If you spend any time in K-beauty communities, you’ve seen these two toners recommended constantly. The Anua Heartleaf 77% Soothing Toner is the go-to for calming redness and irritation. The Im From Rice Toner is the cult favorite for brightening dull skin and adding glow. They’re both wildly popular, similarly priced, and serve as the foundation step in millions of routines.
But they do very different things. We spent eight weeks testing both — four team members, rotating between products, tracking redness, brightness, hydration, and overall skin feel. Here’s the honest comparison.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Anua Heartleaf Toner | Im From Rice Toner |
|---|---|---|
| Key Ingredient | 77% heartleaf (houttuynia cordata) | 77.78% rice extract |
| Primary Benefit | Calming, redness reduction | Brightening, glow |
| Texture | Thin, watery | Slightly milky, light viscosity |
| Best For | Sensitive, redness-prone, acne-prone | Dull, uneven, dry-to-normal skin |
| pH | ~5.5 | ~5.0 |
| Size | 250ml | 150ml |
| Price Range | $18–$23 | $18–$22 |
| Fragrance | Subtle herbal (natural) | Subtle rice water (natural) |
Anua Heartleaf 77% Soothing Toner
Texture. Thin, watery, almost indistinguishable from water when poured. It absorbs instantly — there’s no residue, no tackiness, no waiting. It feels like you put nothing on, which is exactly the point.
Key ingredients. 77% heartleaf extract (houttuynia cordata), a traditional East Asian medicinal plant with strong anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties. The formula also includes panthenol and madecassoside for added soothing power.
Performance over 8 weeks. By week two, our redness-prone tester noticed her baseline pinkness had visibly reduced. By week six, the improvement was dramatic enough that she stopped wearing color-correcting primer. For our acne-prone tester, the antibacterial properties of heartleaf helped reduce the frequency of new breakouts. Everyone reported skin that felt calmer and less reactive overall.
What surprised us. This toner works beautifully as a post-exfoliation treatment. After AHA or BHA nights, it immediately calms the mild irritation that chemical exfoliants can trigger. Several team members now consider it essential after active nights.
Anua’s lineup extends the heartleaf philosophy further. The Anua Heartleaf Cleansing Oil makes a gentle, non-stripping first cleanse that pairs naturally with this toner.
Im From Rice Toner
Texture. Slightly milky with a touch of viscosity. When you shake the bottle, you can see the rice particles suspended in the liquid. It’s thicker than the Anua but still light — somewhere between a traditional toner and a lightweight essence.
Key ingredients. 77.78% rice extract from Yeoju, Korea, naturally rich in niacinamide, amino acids, minerals, and vitamin B. Rice bran extract provides additional antioxidant and brightening activity.
Performance over 8 weeks. The brightening was the standout result. By week three, our tester with dull, tired-looking skin described her complexion as “lit from within” — which sounds like marketing language but was genuinely the feedback. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation faded noticeably by week six. Skin texture improved across all testers, with a smoother, more refined feel.
What surprised us. The hydration was more significant than expected. Rice toner is usually categorized as a brightening product, but the amino acids and minerals provide meaningful moisture. Our dry-skin tester used this as her sole toner step and felt adequately hydrated before moving to serum and moisturizer.
Head-to-Head by Category
Calming and Redness
Anua was built for this. Heartleaf is one of the most studied anti-inflammatory botanicals in Korean traditional medicine. If your skin runs red, reactive, or irritated, this is where Anua delivers results that Im From simply cannot match.
Im From has mild soothing properties from the rice extract, but it’s not designed to target redness. It won’t aggravate sensitive skin, but it won’t actively fix it either.
Winner. Anua, decisively.
Brightening and Glow
Im From owns this category. The naturally occurring niacinamide and amino acids in rice extract work together to fade dark spots, even out skin tone, and deliver that coveted glass skin luminosity. Our testers with hyperpigmentation concerns saw the most dramatic improvements.
Anua doesn’t do much for brightness. It keeps skin calm and healthy, which can indirectly improve tone, but there’s no targeted brightening mechanism.
Winner. Im From, clearly.
Hydration
Both toners hydrate, but differently.
Anua provides lightweight, fast-absorbing hydration that’s best as a prep layer. It doesn’t feel like it adds much moisture on its own, but it primes the skin to absorb everything that follows more efficiently.
Im From delivers more noticeable standalone hydration thanks to the amino acids and minerals in the rice extract. It feels like a proper hydrating step, not just prep.
Winner. Im From for hydration depth. Anua for lightweight prep.
Texture and Layering
Anua is the better layering toner. Its watery texture disappears instantly and never interferes with subsequent products. You can apply multiple layers (the “7-skin method”) without any buildup.
Im From layers well but isn’t quite as invisible. Its slight milkiness means you feel it more as you stack products. Still perfectly functional, just less ghost-like than Anua.
Winner. Anua.
Value
Anua gives you 250ml — a huge bottle that lasts 3–4 months even with generous use. At $18–$23, the per-ml cost is excellent.
Im From comes in 150ml for $18–$22. You’ll go through it in about 2 months. The price-per-ml is noticeably higher.
Winner. Anua.
Who Should Buy Which
Choose Anua Heartleaf Toner if:
- Your skin is sensitive, reactive, or redness-prone
- You’re dealing with acne or post-exfoliation irritation
- You want an invisible prep toner that layers seamlessly
- You prefer a watery, no-residue texture
- Value and volume matter to you
Choose Im From Rice Toner if:
- Your main concern is dullness, uneven tone, or dark spots
- You want visible brightening and glow
- You have dry-to-normal skin that benefits from extra hydration
- You’re building a brightening-focused routine
- You prefer a slightly richer toner that feels like a hydration step
Can you use both? Absolutely. Apply the Anua first to calm and prep, then follow with the Im From to brighten and hydrate. This layered approach works especially well for people with sensitive skin that also needs brightening — a common combination that’s tough to solve with a single product.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Anua Heartleaf Toner good for acne?
Yes. Heartleaf has natural antibacterial properties that help reduce acne-causing bacteria on the skin. It also calms the inflammation that makes breakouts look worse. It won’t replace a dedicated acne treatment, but it creates a calmer environment that helps your actives work better.
Does Im From Rice Toner contain niacinamide?
Yes, naturally occurring niacinamide from the rice extract. The concentration isn’t as high as a dedicated niacinamide serum, but it’s enough to contribute to the brightening effect over time. If you want more niacinamide, you can layer a dedicated serum over the toner.
Can I use these toners with retinol?
Both are safe to use with retinol. Anua is particularly good on retinol nights because its anti-inflammatory properties help buffer the irritation retinol can cause. Apply the toner first, wait for it to absorb, then apply your retinol product.
Do these toners expire quickly after opening?
Both have a 12-month PAO (period after opening). The Anua’s larger 250ml bottle takes longer to finish, so keep it sealed when not in use and store it away from direct sunlight and heat. The Im From 150ml is typically finished well within the 12-month window.
Are these toners pH-balanced?
Yes. The Anua sits at approximately 5.5 and the Im From at approximately 5.0. Both are within the skin’s natural pH range (4.5–5.5), meaning they won’t disrupt your acid mantle or cause irritation. For more on why toner pH matters, see our toner ranking guide.
