Medik8 Super C Ferulic vs SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic: Which Vitamin C Serum Should You Choose?

Medik8 Super C Ferulic and SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic are both ferulic-acid-stabilised vitamin C serums, but they use different forms of the active. Medik8 uses 30% ethylated ascorbic acid and is not recommended for sensitive skin; SkinCeuticals uses 15% pure L-ascorbic acid and states it suits normal, dry and sensitive skin.

Quick facts

The core difference: two different forms of vitamin C

Both serums are built around the same well-established antioxidant principle — vitamin C stabilised with ferulic acid and vitamin E — but the two brands reach it from different directions. Medik8's Super C Ferulic uses an ethylated form of ascorbic acid at 30%, an ester designed to resist the oxidation, yellowing and potency loss that plain L-ascorbic acid is prone to once a bottle is opened. SkinCeuticals' C E Ferulic instead uses pure L-ascorbic acid at 15%, alongside 1% vitamin E and 0.5% ferulic acid, formulated at a low pH (SkinCeuticals states 2.0–3.5) under what the brand calls its Duke Antioxidant Patent — a specific pH and concentration combination it credits with helping the vitamin C penetrate and remain active in skin.

Neither approach is objectively "better" in the abstract: ethylated ascorbic acid is generally considered more stable in the bottle, while pure L-ascorbic acid at low pH is the original, most-studied form the wider vitamin C, E and ferulic acid category is built on. What's genuinely useful to know is that the two brands don't publish directly comparable concentration figures — Medik8's 30% describes its ethylated derivative, while SkinCeuticals' 15% describes pure ascorbic acid, so the numbers aren't measuring the same thing and shouldn't be read as "twice as strong."

A genuine contrast in stated skin-type fit

One of the clearest differences between these two serums shows up in each brand's own suitability guidance, taken verbatim from their respective product pages. Medik8 is explicit that Super C Ferulic is not recommended for sensitive skin, pointing people with reactive skin towards its gentler C-Tetra instead. SkinCeuticals, by contrast, lists normal, dry and sensitive skin types among who C E Ferulic suits.

This is worth sitting with rather than skating past: it means the brand generally associated with the "gentler ester" approach to vitamin C is the one excluding sensitive skin here, while the brand using the classic pure-acid form states its serum suits sensitive skin too. Formulation is about more than the headline active — supporting ingredients, pH buffering and overall product design all play into how a finished serum performs on reactive skin, and each brand's own guidance reflects its own testing and formulation choices, not a rule that applies to every ethylated or every pure vitamin C serum. If you have genuinely sensitive or reactive skin, treat both brands' stated guidance as the starting point, patch test regardless of which you choose, and get in touch with our team if you're unsure.

Texture, scent and how each feels on skin

Super C Ferulic has a lightweight, fast-absorbing, dry-touch finish that sinks in without residue and layers cleanly under moisturiser and SPF. Medik8 notes that a brief warming or tingling sensation on application is normal for a formula this concentrated, and typically settles within seconds.

C E Ferulic has a thinner, more watery consistency that also absorbs quickly, but it carries a distinctive scent that SkinCeuticals attributes to the potency of the pure L-ascorbic acid itself — often described by users as a slightly metallic smell that fades shortly after application. Neither texture is objectively nicer to use; it comes down to whether you prefer a dry-touch serum or a thinner, more fluid one, and whether the scent profile of pure ascorbic acid bothers you.

What the antioxidant trio is actually doing

The idea of pairing vitamin C with ferulic acid and vitamin E isn't unique to either brand — it's a well-established formulation approach in skincare, generally understood to work because the three ingredients help stabilise and support one another's antioxidant activity when combined, rather than each acting entirely alone. Both Super C Ferulic and C E Ferulic build on this same three-ingredient logic; where they differ is in the specific form and concentration of vitamin C carrying it, plus each brand's own supporting formulation choices — Turmeric Root Extract in Medik8's case, a tightly controlled low-pH environment in SkinCeuticals' case.

It's worth being clear that neither brand's percentage figure is a claim about how much active reaches skin cells, or how the finished serum performs against the other. Formulation, pH, delivery and how your own skin responds all play a part alongside the headline concentration — a higher percentage on a label doesn't automatically mean a stronger result on your skin.

How each fits into a wider routine

Both are designed as a single morning step, applied to cleansed, dry skin before moisturiser and SPF, rather than something to layer with other active-heavy products in the same routine. If you're already using a retinoid or exfoliating acid at night, that's generally fine to combine with either of these vitamin C serums used in the morning, since they're not typically applied at the same time of day. Within Medik8's own range, Super C Ferulic sits inside the brand's wider CSA (vitamin C, vitamin A, SPF) routine philosophy, alongside products like C-Tetra. C E Ferulic is more commonly reached for as a standalone morning antioxidant step within whatever routine you've already built, since the product page we pulled doesn't reference an equivalent named SkinCeuticals routine system.

Price and where each sits

We're deliberately not quoting exact figures here — prices move, and SkinCeuticals in particular is a MAP-restricted brand where we don't publish price comparisons. What we can say qualitatively is that C E Ferulic sits at a notably higher price point than Super C Ferulic, reflecting SkinCeuticals' positioning as a professional, dermatologist-channel skincare brand versus Medik8's positioning as a premium but more accessible high-street and online brand. Check current pricing on each product's own page: Medik8 Super C Ferulic and SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic.

Using either serum safely

Both are morning antioxidant serums, applied to cleansed, dry skin before moisturiser and SPF — and both work best as part of a routine that includes daily sun protection, since a vitamin C serum is a support to SPF, not a replacement for it. Medik8 explicitly advises patch testing Super C Ferulic before regular use given its potency; we'd apply the same caution to C E Ferulic, or any new high-strength vitamin C serum, even where a brand doesn't spell it out on the page we pulled.

If you're pregnant or breastfeeding, please contact our team for advice before use.

Which should you choose?

• Choose Super C Ferulic if you want to stay within Medik8's own CSA routine, prefer a dry-touch finish, and want a formula built to resist oxidation over the life of the bottle.
• Choose C E Ferulic if you specifically want the original pure-acid, Duke Antioxidant Patent formulation that this whole "vitamin C, E and ferulic acid" category is built around, and you don't mind the characteristic scent.
• If your skin is sensitive or reactive, read both brands' stated suitability carefully, patch test whichever you pick, and consider C-Tetra as a gentler Medik8 starting point if either of these feels like too much.

For the rest of Medik8's vitamin C range, including the gentler entry points, see our Best Medik8 Vitamin C Serum guide, our full Super C Ferulic review, or browse the Medik8 brand hub.