The identification of the criteria that should be considered to differentiate torture from cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment has been a problem that has generated discussion among international human rights scholars, caselaw, and practice. The purpose of this paper is to analyze how this issue has been addressed by the Human Rights Committee and the Committee against Torture regarding decisions made to resolve individual communications. For this purpose, a mixed qualitative and quantitative methodology was employed, utilizing documentary analysis as a method. The article explains the conceptual peculiarities of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and provides an overview of the discussion held by international law scholars on the differentiation between the two notions. Finally, the main results of the study are presented, analyzing whether the aforementioned Committees refer to the conceptual elements of torture in their arguments to support the distinction. Based on the findings, critical considerations are presented regarding the approach of both Committees to the problem.