Centella vs heartleaf: what the evidence and labels show

Centella and heartleaf are two of the plants K-beauty sells for calm, less red skin. Shops that rank for “centella vs heartleaf” tend to give each one a personality. Skinsider, a UK K-beauty shop, says heartleaf is “especially popular for combination, oily and blemish-prone skin”. We wanted to know what claims like that rest on, so we read the research and checked where each plant sits in products sold in Canada. We haven’t tested any of these products.

What each plant is

• Centella asiatica, also called cica or gotu kola, is a herb whose main compounds include asiaticoside and madecassoside. Some brands list those compounds instead of, or as well as, the extract. Our centella ingredient page has more.
• Heartleaf is Houttuynia cordata, a plant with a long medicinal history in China. On labels it shows up as an extract or as a plant water, a watery liquid taken from the plant.

What the research covers

Centella. A 2024 review in Pharmaceutics collects clinical trials of topical centella for wound healing, including diabetic ulcers and burns, with delivery systems such as hydrogels and microneedles. It describes compounds that “enhance collagen synthesis, modulate inflammation, and offer antioxidant protection”. That’s research on injured skin, not on everyday redness from a toner or ampoule.

Heartleaf. A 2022 review in Pharmaceuticals lists anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and antioxidant effects among others. It also says studies on topics including “skin permeability” would be “very useful”, which suggests how well it gets through skin hasn’t been well studied. The closest skin study we found, published in Foods in 2024, tested a fermented heartleaf broth on HaCaT cells, a lab-grown line of human skin cells. It reduced inflammation markers there. That broth isn’t the heartleaf water in Anua’s toner, and cells in a dish aren’t a face.

So a neat split, with one plant for repair and the other for oily skin, isn’t something either set of studies shows. Both are described as anti-inflammatory. Neither has a human trial we could find showing a cosmetic product reduces redness.

Where they sit on real labels

We read the full ingredient list of each product on the brand’s own page on 6 October 2026. Earlier usually means more, but the position isn’t a percentage.

Product	Centella	Heartleaf	Ingredients
Anua Heartleaf 77 Soothing Toner	12th (extract)	1st (plant water)	24
SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule	4th (extract)	Not listed	7
Torriden Dive-In Serum	18th (madecassoside)	Not listed	33
Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum	24th (extract)	Not listed	30
Anua Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil	Not listed	18th (extract)	22

Anua’s heartleaf toner is also a centella product, so buying it doesn’t settle a “centella or heartleaf” choice.

The heartleaf cleansing oil lists fragrance 6th, well ahead of heartleaf at 18th. If you’re shopping for calm, check the whole list, not the name.

Of the lists we track, SKIN1004’s ampoule puts centella highest: 4th, behind water and two humectants.

What they cost

Prices are the lowest in-stock CAD price in our October Price Index, observed on 5 and 6 October 2026.

Product	Lowest price	Store	Per 100 ml
Anua Heartleaf 77 toner, 250 ml	C$21.19	Stylevana	C$8.48
Anua cleansing oil, 200 ml	C$19.09	Stylevana	C$9.54
SKIN1004 Centella Ampoule, 100 ml	C$19.89	Stylevana	C$19.89

A toner and an ampoule are used differently, so per 100 ml isn’t a like-for-like cost per week. Every store’s price is on the SKIN1004 ampoule page.

How to choose

• If you want centella high on the list, SKIN1004’s ampoule puts it 4th of 7.
• If you want a hydrating toner with both plants, Anua’s toner has heartleaf first and centella 12th.
• If fragrance bothers your skin, skip the Anua cleansing oil and check any list for “fragrance” or “parfum”.
• If cost matters most, the toner is less than half the ampoule’s price per 100 ml.

Patch test anything new. If redness lasts, burns or spreads, see a pharmacist, family doctor or dermatologist. That’s general caution, not medical advice.

What we could not verify

• Any human trial of centella or heartleaf in a cosmetic product for redness. We searched and didn’t find one.
• How much centella or heartleaf each product contains. Brands don’t publish percentages on these lists.
• Whether heartleaf water and heartleaf extract behave alike. The studies we read used extracts, oils or a fermented broth.

Sources

Read on 8 October 2026:

• Witkowska K. et al., “Topical Application of Centella asiatica in Wound Healing: Recent Insights into Mechanisms and Clinical Efficacy”, Pharmaceutics, 2024. Full text on PubMed Central.
• Skinsider’s post on centella vs heartleaf, for its heartleaf quote.
• Rafiq S. et al., “Pharmacological Effects of Houttuynia cordata Thunb (H. cordata): A Comprehensive Review”, Pharmaceuticals, 2022. Full text on PubMed Central.
• Song Z. et al., “Inhibition of LPS-Induced Skin Inflammatory Response and Barrier Damage via MAPK/NF-κB Signaling Pathway by Houttuynia cordata Thunb Fermentation Broth”, Foods, 2024. Full text on PubMed Central.
• Anua’s page for the Heartleaf 77 Soothing Toner, for its ingredient list.
• SKIN1004’s page for the Madagascar Centella Ampoule, for its ingredient list.
• Anua’s page for the Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil, for its ingredient list.
• Torriden’s page for the Dive-In Serum, for its ingredient list.
• Beauty of Joseon’s page for the Glow Serum, for its ingredient list.

Keep going

• Compare two popular toners in Anua vs Round Lab.
• Check whether you need the step at all in do you need a toner.
• Learn what list position means in how to read an ingredient list.