The Ordinary
Retinal 0.2% Emulsion High-Strength Retinoid Nighttime Treatment
uncategorized0.507oztypically under $12
Cleaner pick · Safest treatments we have rated
Iunik Global
Lime Moisture Mild Peeling Gel+21 on ingredient safety
$14
Ingredient safetyRaters agree
Ranked by safety only. Greenlens earns from qualifying purchases. Payout never affects a rating, a ranking, or the cleaner pick.
Raters split
Ingredient safety
A 28-point gap between the two loudest voices.
70Health Canada Ingredient HotlistGovernment
vs98Greenlens Precautionary ScreenIndependent
050100
See why, ingredient by ingredientAll 695 cleaner options, safest first We show the best 12, including the strongest on each axis.
Every rater, every axis
Ingredient safety
28 pts apartIndependent — not funded by the brands it rates. Auto-linked to this product, not yet human-reviewed. Checked this week. about this rater →
A government authority. Auto-linked to this product, not yet human-reviewed. Checked this week. about this rater →
Independent — not funded by the brands it rates. Auto-linked to this product, not yet human-reviewed. Checked this week. about this rater →
Independent — not funded by the brands it rates. Auto-linked to this product, not yet human-reviewed. Checked this week. about this rater →
Also screened, nothing found: US NTP Report on Carcinogens · ECHA SVHC Candidate List · ANSES Endocrine Disruptors · California Proposition 65 · EU Harmonised Classification (CLP Annex VI) · IARC Monographs
Environmental
Also screened, nothing found: EU Microplastics Restriction
Labor
Run by a nonprofit. Auto-linked to this product, not yet human-reviewed. This rates The Ordinary as a company and applies to everything they make, not this product alone. Checked this week. about this rater →
Coverage & match quality
5 ratings · 2 of 4 axes
- Some ratings rest on an automatic match that has not been human-reviewed.
- Fewer raters reach smaller-brand products, so a missing rating is not a clean bill of health, only a gap.
Weighted by what you care about
Tune your weights
composite recomputes live
+
1.0×
Environmentalno rating
No rater covers this axis for this product, so its weight can't move the score.
1.0×
Packagingno rating
No rater covers this axis for this product, so its weight can't move the score.
0 means ignored. Higher = more weight in your composite.
Ingredients, decoded
Data availability
Robust32 of 32 characterized
Our sources have reference data on all 32 listed ingredients.
Worth a look (4)
Health Canada Hotlist — restrictedflagged by 1 of 9 lists →
Health Canada Hotlist — restrictedflagged by 1 of 9 lists →
EU-restricted (with limits)flagged by 2 of 9 lists →
Mild sensitizer for someflagged by 1 of 9 lists →
No flags in our sources (28)
- AQUA
- COCO-CAPRYLATE/CAPRATE
- PROPANEDIOL
- PENTYLENE GLYCOL
- HYDROXYAPATITE
- CETYLHYDROXYPROLINE PALMITAMIDE
- 4-T-BUTYLCYCLOHEXANOLfragrance material
- HYDROXYPHENYL PROPAMIDOBENZOIC ACID
- ERGOTHIONEINE
- BIOSACCHARIDE GUM-1
- BISABOLOLsoothing
- BRASSICA CAMPESTRIS STEROLS
- ZINGIBER OFFICINALE ROOT EXTRACT
- BUTYLENE GLYCOL
- ISOHEXADECANE
- HEXYLDECANOL
- MALTODEXTRIN
- CAESALPINIA SPINOSA GUM
- POLYACRYLATE CROSSPOLYMER-6
- HYDROXYETHYL ACRYLATE/SODIUM ACRYLOYLDIMETHYL TAURATE COPOLYMER
- STEARIC ACID
- ISOCETETH-20
- POLYSORBATE 60
- ASCORBYL PALMITATE
- TOCOPHEROL
- SODIUM LACTATE
- ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN
- CHLORPHENESIN
What these ingredient tags mean (2)
These describe what an ingredient is, not whether it is a problem. The stance marks above are the ratings; these are not.
exfoliating acidLACTIC ACID
- LACTIC ACID: An alpha hydroxy acid that loosens surface skin cells; it also makes skin more sun-sensitive while you use it. FDA, "Guidance for Industry: Labeling for Topically Applied Cosmetic Products Containing Alpha Hydroxy Acids as Ingredients" (announced at 70 FR 1721, 10 January 2005; FDA web pages title it "Labeling for Cosmetics Containing Alpha Hydroxy Acids"), which names this acid and recommends the statement "Sunburn Alert: This product contains an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) that may increase your skin's sensitivity to the sun and particularly the possibility of sunburn."
soothingBISABOLOL
- BISABOLOL: The main soothing component isolated from chamomile. Eddin LB et al., "Health Benefits, Pharmacological Effects, Molecular Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Potential of alpha-Bisabolol", Nutrients 2022;14(7):1370, DOI 10.3390/nu14071370, PMID 35405982, open access: it "is integrated in many cosmetic formulations due to its skin soothing effects, well documented dermal absorption and the absence of dermal irritations or photosensitivity following its application". The EMA HMPC assessment report on Matricaria recutita (EMA/HMPC/55837/2011) discusses its anti-inflammatory data.