The Ordinary vs Sunday Riley

[DuchessV]

Has anyone used The Ordinary's lactic acid? And if so can you tell me how it compares to Sunday Riley Good Genes? I looooove what Good Genes does for my skin, but if The Ordinary can give me the same results it's a much much more affordable option.

[samesandy]

I’ve tried both of the ordinary Latin acids and the Sunday Riley. Honestly I hated TO’s. Thick and goopy, didn’t absorb well and irritated my skin

[MbTurgeon]

I have used both, and sadly even though it is good, The Ordinary doesn't come close to matching Good Genes. Let me also say this, I have the lower strength of the Ordinary lactic acid so I feel that is no where close to what Good Genes does for my skin.

[Leesy39]

The Ordinary is trying, but it's not quite there yet. They need to perfect their formula a bit. The pH is not comparable to Sunday Riley's, so the concentrations aren't quite as accurate as they should be. It has potential, but good genes still wins.

[concreteroads]

Can you speak more to the bit about pH/concentrations, and do you have a source for that info by any chance? That's definitely interesting and something worth knowing about The Ordinary's lactic acid products!

[Leesy39]

There's a few that I can suggest you try. Pixi's glow toner is quite effective at lowering your skin's pH, but my favorite is the one by Mizon that I used to have to order from Korea. It's on Amazon now, so much easier to get ahold of (thank the skin gods). It contains no common acne triggers except Butylene Glycol, which typically rates a 1/5 on most lists. So not really anything. It also has both BHA and AHA concentrations that have a sufficiently low pH to do their job really well. The overall pH per bottle generally hovers around a 4 (mine have typically been 4.02-4.06). Take out the alcohol and add blue tansy and it could be a Sunday Riley product that costs four times as much. Speaking of, I do love Sunday Riley's line. I know it's expensive, but the pH balance is basically always great. That's why I wrote the original post. Sunday Riley just doesn't have competition on the lactic acid front just yet.

[Leesy39]

pH is what causes the majority of difference between various products using acids. They can all claim a similar concentration percentage, but if the pH of the acid isn't comparable the percentages aren't going to matter. On a side note: pH is the reason we use toners...most cleansers are quite basic. Not in the trendy teenage girl way. They're soaps, and as such have a very high pH, whereas your skin naturally has a low pH. That's how our skin acts as a barrier against bacteria. The low pH makes bacteria unable to thrive. As cleansers come in to contact with your skin, they do their job of removing dirt and makeup, but simultaneously increase your skin's pH allowing bacteria to thrive. A good toner has a low pH and is used to bring your skin back to its balance. Acidic treatments work by lowering your skin's pH still further, damaging the bonds between cells. Rather than being a bad thing, this actually encourages your skin to regenerate itself faster to compensate which results in a reduction in present damage. As a side effect of the acid, bacteria causing acne is killed by the low pH. Anyway. As I'm a chemist, I have an abundance of pH strips at my house, and I use them to test everything. I always make sure my cleansers aren't TOO basic, and that my toners will properly compensate. Using pH strips to test products is a very quick way to determine whether they're going to be comparable in effectiveness. After that you just have to test them on yourself as everyone's skin is different.

[Kim888]

@Leesy39 That was really informative! If it's not too much trouble do you have any suggestions for cleansers and toners that meet those specifications?

[mabeman]

I haven't tried The Ordinary's before, but I think I'm weird because I honestly haven't noticed any difference at all from Sunday Riley's at all. My skin has been such an a-hole all summer. My pores are a beast and nothing seems to "work" for me. All of my foundations look like garbage and it makes the rest of my makeup look like crap. I'm interested to see if The Ordinary's formula is better, too.

[DuchessV]

Have you tried glycolic acid? I was confused for a long time because the things that seemed to do miracles for most people (glycolic acid and retinols) did absolutely NOTHING for my skin. Then I found out that some people just don't respond to retinols at all, and with chemical exfoliants different things will work for different people too. For some reason the lactic acid in GG works miracles for my texture issues. It feels gross while it's on... kind of slimy, even when it's fully absorbed... but when I rinse it off the next morning my skin is baby soft. I find it a little harsh for daily use so I do the GG a couple of times a week and use a vitamin C serum on other days. Those are the two things that have worked well for me.

[mabeman]

I don't think I have, I'll definitely have to try it out. I'm so sick of my skin lol

[cara80]

I know this is months old but I wanted to let you know that Peter Thomas Roth 3% Glycolic Adi Wash saved my skin!  I'm dead serious!  I was dealing with awful cystic acne and after using this face wash, my acne was gone in less than 2 weeks.  Before that, only an antibiotic worked.  It's sold at Sephora, Ulta and his website but don't get it on Amazon bc it's either fake or expired.  Good luck!!  

[greeneyedgirl107]

@DuchessV I looked up these products on beautypedia b/c I am curious, as I will am looking for a good AHA to possible incorporate into my skincare.  I'm intrigued b/c the price points are so different between SR and The Ordinary!  According to beautypedia, SR only got 2/5 stars but The Ordinary in 5% and 10% got 3/5 stars.  I was hoping for something higher from each, since I try to only buy 5/5 or 4/5 star products.  If you are curious, the site does have a list of best AHA exfoliants:

https://www.beautypedia.com/skin-care-reviews/best-skin-care-products/Skin-Care/AHA-Exfoliants

Good luck!  I know it's challenging finding the right product at the right price!

[HarlemJPN]

I have used both. I find the Ordinary's 5% lactic acid to be too mild and the 10% to be too harsh! I wish they'd make a 7.5%! The 5% provides a gentle exfoliation and is pretty similar to GG. I don't think it is quite as good; however, given that the Ordinary is something like 80% cheaper, I'd at least give the Ordinary a chance. 

[darkchocolate68]

If you still have the 5% and 10%, I wonder how using both combined would work?  Just a thought to help you get to the 7.5%.