The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA On your shelf ✓
€0.09 an application · about 150 usesOur review, 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.
Cost per use: what a day of it costs
€0.09 an applicationabout 150 uses from 30 ml
a usual amount, not a measured dose: 3-5 drops, about 0.2 ml; from €13 as read in September 2026 and a 30 ml pack.
how this is counted
About €0.09 an application, about 150 uses from 30 ml.
- a convention: no trial has measured a serum dose
- Measured or assumed: the rule, and the dose table
Skip it if your barrier is already sensitised or compromised: the acids can sting broken or over-exfoliated skin.
Fragrance, texture and film: what the label says of its feel
- fragrance-free by the label: no parfum, none of the 26
- an exfoliant in a dropper bottle
- leaves a film: acacia senegal gum
- no silicone on the label
- no plant or mineral oil on the label
Facts off the label and the pack only. How it feels on a face is not something this page will say without having used it.
The formula, in order
every ingredient at its place on the label
Coloured by the job each one 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
- did not feed it
- No fragrance anywhere on the label
Fungal acne: what on this label feeds the yeast (Malassezia)
the yeast: Malassezia furfur, globosa, restricta
Nothing on this label was measured to feed Malassezia.
Each result is a pure ingredient on a lab dish, never this product on skin.
What does it do? What its ingredients deliver
How it feels A middleweight lotion, enough to comfort without feeling heavy. (estimated from the formula)
Key ingredients: what in it does the work
Classic humectant with strong evidence for improving skin hydration and supporting barrier when combined with emollients.
Glycerin: This one works on contact: there is nothing to wait for.
how it was measured
Measured on stratum corneum hydration, corneometer capacitance after a single application; on contact, by mechanism.
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.
What only this label says
Lactic acid is the 2nd of 15 ingredients: above the 1% line.
why
Position 2 of 15 on the label as printed; compared with the 76 other labels in the catalogue that carry an AHA.
Lactic acid is declared at 10%: above the 8% the trials used.
why
Floor 8%: The percentage of patients using either 8% glycolic acid or 8% L-lactic acid creams on the face achieving at least 1 grade of improvement (using a scale from 0 through 9) in overall severity of photodamage was significantly greater than with the vehicle cream (76% glycolic acid, 71% lactic acid, and 40% vehicle; P < .05). Declared on the name.
≈ €0.43/ml, above the median exfoliant in our catalogue (€0.23/ml).
why
~€13 for 30 ml, checked September 2026; the median of the 8 exfoliants in the catalogue with a known size.
why
Actives our base knows on both labels: Glycerin, Lactic acid and Crosslinked sodium HA.
Lactic acid makes skin more sensitive to the sun, by the base's sources.
why
sun_sensitivity = yes in our base: Alpha hydroxy acid: FDA recommends AHA cosmetics carry a sunburn alert and daily sunscreen direction, based on studies in which AHA-treated skin showed increased UV sensitivity that reversed roughly a week after stopping. (FDA guidance for industry on labelling cosmetics containing alpha hydroxy acids (sunburn alert); CIR AHA safety assessment).
2 of the 4 actives carry strong evidence in our base (Glycerin and Crosslinked sodium HA); Lactic acid and Pentylene Glycol are moderate.
why
evidence_level in our base, per row, as printed on each glossary page.
Fragrance allergens: the ones this label names
This label names none of the 26 EU fragrance allergens. What the 26 are →
How to use it, and when
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 not to layer it with
- Retinoids (retinol, tretinoin)
- Benzoyl peroxide
- Other exfoliating acids the same night
Where in your skin it works
All 4 of its placed actives act on or in the dead surface layer, none below it: 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.
How it compares with 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.
Full ingredients list, decoded
14 of these 15 ingredients are in our library, linked and named for what each one does, with anything that can irritate or clog flagged; the 1 we cannot place is left plain, nothing is hidden. Every ingredient on the label, in the order it appears (highest amount first).
All 15 ingredients, decoded
- Aqua (Water)Solvent (base)
- Lactic AcidExfoliantmild irritant
- GlycerinHumectant
- Pentylene GlycolHumectant
- PropanediolHumectant
- Sodium HydroxidePh adjustermild irritant
- Sodium Hyaluronate CrosspolymerHumectant
- Acacia Senegal GumThickener
- 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
- 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
Worried about clogged pores specifically? The pore-clogging checker reads this same list against the published comedogenic ratings.
Add it to your shelf and the app puts it in the right step and checks it against what you already use.
Read enough? Find it on amazon.com →
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.
Dupes? The closest formulas we have
The 2 products of the same kind sharing the most of its 4 actives. A count, not a likeness: the rest of each label, its base and its preservation, is what the count leaves out.
shares 3 of its 4 actives
Compare it with…
6 duels are built for this exfoliant, The Ordinary AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution and The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution among them: type a name, or pick one below.
Common questions
How high up the list is the lactic acid in The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA?
Lactic acid is the 2nd of 15 ingredients: above the 1% line. Position is the only amount the law makes a brand declare, so 2nd of 15 is the one number on this label a reader can check.
Is 10% lactic acid more than you need?
Lactic acid is declared at 10%: above the 8% the trials used. The trials are the only measure of enough there is; a number on the front of a bottle is the maker's choice.
Is The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA expensive per ml?
≈ €0.43/ml, above the median exfoliant in our catalogue (€0.23/ml). A price per millilitre says nothing about what the formula does; it only tells you how the bottle compares with the others of its kind we have priced.
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.
