ingredients here (incidecoder).
The Texture
Tatcha’s powder is finer, while Suisai’s is a bit coarser. You can see that well in the picture above.
The Foam
I tried to take pictures by myself. Unfortunately, my attempts failed and I couldn’t take a good picture of them. They are, however, quite true to what is described on their respective sites (links above).
Tatcha says that their powder transforms into a creamy foam. Yes, that’s what it does. There’s are not so much foam builds on this, only slightly. If you use less water, you’ll get a pasty consistency, and more water gives it a creamier texture and more foaminess.
Suisai: Very foamy consistency, so it’s almost that you have no scrubbing properties left.
After The Wash
To be fair, Tatcha’s Rice Polish is formulated for Normal to Dry skin (there’re also versions for sensitive, dry and oily skin). The Suisai powder doesn’t really say anything about what skintypes it’s formulated for, except that it seemed to be more targeted towards a young demographic given the pictures on the site (which usually means normal to oily skin?).
My skin always feels fresh and supple after using Tatcha. Sorry to use a tired word, but it – glows.
After using Suisai’s powder, it’s instead feeling dry. Not exceptionally dry, just a normal dryness you might experience after you wash your face, but you can definitely feel the difference. Suisai says, though, that you’re only supposed to use the cleansing powder up to twice a week, while Tatcha claims that you can use their powder daily.
Packaging
One advantage of this type of product is that it’s so easy to carry when traveling. You can put it in the carry on while flying, because – not a liquid.
Tatcha’s packaging is in line with the brand. It’s beautiful and feels luxurious: The glass jar. The bit opening to dispense the powder. It’s quite big to carry around when going to the gym or travel, but if I wanted to, I’d just pour a bit in a small container.
I have an issue with the Suisai packaging. Yes, it’s very convenient when you want to bring it around (again, travel, or even for your after gym shower) … but does it have to be in the tiny plastic capsules? I can’t even bring myself to use sheet masks because everytime I use one, I have to throw away a lot of packaging. So with this tiny capsule? No way. That’s a real sustainability issue.
Also for me, the amount of powder per capsule is a bit much. I don’t like not being able to control how much I’d like to use per application.
Price
Suisai’s (if not bought in Japan) capsule’s are 0.4gx32 = 12.8g for around 23€ (YesStyle).
Tatcha: 60g for 65€ at Sephora.com.
Once I thought Suisai is cheaper, but ACTUALLY, Suisai is almost twice more expensive!
There’re actually a lot of cheaper alternatives, because especially when it comes to K- and J-Beauty, enzyme powder cleansers are very, very common. There’s for example DHC (which also makes a great cleansing oil) and Tosowoong. Western brands offering enzyme powders are, for example, Dermalogica and Barbara Sturm.
Tatcha The Rice Polish vs Suisai Beauty Clear Powder: Conclusion
For face cleanser with scrub properties, Tatcha’s is still my go-to. Far and wide. Although I might need to find a replacement soon, because it’s still not officially available in Europe… and with this covid pandemie going on, I can’t travel anywhere soon.
Please note that this post is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods or money for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
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