🇳🇱Netherlands

The Ordinary vs FRE

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

The Ordinary and FRE are two distinctive skincare brands offering specialized approaches to daily routines. The Canadian company features serums, moisturizers, cleansers, and toners built around hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane, suiting dry and dry sensitive skin best while also addressing acne-prone, dark spots, and mature skin through targeted formulations. Meanwhile, the second brand is widely loved for its nourishing compositions that suit acne-prone skin best, featuring standout products like the Argan Oil. While both lines utilize thoughtful ingredients to support the complexion, they differ primarily in their core ingredient focus and the skin types they serve most comprehensively.

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

glossy.coen.wikipedia.org

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

Popular The Ordinary vs FRE products

Questions and answers

The Ordinary or FRE: which is better?

The Ordinary offers a much larger variety of targeted serums and treatments with high Lovi fit levels across multiple skin types, whereas FRE features only a single product on this page. The Ordinary products on this page are fragrance-free and known for being affordable and effective.

What is the difference between The Ordinary and FRE?

The Ordinary offers a large range of fragrance-free skincare products on this page that fit dry sensitive skin, dry skin, and oily skin best, while FRE has only one product listed. The products on this page from The Ordinary provide affordable options that help smooth texture and clear acne.

Which is more affordable, The Ordinary or FRE?

The products on this page from The Ordinary are widely recognized by reviewers as affordable and offering great value, whereas FRE features far fewer options and does not have the same breadth of budget-friendly pricing highlighted.

Which causes fewer breakouts, The Ordinary or FRE?

The products on this page from The Ordinary include options that feature an acne-clearing fit level of High or Superior, whereas FRE offers only one argan oil product with an average fit level for acne-prone skin.

How do the skin type fit levels compare between The Ordinary and FRE for dry skin?

For dry skin, Lovi rates the products on this page from The Ordinary with an overall fit level of High, whereas FRE is rated as Average for dry skin.

Which brand offers a cleanser suitable for dry skin, The Ordinary or FRE?

The Ordinary offers multiple cleansers, such as the Glycolipid Cream Cleanser, where Lovi rates the fit for dry skin as Superior. FRE does not list a cleanser on this page.

What key ingredients are found across the products of The Ordinary?

The products on this page from The Ordinary feature key ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane. Hyaluronic acid helps improve skin hydration and quality.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022

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?

Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.

QR code: get the Lovi app
Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play