🇨🇦Canada

The Ordinary vs La Roche-Posay

Rated by Lovi · Unbiased, science-based skincare AI trained on real user outcomes · How the Fit score works

The Ordinary and La Roche-Posay are skincare brands that offer serums, moisturizers, cleansers, and more. The Canadian brand is known for hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane, suiting dry skin and dry sensitive skin best, while the French brand is beloved for glycerin, thermal water, and niacinamide, suiting dry skin and skin with dark spots best. Standout choices from the former target acne-prone, dark spot, and mature skin, whereas standout choices from the latter feature the Anthelios, Pure Vitamin C Cream, and MELA B3 Facial Gel Cleanser. Ultimately, they differ in their specific formulations and targeted concerns, though both incorporate glycerin to support hydration and barrier function.

The Ordinary is a Canadian skincare brand founded in 2016 and owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. since 2021.

glossy.coen.wikipedia.org

La Roche-Posay is a French skincare brand founded in 1975 and owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 1989.

laroche-posay.com.aufr.wikipedia.org

This page compares some of the most popular The Ordinary and La Roche-Posay products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular The Ordinary vs La Roche-Posay products

People Say

The OrdinaryLa Roche-Posay
  • Other Product Benefits and Features Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “eliminated armpit odor — The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution”
    • “pores look significantly smaller — The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%”
    • “deflates morning bags — The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG”
    • “zero scent — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
  • Texture Improvement and Smoothing Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “glass skin effect — The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution”
    • “skin feels baby butt smooth — The Ordinary AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution”
    • “lightweight and absorbs quickly — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
    • “Skin feels smoother — La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum”
  • Hydration and Moisture Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “absorbs instantly — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “skin feels plump — La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Serum”
    • “legs stopped flaking — La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+M Triple Repair Moisturizing Cream”
    • “skin feels immediately hydrated — The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5”
  • Sensitive Skin Friendly Sometimes NotedMostly Mentioned
    • “Great retinol for beginners — La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum”
    • “Only cream that doesn't sting — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermallergo Eye Cream”
    • “no stinging — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “Finally a cleanser that doesn't sting my face. — The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser”
  • Value and Pricing Mostly MentionedNot noted
    • “lasts forever — The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution”
    • “can't beat the price — The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution”
    • “extremely affordable — The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%”
  • Acne Clearing and Prevention Often MentionedSometimes Noted
    • “pimples disappear within a day — The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution”
    • “scars and hormonal acne faded — The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%”
    • “faded dark spots — The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution”
    • “clears acne blemishes — La Roche-Posay Effaclar Medicated Gel Cleanser”
  • Texture and Pilling Issues Mostly MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “pills like crazy — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “Very sticky — La Roche-Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum”
    • “leaves a tacky residue — La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Serum”
    • “crumbles and piles under moisturizer — The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%”
  • Other Product Issues and Inefficiencies Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Turns orange fast — La Roche-Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum”
    • “didn't see any significant improvement — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
    • “Weaker retinol product — La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum”
    • “no change in pigment — The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG”
  • Skin Irritation and Stinging Often MentionedRarely Noted
    • “burned my face — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “dried my skin out — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
    • “burning sensation — La Roche-Posay Effaclar Medicated Gel Cleanser”
    • “irritated AF the next day — The Ordinary AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution”
  • Packaging and Pump Issues Rarely NotedOften Mentioned
    • “The 50ml tube runs out way too fast. — The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser”
    • “Wish it came in a pump — The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA”
    • “pump stops working — La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+M Triple Repair Moisturizing Cream”

The Ordinary vs La Roche-Posay routines for dry skin

Buy The Ordinary routine · CA$155.67 · 97% fitBuy La Roche-Posay routine · CA$198.48 · 91% fitSee multi-brand routine · 99% fit

The Ordinary vs La Roche-Posay routines for oily skin

Buy The Ordinary routine · CA$198.33 · 92% fitBuy La Roche-Posay routine · CA$286.80 · 83% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

The Ordinary vs La Roche-Posay routines for combination skin

Buy The Ordinary routine · CA$187.44 · 93% fitBuy La Roche-Posay routine · CA$328.49 · 85% fitSee multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay: which is better?

The Ordinary offers better value and superior routine fit for dry sensitive skin, while La Roche-Posay provides a higher level of hydration and moisture for dry skin. Hyaluronic acid helps improve skin quality and signs of aging.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

What is the difference between The Ordinary and La Roche-Posay?

The Ordinary offers better value and helps more with acne clearing, while La Roche-Posay provides superior hydration and is often preferred for sensitive skin. Lovi shows that The Ordinary has a Superior fit level for dry sensitive skin, compared to a High fit level for La Roche-Posay.

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay for dry skin?

Both brands are a great match for dry skin, as Lovi rates the routine fit for dry skin as Superior for The Ordinary and Superior for La Roche-Posay. The Ordinary offers fragrance-free options with key ingredients like hyaluronic acid and glycerin across the products on this page.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay: which cleanser is better?

Both brands offer strong options, but The Ordinary has an edge for value while La Roche-Posay excels in soothing sensitive skin. Lovi rates the cleansing products on this page as having a High fit for dry skin, dry sensitive skin, and oily skin across both lines.

Which is more affordable, The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay?

The Ordinary is more affordable on this page, as its products are frequently noted by reviewers for offering great value. La Roche-Posay frequently receives price and value concerns from shoppers.

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay: which is better for mature skin?

The Ordinary fits mature skin with a Superior Lovi level, while La Roche-Posay reaches a High Lovi level. Both brands offer serums and moisturizers featuring ingredients like retinol and hyaluronic acid that help reduce signs of aging and support collagen accumulation.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2000Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

Which brand has more fragrance-free products, The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay?

The Ordinary offers more fragrance-free products, as every single product on its page lists no fragrance in its ingredients. In contrast, La Roche-Posay includes fragrance in 14 of the 35 products featured on its page.

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay: which brand performs better for dark spots?

Both The Ordinary and La Roche-Posay perform well for skin with dark spots, with both brands achieving a top Lovi fit level for this skin type. Niacinamide, an ingredient featured across products on both pages, helps reduce cutaneous pigmentation and suppress melanosome transfer.

The British Journal of Dermatology, 2002Antioxidants, 2021

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay for oily skin?

The Ordinary is a superior fit for oily skin on this page, whereas La Roche-Posay provides a high fit.

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay: which moisturizer is better?

The Ordinary offers moisturizers on this page that feature key ingredients like hyaluronic acid and squalane to provide hydration, helping dry skin. Meanwhile, La Roche-Posay provides soothing moisturizers enriched with glycerin, shea butter, and ceramides, which help deliver deep moisture and are well-suited for sensitive skin types.

Drug Delivery, 2017Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay for sensitive skin?

The Ordinary is a Superior fit for sensitive skin on Lovi, while La Roche-Posay is a High fit. Every product from The Ordinary on this page lists no fragrance in its ingredients, whereas 14 products from La Roche-Posay list fragrance.

The Ordinary or La Roche-Posay for acne-prone skin?

Both The Ordinary and La Roche-Posay offer a High routine fit for acne-prone skin on the products on this page. The Ordinary is noted by reviewers for acne clearing and prevention.

Research behind their key ingredients

Behind this comparison

Lovi compares products by their fit scores, calculated from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.

  • Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Co-founder, Medical Director

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer

  • Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Co-founder, CEO and CTO

    PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex

  • Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Medical Board

    Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine

  • Aishani Shah, MD

    Aishani Shah, MD

    Medical Board

    Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD

  • Asya Zubkova, MS

    Asya Zubkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member

  • Hanna Kurets, MD

    Hanna Kurets, MD

    Medical Board, Medical Advisor

    Dermatology MD

  • Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Medical Board

    Dermatology and diagnostic consultant

  • Victoria Derkova, MS

    Victoria Derkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist

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