How Elluvi compares
Our product next to the first 3 from the comparison further down, cell for cell. Elluvi wrote this guide.
- 50 ml. Alpha arbutin 2%, niacinamide 5%, retinol 0.3% stated, with kojic acid. Night only, not for pregnancy
- Rs. 1,449 — about Rs. 29 a ml
- Charisma Kojic Acid Cream
- 20 g. Kojic dipalmitate — a derivative, not kojic acid. No percentage stated. Also lists arbutin and niacinamide. A 40 g size is offered
- Rs. 680 — about Rs. 34 a gram
- ChiltanPure Kojic Cream
- 50 ml. No percentage stated, no kojic form named
- Rs. 1,099 — about Rs. 22 a ml
- Simplist Kojic Acid 2% Face Cream
- Size not stated. Kojic acid 2%, stated, with niacinamide and alpha arbutin in the list
- Rs. 1,290
COD across Pakistan · Free delivery on orders of Rs. 1,000 and above · 14-day returns, even if opened
Kojic acid cream prices in Pakistan
Rs. 680 to Rs. 1,290 for a face cream. Where a size is published the range works out at roughly Rs. 22 to Rs. 34 per unit, and the cheapest jar is the dearest per gram — a pattern small tubes produce everywhere.
Prices were read from each brand's own online store on 16 September 2026. Where a seller does not publish a size or a percentage, that is recorded as not stated rather than estimated, because the absence is the useful part: you cannot compare a dose nobody prints. Elluvi is in the table for comparison: Hydra Glow Cream contains kojic acid at an unstated percentage alongside alpha arbutin 2%, which works on the same enzyme.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Cream | Size and stated active | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Charisma Kojic Acid Cream | 20 g. Kojic dipalmitate — a derivative, not kojic acid. No percentage stated. Also lists arbutin and niacinamide. A 40 g size is offered | Rs. 680 — about Rs. 34 a gram |
| ChiltanPure Kojic Cream | 50 ml. No percentage stated, no kojic form named | Rs. 1,099 — about Rs. 22 a ml |
| Simplist Kojic Acid 2% Face Cream | Size not stated. Kojic acid 2%, stated, with niacinamide and alpha arbutin in the list | Rs. 1,290 |
| SkinFactor 2% Kojic Acid Face Cream | Size not stated. Kojic acid 2%, stated | Rs. 1,290 |
| Elluvi Hydra Glow Cream — contains kojic acid, percentage not stated (ours) | 50 ml. Alpha arbutin 2%, niacinamide 5%, retinol 0.3% stated, with kojic acid. Night only, not for pregnancy | Rs. 1,449 — about Rs. 29 a ml |
Kojic dipalmitate is not kojic acid, and the cheapest cream is made of it
Kojic dipalmitate is a stabilised ester of kojic acid. It does not brown in the jar, which is why formulators like it, and it has to be converted in the skin before it does anything, which is why it is milder. It is a legitimate ingredient. It is not the thing the 2% research was done on, and a label that says only "kojic" is not telling you which one you bought.
This is the single most useful thing to know before comparing prices here. Of the four creams above, one names a derivative, two state kojic acid at 2%, and one names neither. The Rs. 610 gap between the cheapest and the dearest is largely that difference.
What a percentage would tell you, if it were printed
The published work on kojic acid sits between 1% and 4%, and 2% is where most formulators land — enough to inhibit tyrosinase, below the point where sensitisation becomes common. A cream that states no number and no other active gives you nothing to compare it on. Where kojic acid is a supporting active next to a stated arbutin or niacinamide dose, as in our cream, compare on those stated figures.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Strength | What it does |
|---|---|
| Under 1% | Below the level anything was demonstrated at |
| 1-2% | The usual daily range; 2% is the common ceiling |
| 2-4% | Used in some products; sensitisation risk rises |
| Not stated | Unknowable. Most of the Pakistani market |
Cream, serum or face wash — which is worth the money
A serum costs more and does more: it is a leave-on product with hours of contact. A face wash has seconds and is the cheapest way to add the active without irritation. A cream sits between the two and carries the moisturiser step with it, which is the one people actually keep using.
For reference on the same day: Simplist's 2% kojic serum is Rs. 1,690 and SkinFactor's is Rs. 1,650, against Rs. 1,290 for either brand's cream. SkinFactor's kojic face wash is Rs. 1,190. If budget is the constraint, a cream used nightly for three months beats a serum bought once and abandoned in week three.
The cost nobody puts in the table
Kojic acid increases sun sensitivity, so a kojic routine without daily SPF is money spent undoing itself. Budget for sunscreen before you budget for the cream. Ours is the Primer Gel Sunscreen at SPF 40 and PA+++; whichever you choose, buy one you will actually reapply, and expect Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,500 for a reasonable Pakistani one.
What Elluvi uses, and why it is in this table
Hydra Glow Cream at Rs. 1,449 combines kojic acid with alpha arbutin 2%, niacinamide 5% and retinol 0.3%, and the Age Defying Serum at Rs. 1,299 carries the same kojic and arbutin pairing in a serum for experienced retinol users. The kojic percentage is not stated; the arbutin, niacinamide and retinol figures are. Both are night-only, start at two to three nights a week, and are not for pregnancy or breastfeeding. If you specifically want a stated 2% kojic acid cream without retinol, buy one of the ones above — this page exists because the prices were not published anywhere in one place.
