Yuka vs ClearaScan: Score-Based vs Your Own Avoidance List

Yuka scores products with a single rating; ClearaScan checks against your personal triggers. Here's how they differ and who each suits.

The core difference

Yuka scans a barcode and gives the product a single score out of 100, based on its own assessment of the ingredients. ClearaScan does not score anything; it checks a product against the specific ingredients you have chosen to avoid.

Where Yuka is strong

Yuka is hugely popular, has a vast product database, and is great for a quick general “is this well-rated?” verdict across food and cosmetics. If you want one universal score, it delivers.

Where it falls short for sensitive skin

A good Yuka score is no comfort if the product still contains your trigger, and a bad score may flag things that are completely fine for you. It answers “is this generally good?” rather than “is this right for me?”

Where ClearaScan fits

Yuka is a good way to see how a product rates overall, and that score is the same for everyone, which is exactly why it can rate a product well while it still contains the one ingredient your skin reacts to. ClearaScan works the other way around: it ignores the general verdict and checks each product against your own avoid list, so it flags your triggers and stays quiet about everyone else’s. You build that list once, then scan any product in seconds, in-store, and it keeps a Reaction Journal for flare-ups, a shared Care Circle so family or carers can scan for you, and a Trusted Products list for items you have cleared. It is currently in early access. (Disclosure: our editor co-founded ClearaScan, and we are not paid to mention Yuka.)

The verdict

Use Yuka for a fast general score; use ClearaScan when what matters is whether a product contains the ingredients you personally react to.