My Review: Idole Skin Lightening Cream (2024) – Really Works?

It’s time to review Idole Skin Lightening Cream – which looks like a very familiar product.

Still, my impression is that it looks like a re-branded product:

• very limited customer reviews
• details about it are very hard to find
• potentially dangerous

So is this a legit product or is it another type of rip-off?

I analyzed its hidden details, in order to give you the truth behind this cream.

Note: This review is based on my opinion + research on Idole Skin Lightening Cream.

Review Summary

Full Name: Idole Skin Lightening Cream by International Beauty Exchange, Inc.

Product Type: Skin Lightening Cream

Best Actual Price: Starts at about $9

Cheapest Place To Buy: eBay

Designed For: Lightening the skin– it promises to:

• protect from sun damage
• clear dark spots
• brighten the skin

My Rating: 5 out of 10

Recommended?: No – there are a lot of downsides about this product:

• can cause severe side effects
• has a sketchy background
• few customer reviews behind

Besides, the product itself isn't even available on its own website.

That's why I suggest you to avoid it and try the best lightening cream I know, at this point. 

What I Liked About It

• Really low price
• Offers different bundles

What I Didn’t Like About It

• Not many details about the manufacturer
• Has some potentially harmful compounds
• Can cause serious side effects
• Hard to find product info and listings
• Very limited authentic reviews
• Not worth the price
• Dysfunctional website (brand/producer)
• Can't be bought from its official website

#1 – Claims & Producer

First of all – I haven't found a lot of info on this cream.

But after a detailed research, here are some general details:

• who is the company behind
• how this cream works
• which skin issues it targets

1. Claims

The first thing you should know is that Idole Skin Lightening Cream doesn't have an official website.

So I will only mention the claims I found on the retail sites (where it's available).

Here's what this cream promises to do:

• soothes and brightens the skin
• blocks sun damage
• clears dark spots/discoloration and freckles
• works really fast

Also – part of the claim says it's also suitable for all skin types.

Like I said in my other reviews, that's not necessarily true (but it's not a big deal either).

As I mentioned, this product looks very familiar and I will explain you why later on.

2. Company Behind

This product is made by the company named International Beauty Exchange, Inc.

This brand is also behind African Formula Skin Lightening Cream (a similar skin lightening cream).

So far – the only things I found on the its website are the following:

• phone number
• email
• Instagram account

However – the social media account mentioned links to a totally different product.

So if you ask me, this is a red flag that makes it hard to trust this product.

Plus – the other features of the site are not working at all, so you can't get any other info.

Overall, I don't really recommend a product that has no solid background, especially about its manufacturer.

So there's no way I could praise Idole at this chapter.

#2 – Formula (2 out of 10)

Honestly – it's very hard to find a clear list of this product's ingredients.

Fortunately, I found the label on a 3rd party website. 

Now, you can see that this cream has hydroquinone (which can potentially harm you).

It's actually an ingredient that I recommend avoiding (in any skin lightening cream).

So let's check the active and inactive ingredients of this product.

1. Active Ingredients

There are only 2 active ingredients inside this product:

• Hydroquinone 2% – whitens the skin [1]
• Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate 0.5% – scatters UV lights from the skin [2]

As I mentioned, hydroquinone used to be a very popular skin lightening ingredient.

But that was mostly in the past.

That's because recent studies proved this ingredient has a high chance of being carcinogenic.

So most high-quality products stopped using it (and replaced it with herbal extracts instead).

The other active ingredient is Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate.

This compound is known for sunscreen-like benefits.

However – it's safe to humans but potentially dangerous to the environment and animals.

To be honest, I don't trust these 2 active compounds.

So that's one of the top reasons why I don't recommend this cream.

2. Inactive Ingredients

Here are the inactive compounds worth mentioning :

• Tocopheryl Acetate – provides antioxidants to the skin  [3]
• Allantoin – removes skin's dead cells [4]
• Ascorbic Acid – brightens and fights hyperpigmentation

These compounds are good and promising based on my research.

However – since they are “inactive”, they have no actual skin lightening benefits.

So they are mostly helpful in terms of smell and texture.

That's why you shouldn't expect too much from these compounds, they won't help.

Conclusion

Again, this cream has almost the same formula as the other product I reviewed.

I'm talking about one from the same brand (African Formula Skin Lightening Cream):

• almost all features are the same
• the only difference is Tocopheryl Acetate (only present in Idole)

But we're talking about an inactive ingredient, so it doesn't really matter.

Overall – this cream's formula is not impressive at all.

Plus, it can be potentially dangerous.

 That's why I'm not a fan of it at all.

#3 – Consistency & Dosage (3 out of 10)

Now – here are some details you might want to know about this cream's texture.

1. Consistency

After researching, I found out that there isn't a lot of info about this product's texture.

And from what I did find, it looks about the same as African Formula:

• thick cream
• white color
• perfume scent

Now, that's what most lightening creams look like.

So Idole's product doesn't have a special consistency (which is definitely not a bad thing).

2. Dosage

Here's how you should use this cream (according to the instructions):

1. Clean your face with Idole's soap.
2. Apply this cream twice daily (adults and children above 12 years).
3. Limit sun exposure after application.

Basically, this cream can be used by children above 12 years old.

But even so – I don't recommend this sketchy product to younger people (or even to anyone, actually).

Also, there are no specific areas on where to apply this cream.

So I assume it can be used on any area you want to lighten.

#4 – Results (2 out of 10)

I always check user reviews, in order to give you the real deal about a product.

But unfortunately, there are only limited available reviews for this cream.

So it's hard to judge how this product works, for now.

Note: I only consider authentic reviews, not promotional/fake ones.

1. Positive Opinions

First of all, this product is sold on eBay and Order Beauty Supply.

But I will choose to feature the reviews written on eBay (just because there are more).

Now – let's take a look at what the satisfied customers say about Idole:

1. One customer stated that it doesn't harm the face.
2. Another said he/she will recommend this cream to his/her friends.
3. The last customer was satisfied with this cream.

Basically, this cream got an overall rating of 4.3/5 stars – which doesn't look bad at first sight.

However – upon looking at the total number of comments, there are only 7 available reviews.

So I cannot really guarantee if they are real or just paid.

Honestly, they are very simple and lack essential details.

So if I had to choose, I would probably say they are fake/biased.

2. Negative Opinions

This cream also garnered some negative comments from the users who tried it:

1. There's a comment stating that it doesn't work (even after 6 weeks).
2. One customer said that he/she is disappointed with the product.
3. Another comment is about the product taking so long to work.

Now, these kinds of complaints are quite common to products with weak formulas.

If they are true (and they seem so), we can assume that this product is not strong enough to lighten skin.

Judging after its composition, I would guarantee that it's not.

So I really tend to agree with these negative reviews.

Conclusion

Idole Skin Lightening Cream has a mix of positive and negative reviews.

However – I don't think they are enough to see and analyze how this cream really works.

There are no details and personal experiences, so I can't judge it fairly enough.

So I won't personally recommend this product right now.

There are many better alternatives – so why go for a sketchy product?

#5 – Side Effects (3 out of 10)

So far – I haven't seen any complaints from customers experiencing adverse reactions.

There are 2 possible reasons:

• the lack of customer reviews
• the product's weak formula

Again, this cream is made by the same company as African Formula.

So there's a possibility that it can give the same side effects:

• rashes/red marks
• burning sensation/skin burn
• pimple breakout

Once again, Idole is based on hydroquinone (which can be carcinogenic).

Plus, both of its active ingredients can potentially harm you and the living things around you.

So that's surely something thing you need to consider.

That's why I don't recommend this cream at all. I

There are many other alternatives that are much safer for your skin.

#6 – Price (7 out of 10)

This cream may look cheap at first – but try to consider the previous points I mentioned.

Do you still think the price is worth it?

If you ask me, it's not such a good deal as it seems.

1. The Exact Price

First of all, I will focus on the prices of this product on eBay.

So far, here are the offers and deals I found:

• One Pack costs $8.45
• 2 packs are $12.99
• 3 packs cost $15.89
• 4 packs are $20.89

Now, the equivalent of 1 pack is 50 g (one tube) of product.

This price does look decent for the amount of cream you get.

However – if you want a general lightening, one tube isn't going to be enough.

Overall, the price itself isn't as high as in many of this cream's competitors.

But its formula is also pretty weak – so you shouldn't be surprised it doesn't cost more.

So despite being cheap, it's not worth it.

2. Competitors’ Price

To give you a comparison, I want to compare Idole with the best skin-lightening cream I know.

I'm talking about a product from Swiss Research Labs called Zeta White:

1. Zeta White has an herbal-based formula.
2. Its ingredients are almost 100% natural.
3. They have a minimal risk of causing side effects and they are gentle to the skin.
4. Idole has some risky ingredients inside (not herbal-based).
5. It tends to cause a lot more side effects.
6. Zeta White costs $50 each (or $150 for the whole set).
7. Idole's price starts at $8.45 and it's also available in bundles (2, 3 and 4 Pack).

You can notice the big price difference between the 2 products.

But if you do a proper research, you will realize that Zeta White is way better overall.

Compared to Idole, it has a safer formula but it's still effective and fast-acting.

Conclusion

Overall – Idole Skin Lightening Cream is not worth it (even if it's super cheaper).

A low price is surely essential, but it's not all.

You should also check the other aspects of a product (especially its formula).

So if you want to invest in something that will really help you, I suggest you  to skip this cream.

There are many better products that are less dangerous.

#7 – Idole Skin Lightening Cream In 3 Ideas

Here’s how I would sum up my opinion about this cream.

1. High-Risk Ingredients

This cream has some potentially harmful active ingredients:

• Hydroquinone
• Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate

Based on my research, these compounds can be harmful to humans (carcinogenic).

Plus, they can also be destructive to the environment and animals.

It's not me saying this, it's studies and research papers.

So I don't think it is a good idea to use a product with this kind of ingredients.

2. Sketchy Background

Again, I mentioned in my review of African Formula that the company behind it is doubtful.

Idole is made by the same brand – so this info is available for it:

• it does have an official website
• but most of the features and links are not working

This can be the reason why there are only limited customer reviews available.

That's because people don‘t want to buy sketchy products. 

So this cream's background is one of the reasons why I don't trust it.

3. Unworthy Price

For most people, the first thing they notice is the low price of this cream.

That's why it may seem very tempting to buy it.

But as you do a closer research, you will realize it's not worth buying.

Not only because it's doubtful – but it can be very expensive in a long run as well.

My Verdict – Worth It Or Not?

Short answer: Definitely not worth it.

I have a lot of reasons why I don't really recommend this cream:

1. Contains risky ingredients
2. No solid background (company)
3. Defective brand website
4. High tendency to cause adverse reactions
5. Very limited customer reviews
6. Product info is pretty rare (and hard to find)
7. Not worth the price

Just to know, the product itself is not available on the company's official website.

So I consider it a huge red flag.

If you ask me – there are some really big chances that it's a scam, so there's no way I could advise you to try it.

But to avoid the hassle, what do I recommend instead?

A cream called Zeta White:

1. Made of some major skin-lightening compounds
2. Herbal-based and gentle to the skin
3. Effective and works really fast (with visible results)
4. Low chances of causing side effects
5. Many satisfied customers
6. Good price for product quality

In general, I always suggest you to choose a safer and better alternative (over sketchy products).

And in this case – I strongly recommend Zeta White instead.

This cream will really lighten your skin in a gentle manner (without exposing you to any risks).

So overall – it's a much better choice and I advise you to try it.

References:

1 – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/-NBK539693/

2 – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/-PMC3543289/

3 – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/-8875555/

4 – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/-20877959/