The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane: a Guru Score of 84%

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

"It's just got 1% retinol, which is kind of a standard amount, but squalane is a great antioxidant and hydrating and skin identical ingredient. They paired it with that, as well as tomato extract, which is also a good antioxidant. So this one would be a nice nighttime oil. It's got a nice oil texture to it, so it's [...] very hydrating at the same time as fighting wrinkles and fine lines. It's a really nice formula. No fragrance, short ingredient list, very nice product."

All 3 takes from No BS Beauty

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"Their retinol one percent in squalane I've repurchased a few times and it's really wonderful. I use tretinoin or prescription retinoids, but I slowly work my way up using products like this."

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"It's just got 1% retinol, which is kind of a standard amount, but squalane is a great antioxidant and hydrating and skin identical ingredient. They paired it with that, as well as tomato extract, which is also a good antioxidant. So this one would be a nice nighttime oil. It's got a nice oil texture to it, so it's [...] very hydrating at the same time as fighting wrinkles and fine lines. It's a really nice formula. No fragrance, short ingredient list, very nice product."

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"This contains 1% retinol"

Darnell Cox | 50+ Healthy Aging Expert

55k subs

✓Yay

"The Ordinary makes a 1% retinol in squalane, so it helps with moisture as well. You don't have to use prescription strength tretinoin that's going to eat up your whole face like battery acid. You [...] can start with something like an over-the-counter retinoid."

All 7 takes from Darnell Cox | 50+ Healthy Aging Expert

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"This for example is by The Ordinary, this is a 1% retinol in squalane which helps to moisturize the skin. [...] Not only is it the number of steps away from being prescription that is going to change the effectiveness of that retinol, but how are those other active ingredients playing [...] with your skin to where they're going to be more effective. The formulations also are important."

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"I like a retinoid with squalane in it. This is by The Ordinary, this is Retinol 1% in Squalane. This is one of the options for a nonprescription strength retinoid that I really love because it's super creamy and a lot of retinoids are not creamy. I like this because it's moisturizing with the squalane, and so it's really great for the body and often times the face as well."

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"The Ordinary makes a 1% retinol in squalane, so it helps with moisture as well. You don't have to use prescription strength tretinoin that's going to eat up your whole face like battery acid. You [...] can start with something like an over-the-counter retinoid."

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"The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane, these are over-the-counter that are great starters and even great forever. It's not like you have to go big or go home with retinoids, especially if you have super sensitive skin."

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"This is a great starter retinol. [...] I love this because [...] it's very watery, so it's in squalane which is like a moisturizing component. When you put this on, [...] a couple of little drops and [...] you can spread this on your whole arms. This is great because it comes in various strengths, so this is the strongest of the ones that The Ordinary offers over-the-counter retinol in squalane. The squalane is a [...] natural moisturizer, so it's very moisturizing."

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"The Ordinary makes a great one percent retinol in squalane."

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"I really like The Ordinary, um because this is The Ordinary 1% it comes in like three different strengths but this is the highest strength that they make. It's in squalane so it actually helps to moisturize. It's a serum here, so if you're treating, if you have dry skin this is great. If you're treating hyperpigmentation and sunspots on large areas like your arms this is fantastic because it smooths in."

Dr. Daniel Sugai

722k subs

✓Yay

"It's a 1% pure retinol and [...] they have peptides in the retinol to help boost collagen further. [...] I like that. [...] The thing that gave me good feedback is that it dried my face when I put it on consistently for a whole week, and when I have dryness from a retinoid it does remind me of tretinoin, which is increasing cell turnover like no other. [...] When I start getting dryness it actually gives me feedback saying hey it's doing something."

Sincerely Miss Ash

195k subs

✓Yay

"I feel like it is very moisturizing. Although it does have that oil-like texture, it is quite lightweight on the skin. I never experienced peeling with this formulation either, and I did find it quite gentle as well. I always used the 1%, and even the 1% I did find was quite gentle. Of course, we are all different, you might experience irritation and some dryness, which is common as your skin becomes more accustomed to it. Then of course you may not experience the dryness and irritation."

All 3 takes from Sincerely Miss Ash

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"I feel like it is very moisturizing. Although it does have that oil-like texture, it is quite lightweight on the skin. I never experienced peeling with this formulation either, and I did find it quite gentle as well. I always used the 1%, and even the 1% I did find was quite gentle. Of course, we are all different, you might experience irritation and some dryness, which is common as your skin becomes more accustomed to it. Then of course you may not experience the dryness and irritation."

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"I don't exactly like the texture of it; it is a little bit oily. I much prefer to use a cream-based retinol. [...] With the retinol, if you're gonna [...] go with the one percent, I feel like it's very gentle. I did not experience any irritation or dryness whatsoever, and I think it's because it's in that squalane base, so it does help to moisturize the skin and keep the skin comfortable. But again, I really don't like that oily feel on my skin."

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"The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane is the most affordable to be honest with you. I used to use this back in the past and I really like how it performs. It's moisturizing. I also like the way that it layers up with my skincare products. I've never had an issue with pilling, but also I feel like this is a very gentle formulation as well because it's in that squalane base."

Nadine Baggott

164k subs

✓Yay

"I recently mentioned the 1% retinol in squalane on TV as being the best value for money 1% retinol on the market."

Top Pick: budget retinol

All 2 takes from Nadine Baggott

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"I recently mentioned the 1% retinol in squalane on TV as being the best value for money 1% retinol on the market."

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"If you're really on a budget, absolutely a gold standard is The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane, and I would go with retinol rather than Granactive because I think Granactives are unproven."

Dr. Somji Skin

360k subs

✓Mixed

"It's the strongest one out there in the whole ordinary range. Exercise extreme caution with 1% in squalane, but sometimes you get some really good results from it, especially for anti-aging. It's got squalane in it which is going to help with the skin barrier, but you have to [...] exercise caution when using this retinol, especially if you're going to be using other chemical exfoliants within the range as well."

Mixed Makeup

1.46M subs

✓Yay

"Going up a little bit in price but I still think is a really great value is the one percent Retinol in Squalane. This one's really cool to me because it has a combination of retinaldehyde and also an encapsulated retinol so you've got the A retinol and the O retinol combined together. It also just feels like a nice light serum and it has some really nice light soothing ingredients in it."

Mad About Skin

731k subs

✓Nay

"The Ordinary retinols in squalane, there's 0.5 and the one percent, will be gone again because it reaches that 0.3 concentration."

Cassandra Bankson

2.46M subs

✓Yay

"This is a kind of dryer oil as well because it has that little dry touch that it leaves behind but it's also fragrance free so it doesn't irritate the skin and it actually has the benefit of a retinoid like this do what it said it would do. Also when you just compare The Ordinary to a lot of these other products, the price is a no-brainer, this is under ten bucks. [...] Holy do I love this so much, simple, effective, targeted and makes my skin feel good."

Top Pick: retinol in squalane

What the evidence says.

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

Retinoids

Retinoids are among the best studied ingredients in dermatology, with solid evidence for acne and for the fine lines and rough texture that come from sun exposure. Dryness and flaking in the first few weeks are common and usually settle.

Source: DermNet

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 Retinol 1% in Squalane?

A lightweight retinol serum containing 1% pure retinol suspended in squalane oil, designed to smooth fine lines and support collagen production with a moisturizing base.

Is The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane worth it?

Mostly yes. 7 of the 9 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 84%.

What is The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane's Guru Score?

The Ordinary Retinol 1% in Squalane holds a Guru Score of 84%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 9 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.