The Ordinary
The Ordinary offers 3 products on RevWix across Beauty & Personal Care, with an average ethics score of 59.5/10 and recurring certifications including Cruelty Free, Cruelty-Free, Vegan.
Standards & certifications
Verified credentials appearing across The Ordinary's product range.
Ethics breakdown
Average scores across our scoring pillars.
- Environment12.7/10
- Sourcing12.3/10
- Labor12/10
- Animal Welfare11.3/10
- Transparency8.3/10
Categories covered
Where The Ordinary shows up across our directory.
- Beauty & Personal Care3
What reviewers highlight
Strengths mentioned most often across The Ordinary's products.
- ✓Affordable
- ✓Improves skin texture
- ✓Reduces shine
- ✓Balance skin tone
- ✓Vegan and cruelty-free
- ✓Gentle yet effective exfoliation
Sustainability commitments
"The Ordinary is committed to creating cruelty-free, low-cost skincare with recyclable packaging. Their manufacturing process also minimizes waste."
"The Ordinary uses recyclable packaging and is committed to refill initiatives. They are also part of the Considerate Design Process, focusing on efficiency and minimalism."
"The Ordinary is committed to creating affordable skincare products with honest formulations. The packaging is not explicitly stated as eco-friendly, but it is recyclable."
The Ordinary scores & reviews
Product scorecard
| # | Product | Ethics | Shopper rating | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% | 85 | 4.5(345) | $5.90 |
| 2 | The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner | 85 | 4.3(3,722) | $9.90 |
| 3 | The Ordinary Matrixyl 3000 Serum | 9 | 4.7(345) | $9.80 |
Products from The Ordinary
The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% is a lightweight serum that helps regulate sebum production and minimize pores for oily to combination skin. It's vegan, silicone-free, and alcohol-free, suitable for all skin types.
The Ordinary's Glycolic Acid 7% Toner is a mild exfoliating toner for improving skin texture and evening skin tone. Ideal for combination, oily, and acne-prone skin.
The Ordinary Matrixyl 3000 Serum is a lightweight, water-based formula that helps reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and improve skin texture. Suitable for those seeking effective serums for melanin-rich skin.
How to read The Ordinary's ethics scores
Each The Ordinary product on this page carries a 0–100 score built from four checkable inputs: active third-party certifications, disclosed ingredients or materials, published supply-chain information, and the brand's watchdog record. Nothing here is based on The Ordinary's own marketing language.
The spread matters as much as the top score. If The Ordinary's highest and lowest products sit far apart, verification is being applied to some lines and not others — common when a company certifies a flagship range and leaves the rest undocumented. A narrow spread, even at a moderate average, usually signals a consistent policy.
Scores can move without any editorial change, because certification status is re-checked as pages refresh. A lapsed certificate, a new audit or a recall notice will all show up in the product's certification and notes sections.
Questions worth asking before buying The Ordinary
Start with ownership: a parent company's testing or sourcing policy can change what a claim on the packaging actually covers. Then check scope — a certification often applies to one fibre, facility or ingredient rather than the whole product.
Finally, compare within the category rather than against The Ordinary's own range. A mid-scoring product can still be the strongest verified option at its price, and a high-scoring one can be beaten by a cheaper certified alternative.
What each score input covers
| Input | What we check | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Certifications | Active listings in public registers, with scope and expiry | Only externally audited claims can be revoked |
| Ingredients & materials | Full disclosure, hazard flags, recycled or organic content | Comparable without trusting brand narrative |
| Transparency | Named suppliers, factories or audit summaries | Shows whether claims survive scrutiny |
| Record | Recalls, regulator rulings and greenwashing findings | Best short-term signal of quality control |
Buying The Ordinary with confidence
- Verify the mark, not the adjectiveSearch the certifier's register for the exact product line.
- Check the parent companyOwnership changes what cruelty-free or organic claims cover.
- Compare in-categoryThe same score means different things across categories.
- Read open notes firstAn unresolved recall outweighs a few score points.
Frequently asked
Is The Ordinary an ethical brand?+
The Ordinary's standing here is the average of its scored products, built only from verifiable inputs: active certifications, disclosed ingredients or materials, published supply-chain data and its recall or regulator record. Where a claim cannot be checked in a public register, it earns nothing.
Is The Ordinary certified by third parties?+
Any certification we could confirm appears on the individual product cards above. Marks shown are matched to the certifier's own register; self-declared logos and internal awards are not counted.
Why do The Ordinary products have different scores?+
Scores are per product, not per brand. Differences usually come from certification scope, ingredient or material disclosure, and packaging — a certified flagship can sit far above an undocumented line from the same company.
Are there better alternatives to The Ordinary?+
Compare within the category rather than the brand: category rankings list the highest-scoring verified options at each price level, so you can see whether a cheaper certified alternative beats the The Ordinary product you were considering.