The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA On your shelf ✓
Our read, in one look
Lactic acid is the reason to consider this exfoliant, with Glycerin behind it.
The case for it
- Lactic acid, moderate evidence for hydration
- Glycerin, strong evidence for hydration
- No fragrance, alcohol, silicones or parabens
Mind this
- Sunscreen the next day, acids leave skin more sun-sensitive
- Add it on its own for a week or two, so you know what your skin is answering to
Maya's readThe Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA is an exfoliant built around Glycerin, Lactic acid and Crosslinked sodium HA. It leans strongest on hydration, barrier repair. Best suited to dry, dehydrated and normal skin. Go slow: the active is potent enough to irritate if overused.
Skip it if your barrier is already sensitised or compromised: the acids can sting broken or over-exfoliated skin.
The formula, drawn
Every ingredient in label order, coloured by the job it does here.
9 of the 15 sit above the 1% line. The other 6, hatched, are each under 1%. Widths show the ORDER on the label and nothing else: the label never discloses amounts, so we never draw them.
- Actives & signals
- Hydrators
- Texture & base
- Preservation
- Not in our library yet
- No fragrance anywhere on the label
What it delivers
How it feels A middleweight lotion, enough to comfort without feeling heavy. (estimated from the formula)
What's in it that matters
Classic humectant with strong evidence for improving skin hydration and supporting barrier when combined with emollients.
AHA that provides gentle exfoliation and some humectant effect; generally milder than glycolic but still pH-dependent and potentially irritating.
Crosslinked sodium hyaluronate that forms a hydrated gel matrix at the surface. Used in serums for longer lasting hydration that visibly softens fine lines while it is in place.
Short chain diol that works as a light humectant, co solvent and preservative booster. It keeps a formula less sticky and microbially stable while hydrating the outer layers.
How to use it
In the evening, and not every night: 2–3 times a week is plenty. Follow with a moisturiser, and wear sunscreen the next day.
Keep it away from
- Retinoids (retinol, tretinoin)
- Benzoyl peroxide
- Other exfoliating acids the same night
Where it acts
The same cross-section as our 500 dalton page, with this formula's actives on the layer each one works on. Depth is the anatomy's, never an ingredient's.
Skin surface
The stratum corneum
- Crosslinked sodium HAderived from what it is
- Glycerinderived from what it is
- Lactic acidderived from what it is
- Pentylene Glycolderived from what it is
4 of this product's actives have a layer we can defend.
Against the average exfoliant
It scores lower than the median exfoliant on oil control.
On hydration, barrier repair, brightening and anti-aging it is level with the median, so that is not what sets it apart.
A median, not an average: one unusual formula should not move the middle. The numbers are the same 0 to 10 reads the comparison pages use.
The full ingredients list, decoded
Every ingredient on the label, in the order it appears (highest amount first). We link the 10 our library knows, name what each one does, and flag anything that can irritate or clog. The rest we leave plain, nothing is hidden.
All 15 ingredients, decoded
- Aqua (Water)Solvent (base)
- Lactic AcidExfoliantmild irritant
- GlycerinHumectant
- Pentylene GlycolHumectant
- PropanediolHumectant
- Sodium HydroxidePh adjustermild irritant
- Sodium Hyaluronate CrosspolymerHumectant
- Tasmannia Lanceolata Fruit/Leaf ExtractBotanical extract
- Acacia Senegal Gum
- roughly the 1% lineThe rules only require descending order above 1%. From Xanthan Gum down, these 6 can be listed in any order the brand likes, so position stops telling you anything.
- Xanthan GumThickener
- Isoceteth-20Emulsifier
- Trisodium Ethylenediamine DisuccinateChelator (stabiliser)
- EthylhexylglycerinPreservative booster
- 1,2-HexanediolPreservative booster
- Caprylyl GlycolPreservative booster
Copy the raw INCI list
Aqua (Water), Lactic Acid, Glycerin, Pentylene Glycol, Propanediol, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Tasmannia Lanceolata Fruit/Leaf Extract, Acacia Senegal Gum, Xanthan Gum, Isoceteth-20, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol
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We don't make or sell skincare of our own. So there's nothing here we're trying to push, just an honest read of whether this formula suits your skin.
Against your shelf
Read from your own shelf, in your browser. We never see it.
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Common questions
Is The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA good for dry skin?
By our read of the formula, it suits dry, dehydrated, normal skin. The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA is an exfoliant built around Glycerin, Lactic acid and Crosslinked sodium HA. It leans strongest on hydration, barrier repair. Best suited to dry, dehydrated and normal skin. Go slow: the active is potent enough to irritate if overused.
How do you use The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA?
In the evening, and not every night: 2–3 times a week is plenty. Follow with a moisturiser, and wear sunscreen the next day.
What are the key ingredients in The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA?
The actives that do the work are Glycerin, Lactic acid, Crosslinked sodium HA, Pentylene Glycol. The rest of the list is texture, preservatives and emulsifiers that hold the formula together.
Does The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA contain fragrance?
No. By our reading of the ingredient list it is fragrance-free, which is a plus for sensitive or reactive skin.
What the 3D scene shows
The scene shows The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA beside a cross-section of skin, with 3 of its ingredients drawn at the layer each one acts on and at one shared molecular scale: Glycerin and Lactic acid and Pentylene Glycol in the stratum corneum, the dead outer layer where most skincare works. Depths come from the same sourced layer data as the rest of this site, and any ingredient whose layer is not established is left out rather than guessed.
