The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA: a Guru Score of 83%

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

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✓Yay

"A better option is The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% plus hyaluronic acid, and it's only about $9 on Amazon. Mandelic acid is a larger molecule than glycolic acid, it penetrates more slowly and it's far less inflammatory. Use it twice a week at night and never on the same evening as retinol."

All 7 takes from Dr. Vanita Rattan

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"I like mandelic acid over glycolic acid because of the molecular weight. Mandelic is a giant molecule, it's almost impossible to burn with mandelic acid, whereas glycolic acid unfortunately I've seen a lot of hot spots that happen with it where you see burns in almost like dots, localized dots, and I just don't want that for any of us. [...] I like The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA."

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"The next thing I investigated for you was your exfoliation, which is very important to help resurface the skin. So I would go for the 10% Mandelic Acid from The Ordinary. It's only £5, definitely worth purchasing."

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"I also like the mandelic acid, but to really make it special you want to have 7% humectant in it too, which gives you hydration at the same time as exfoliation."

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"My favorite acids over the counter for AHAs would be 10% mandelic acid from The Ordinary."

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"You want to opt for gentle chemical exfoliants like 5% lactic acid or 10% mandelic acid. The Ordinary do both. I really would avoid glycolic acid completely when it comes to skin of color."

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"When it comes to your chemical exfoliators, the ones the products that I like on the market are the mandelic acid from The Ordinary."

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"A better option is The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% plus hyaluronic acid, and it's only about $9 on Amazon. Mandelic acid is a larger molecule than glycolic acid, it penetrates more slowly and it's far less inflammatory. Use it twice a week at night and never on the same evening as retinol."

208SkinDoc

2.10M subs

✓Yay

"The formula is straightforward, no fragrance, no unnecessary filler ingredients, just the active ingredient doing its job. The Ordinary sometimes gets a bad rap because the packaging is a little boring and the texture can feel a little sticky, but I don't really care about that, I just care about whether it works, and this one does work. I've had patients use it for months and see real improvement in texture, tone, and breakouts."

All 2 takes from 208SkinDoc

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"One of the stronger exfoliants I used was mandelic acid, but this does have hyaluronic acid in it as well. Mandelic acid from The Ordinary is an alpha hydroxy acid, it is a little more gentle than some of the others you can use, but it's a good way to help turn the skin over and help sort out the scars."

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"The formula is straightforward, no fragrance, no unnecessary filler ingredients, just the active ingredient doing its job. The Ordinary sometimes gets a bad rap because the packaging is a little boring and the texture can feel a little sticky, but I don't really care about that, I just care about whether it works, and this one does work. I've had patients use it for months and see real improvement in texture, tone, and breakouts."

Sincerely Miss Ash

195k subs

✓Yay

"Mandelic acid is a great ingredient for skin texture, improving skin brightness, giving that softer, smoother look to the skin and it does help to gently exfoliate. Great for your evening routine, but if you decide to use it in your morning, just make sure that you're wearing sunscreen. I used to use this product all the time, I want to say 5 or 6 years ago and it was my way of introducing my skin to alpha hydroxy acids, to get my skin accustomed to chemical exfoliants."

All 5 takes from Sincerely Miss Ash

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"Mandelic acid is a great ingredient for skin texture, improving skin brightness, giving that softer, smoother look to the skin and it does help to gently exfoliate. Great for your evening routine, but if you decide to use it in your morning, just make sure that you're wearing sunscreen. I used to use this product all the time, I want to say 5 or 6 years ago and it was my way of introducing my skin to alpha hydroxy acids, to get my skin accustomed to chemical exfoliants."

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"Mandelic acid is great for exfoliation and it can help to brighten the skin as well. I really love the one from The Ordinary. I was once really consistent with this product and I really love it. It's also very hydrating on the skin, super gentle, and I've never experienced irritation with it. It can be used every day, but depending on skin tolerance, honestly, if you just want to use it a couple of nights per week, you can do that. It's a nice alternative to glycolic and lactic acid."

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"The Ordinary Mandelic Acid is another great option. It's even more gentle than lactic acid, but it does a good job giving your skin that brighter look."

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"Mandelic acid is still part of the AHA family, but it also has a large molecule to it, where it penetrates slower into the skin. There is a lovely mandelic acid from The Ordinary which I do like to use occasionally."

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"If you use it in your morning, make sure you wear sunscreen. But I love mandelic acid and it's been a while since I've used this one in particular from The Ordinary, so I am going to purchase this very soon and start incorporating it occasionally during the winter months because sometimes when my skin is really dry and compromised but I need to exfoliate my skin, it's nice to use a product like this that is more gentle when your skin is not exactly in its normal state."

Nipun Kapur

412k subs

✓Yay

"And that is Mandelic Acid. Acid serum comes in The Ordinary with 10% concentration. It is a really really good serum. That is what you are going to use in your skincare routine once and twice a week at night."

Translated from the guru's original language.

No BS Beauty

89k subs

✓Yay

"Mandelic acid is a very gentle exfoliant so you can use it and it generally is a good job leaving your skin feeling soft and smooth without being too harsh or causing peeling or anything like that so it's a really nice serum if you haven't tried it check it out and it's fragrance free as well which is nice."

All 2 takes from No BS Beauty

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"Mandelic acid is great for an exfoliant if you're looking for a more gentle one. It's pretty good for being kind of gentle on the skin and it's really nice."

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"Mandelic acid is a very gentle exfoliant so you can use it and it generally is a good job leaving your skin feeling soft and smooth without being too harsh or causing peeling or anything like that so it's a really nice serum if you haven't tried it check it out and it's fragrance free as well which is nice."

Beyond50Skin

32k subs

✓Yay

"The key with this is it's great for rosacea and dry acne because it breaks up the oil in the skin, it hydrates the skin, and it also kind of reduces the redness. It's a very interesting formula. The one thing that folks who have regular acne or just not dry acne might not like is it feels a little bit oily. It's an oil-free product but it kind of goes on the skin a little bit on the oily side, so it might feel a little uncomfortable on people who have oily acne skin."

Cassandra Bankson

2.46M subs

✓Yay

"This is from the Ordinary. [...] I first started using it on my face, then I started using it on my armpits, and now I've been trying it on my scalp. As long as you don't have any open wounds, this doesn't burn or anything like that, but it actually helps to break down desmosomes, basically break down the little proteins and the little bonds that hold our dead skin cells together and help them to exfoliate off and actually stimulate some circulation in this area."

All 2 takes from Cassandra Bankson

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"This is from the Ordinary. [...] I first started using it on my face, then I started using it on my armpits, and now I've been trying it on my scalp. As long as you don't have any open wounds, this doesn't burn or anything like that, but it actually helps to break down desmosomes, basically break down the little proteins and the little bonds that hold our dead skin cells together and help them to exfoliate off and actually stimulate some circulation in this area."

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"The Ordinary has a mandelic acid serum at one of the best prices I've ever seen. I think this is like eight or nine dollars. [...] I'm actually shocked this is not top of the list, [...] but if you are on a budget, if you're looking for a good easy-to-use mandelic acid, this is it. [...] This serum is so easy to use. It is a little bit potent, so I would say only use this at night. It's a ten percent, whereas the Wish Trend was more of a five."

HotandFlashy

1.23M subs

✓Yay

"I feel like using an alpha hydroxy acid is super important and agency doesn't offer alpha hydroxy acid so I continue to use my Ordinary alpha hydroxy acid, you know my lactic acid."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Alpha hydroxy acids

Alpha hydroxy acids loosen the bonds holding dead cells at the surface. The evidence supports smoother texture and more even tone over time, and they can leave skin more sensitive to sun.

Source: NIH, National Library of Medicine

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA?

A 10% mandelic acid exfoliating serum with hyaluronic acid, designed to gently chemically exfoliate and improve skin texture and brightness.

Is The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA worth it?

Yes. All 9 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 83%.

What is The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA's Guru Score?

The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA holds a Guru Score of 83%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 9 expert reviewers we have collected.