Arazlo is not tretinoin. While both are prescription retinoids used to treat acne, Arazlo contains a different active ingredient called tazarotene at a concentration of 0.045%. Tretinoin and tazarotene are related compounds that belong to the same family, but they work differently at the molecular level and come with distinct tradeoffs in terms of effectiveness and irritation.
What Arazlo Actually Contains
Each gram of Arazlo lotion contains 0.45 mg of tazarotene, making it a 0.045% formulation. Tazarotene is a synthetic retinoid, meaning it was designed in a lab rather than derived directly from vitamin A the way tretinoin is. It’s also a prodrug: when you apply it to your skin, your body converts it into its active form, tazarotenic acid, which then goes to work on skin cells.
The FDA approved Arazlo specifically for acne, and it comes only as a lotion. Tretinoin, by contrast, has been around for decades and is available in creams, gels, and microsphere formulations at concentrations ranging from 0.01% to 0.1%. Brand names for tretinoin include Retin-A, Altreno, and others.
How Tazarotene Differs From Tretinoin
The key difference is selectivity. Tretinoin binds broadly to multiple receptor types in your skin cells. It activates all three subtypes of retinoic acid receptors (known as RAR-alpha, beta, and gamma) and, through a chemical conversion, also activates a second family of receptors called RXRs. This wide activation is part of why tretinoin is effective but also why it tends to cause significant dryness, peeling, and redness.
Tazarotene is more targeted. It binds preferentially to only two receptor subtypes, RAR-beta and RAR-gamma, and does not activate RXRs at all. This selective binding means it influences skin cell turnover and reduces inflammation through a narrower pathway. In practice, tazarotene is considered one of the most potent topical retinoids available, but older formulations at higher concentrations (0.05% and 0.1%) were notorious for causing irritation.
Why Arazlo Uses a Lower Concentration
Older tazarotene products like Tazorac come in 0.05% and 0.1% strengths, and many patients found them difficult to tolerate. Arazlo was developed at 0.045%, a lower concentration than even the weakest traditional tazarotene product, specifically to reduce irritation while preserving acne-clearing benefits. The lotion vehicle also plays a role. It uses an emulsion-based formula designed to hydrate the skin as the medication is delivered, which helps offset the drying effects that retinoids are known for.
This makes Arazlo something of a middle ground: you get the selective, potent mechanism of tazarotene but in a formulation engineered to be gentler than older versions of the same drug.
Using Arazlo
Like most topical retinoids, Arazlo is applied once daily in the evening or at bedtime. You apply a thin layer to the affected areas of skin after washing and drying your face. Starting with every other night for the first week or two can help your skin adjust, since some degree of dryness, mild peeling, or redness is common early on with any retinoid.
Sun sensitivity increases while using Arazlo, just as it does with tretinoin. Daily sunscreen is essential during treatment. Tazarotene in any form, including Arazlo, is contraindicated during pregnancy due to the risk of birth defects, a concern shared by all retinoids in this class.
Arazlo vs. Tretinoin for Acne
Both medications speed up skin cell turnover, unclog pores, and reduce inflammation. For someone choosing between them, the practical differences come down to potency, tolerability, and cost. Tazarotene has generally shown stronger acne-clearing results in head-to-head comparisons with tretinoin at equivalent treatment durations, which is consistent with its more targeted receptor activity. However, that potency historically came with more side effects.
Arazlo’s lower-concentration lotion format narrows that tolerability gap. Tretinoin, especially in microsphere or lower-strength formulations, remains a well-tolerated first-line option that also has decades of data behind it for anti-aging benefits beyond acne. Arazlo is typically more expensive and less likely to have a generic equivalent, which can be a deciding factor.
If you’ve tried tretinoin and found it wasn’t effective enough, or if you’ve been prescribed Arazlo and were wondering whether you’re getting “the same thing” as tretinoin, the answer is no. They’re related but distinct medications, and Arazlo’s active ingredient was specifically chosen for its more targeted approach to treating acne.