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The Ordinary vs Principia

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

The Ordinary and Principia are two skincare brands offering targeted solutions for diverse complexions. The Ordinary, a Canadian brand founded in 2016 and owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. since 2021, provides serums, moisturizers, cleansers, toners, and more, built around hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane. Meanwhile, Principia is widely loved for its thoughtful cleansers and precise formulas. The former brand fits dry skin and dry sensitive skin best, while the latter suits balanced to oily skin best, helping maintain a healthy, balanced complexion.

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

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

Popular The Ordinary vs Principia products

Questions and answers

The Ordinary or Principia: which is better?

The Ordinary offers a much wider variety of fragrance-free products on this page, fitting skin types like dry and dry sensitive skin with a High or Superior Lovi fit level, whereas Principia features only a single cleanser with an Average fit for most skin types.

What is the difference between The Ordinary and Principia?

The Ordinary offers a large variety of fragrance-free skincare products on this page that fit dry skin, dry sensitive skin, and skin with dark spots best, whereas Principia features only one cleanser with lower fit levels for those skin types.

The Ordinary or Principia: which cleanser is better?

For cleansers, The Ordinary is the better option because the products on this page offer higher Lovi fit levels across most skin types compared to Principia.

Which is more affordable, The Ordinary or Principia?

The products on this page for The Ordinary are widely recognized by reviewers as affordable and offering great value.

Which causes fewer breakouts, The Ordinary or Principia?

The products on this page by The Ordinary include several items with High or Superior Lovi fit levels for acne-prone skin, whereas Principia offers only one cleanser which has a Low fit for acne-prone skin.

When was The Ordinary founded and who is its parent company?

The Ordinary was founded in 2016 in Canada and has been owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. since 2021.

Which skin types does The Ordinary fit best according to its brand-focused routines?

According to its brand-focused routines, The Ordinary fits dry skin, dry sensitive skin, and skin with dark spots best.

What key ingredients are found across The Ordinary products?

The products on this page from The Ordinary contain hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane as key ingredients.

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

How does it fit your skin?

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