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The Ordinary vs Pair

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

The Ordinary and Pair are distinct skincare lines, with the Canadian brand offering serums, moisturizers, cleansers, and toners built around hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and squalane, while the Japanese brand is beloved for its targeted serums and meticulously crafted formulas like the Acne Cream W. Both options suit acne-prone skin best, though the former also fits dry and mature skin through preparations utilizing ingredients such as niacinamide, mandelic acid, and lactic acid to reduce wrinkles, increase hydration, and boost collagen. They differ primarily in their product breadth and origin, as the former features a wide assortment of single-ingredient treatments while the latter focuses on gentle preparations designed to address stubborn blemishes effectively.

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

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Pair is a Japanese skincare brand founded in 2000 and owned by Lion Corporation since 2004.

ja.wikipedia.orgbeautymatter.com

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

Popular The Ordinary vs Pair products

The Ordinary vs Pair serums and treatments

Questions and answers

The Ordinary or Pair: which is better?

The Ordinary offers a much wider range of fragrance-free products that Lovi rates best for dry skin, oily acne-prone skin, and mature skin, while Pair only features a single acne cream on this page. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid found in the products on this page help improve skin hydration and reduce signs of aging.

Dermatologic Therapy, 2022Drug Delivery, 2017

What is the difference between The Ordinary and Pair?

The products on this page from The Ordinary offer a wide variety of affordable serums and treatments that fit dry, oily acne-prone, and mature skin best, while Pair features only a single acne cream with average to caution fit levels across skin types.

Which is more affordable, The Ordinary or Pair?

The products on this page from The Ordinary are frequently noted by reviewers for being affordable and providing great value, whereas Pair features only a single acne treatment.

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

The Ordinary fits dry skin, oily acne-prone skin, and mature skin best according to its brand-focused routines.

What are the parent companies of The Ordinary and Pair, and when were the brands founded?

The Ordinary was founded in Canada in 2016 and is owned by The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. Pair was founded in Japan in 2000 and is owned by Lion Corporation.

Does either brand include fragrance in its product ingredients?

Both The Ordinary and Pair include no fragrance in the ingredients of every product on this page.

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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