They’re all from the same retinoid family, but retinal has been clinically proven to work up to 11 times faster than retinol. Retinal also has a much higher exfoliation rate than retinol, which contributes unclogging pores, making skin smooth, soft, even-toned, freaking RAD-I-ANT.  It truly is a wonder ingredient, and the reason it is used less than retinol is: a) It’s more expensive b) In the past, it’s been hard to stabilize (meaning it loses its potency as it sits in the bottle on your windowsill). However, our Retinal is encapsulated (using amazing patent-pending technology) and releases slowly and gently into your skin overnight.