How to figure out if your The Ordinary product is real or fake. Counterfeit The Ordinary products are all over the internet. Have you got yourself a dud? Here are some pointers to help you find out.

other TO content, or Deciem Chatroom on Facebook.

Head to the Deciem- Find Us page for approved sellers and to check if they deliver direct to your country, click the map in the top right corner of the screen.

A quick disclosure- this post is not sponsored but the links may be affiliate. If I’ve helped you today, I’m not going to ask you to buy me a coffee or anything like that, but if you could share my blog on social media I would be super pleased.

Does Deciem Ship to My Country?

Deciem itself ships to many destinations, 258 at the moment of writing-

Genuine The Ordinary Sellers

These are the ones on Deciem’s site (this page doesn’t open on all devices, so I’ve put the list here)-

  • Canada– Well.ca, Curlique Beauty, Socialite, Sephora, Hudson’s Bay
  • UK– Boots, Face the Future, ASOS, Cult Beauty, Beauty Bay, Grooming Clinic, QVC, Fenwick, Harvey Nichols, Oxygen Boutique, Pretty Little Thing, Look Fantastic, FeelUnique
  • USA– Look Fantastic, Sephora, Pretty Little Thing, New-London-Chelsea, Skin Store
  • Australia– Absolute Skin, Adore Beauty, ActiveSkin, Mr Brains & Brawn, Myers, Priceline, RY, Vim&Co, TheFreshGroup
  • Austria– Douglas
  • Belgium– Cosmicary
  • Switzerland– Douglas 
  • China– Byogo, Henrida, Magic Dealer, Tmall Oversea Warehouse
  • Germany- Alsterhaus, Basler Beauty, Brueningen, Dergepflegtemann.de, Douglas, Kadewe, Oberpollingdr, Ohhh de Cologne, Purish, Stadt-Parfümerie Pieper, The Lucky Fish
  • Denmark- Magasin
  • Estonia- Beauty Republic
  • Spain- Douglas, Druni
  • France- Galeries Lafayette, Merci, Nocibé, Smallable
  • Hong Kong- Sephora
  • Croatia- Superskin
  • Ireland- Arnotts, Brown Thomas, Cloud 10 Beauty 
  • Iraq- Al Batul Group
  • Italy- Douglas, La Rinascente
  • Lithuania- Molecule 
  • Norway- Beauty Heaven, Beth’s Beauty, H&M, Vita
  • New Zealand- INÉS, LaFemmeBeauty
  • Poland- Cosibella, Douglas, Drogeria Pigment, Glow Shop
  • Portugal– Loja Zero
  • Serbia– Metropoliten
  • Sweden– Boozt, Eleven, H&M, Kronans Apotek, Lyko
  • Singapore– Escentials
  • Slovenia– Beautyology, Superskin
  • Slovakia– Natureal
  • Ukraine– Blue Mint, Cosibella, Happy Bunny

How to Tell if Your The Ordinary Product Itself is Fake

Euk 134 0.1% – oily consistency, brown colour, brown UV bottle, 
  • Pycnogenol 5% – 15ml bottle, UV protected, brown, oily consistency, can have a warm feeling on application
  • Resveratrol 3% + Ferulic Acid 3% – Brown oily consistency, Brown UV bottle, can have a warm feeling on application 
  • Squalane Cleanser – a balmy texture, thick non runny texture
  • Coverage Foundation– a fluid foundation, tends to look more yellow than the shade suggests
  • Serum Foundation– a highly fluid foundation, light and runny  
  • High Adherence Silicone Primer– a silicone based primer, a colourless silicone paste/cream
  • High Spreadability Fluid Primer– a clear, runny colourless fluid
  • AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution– a dark red viscous liquid. The legendary red peel (aka AHA 30% BHA 2% Peeling Solution) is often copied as it is one of The Ordinary’s most popular products. I think some of the counterfeit products have a red dye added to give it that red colour, which can stain the skin. The Ordinary’s peel will not stain your skin, your face may be a little pink after use but that is from the inflammation it causes (it’s a strong product). It has a true red tone as opposed to pink-
    Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%– has a white colour and silicone feel
  • Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution– a straw coloured water liquid
  • LacticAcid 10% + HA– a peach/brown gel solution with a very specific smell. May sting on contact
  • Lactic Acid 5% + HA– a peach/brown gel solution with a very specific smell. May sting on contact  
  • Mandelic Acid 10% + HA– a clear runny serum with slightly oily feel
  • Salicylic Acid 2% Masque– a black gritty paste
  • Salicylic Acid 2% Solution– A clear gel solution, Deciem doesn’t make this any more
  • Multi Peptide Serum for Hair Density– a clear serum with a thin oil like texture
  • B-Oil– a green oil with a heavier texture and marine smell, brown UV bottle
  • 100% Cold Pressed Virgin Marula Oil– a thin clear colourless oil, brown UV bottle
  • 100% Organic Cold Pressed Borage Seed Oil– a light yellow oil with a cooking oil smell, brown UV bottle
  • 100% Organic Cold Pressed Moroccan Argan Oil– brown UV bottle
  • 100% Organic Cold Pressed Rose Hip Seed Oil– brown UV bottle
  • 100% Organic Virgin Chia Seed Oil– brown UV bottle
  • 100% Organic Virgin Sea Buckthorn Oil– brown UV bottle
  • NMF + HA– white cream, all the tubes I’ve had have had a bit of a lumpy texture, there is some variability to this lumpiness, sometimes you’ll get a tube that comes out smoother
    100% Squalane– clear runny oil, UV bottle 
  • 100% Plant Derived Hemi Squalane– brown UV bottle, very thin oil, very runny
  • Hyaluronic Acid 2% + Vitamin B5– a clear colourless water based serum with a tacky feel as it dries down
  • Marine Hyaluronics– a watery serum with a marine smell, absorbs without stickiness
  • Amino Acids + B5– a runny serum with a light oil texture, may tingle on application
  • 100% Niacinamide Powder– a fine white powder which dissolves easily in water
  • Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA– a gel like water based serum with a slightly tacky finish
  • Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG– light brown, clear, sticky, water based serum in UV packaging
  • Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%– a clear water based gel serum, clear bottle, comes in 30 and 60mls, you might get some white crust residue at the neck of the bottle where it dries-
    Buffet– a slightly cloudy water/gel serum with a tacky texture on application
  • Buffet + Copper Peptides 1%– a light blue gel like water based serum
  • Argireline Solution 10%– a watery, clear colourless serum
  • Matrixyl 10% + HA– a clear, colourless serum
  • Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion– a light yellow, opaque creamy serum
  • Granactive Retinoid 2% in Squalane– a light yellow oil in a UV protective brown bottle
  • Granactive Retinoid 5% in Squalane– a light yellow oil in a UV protective brown bottle
  • Retinol 0.2% in Squalane– a yellow brown oil in a UV protective brown bottle
  • Retinol 0.5% in Squalane-a yellow brown oil in a UV protective brown bottle
  • Retinol 1% in Squalane– a dark yellow/brown oil in a UV protective brown bottle
  • Mineral UV Filters SPF 30 with Antioxidants
  • Ascorbic Acid 8% + Alpha Arbutin 2% – can have a warm feeling on application, yellow colour, oily texture
  • Ascorbyl Glucoside 12%– clear, watery serum
  • Ascorbyl Isotetrapalmitate 20% +Vitamin F– clear, colourless, oily feeling serum
  • Ethylated Ascorbic Acid 15%  Solution– a clear, thin, dry oil
  • Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate 10%– an emollient cream with a slight brown hue, slight odour reminiscent of baking, in a tube
  • Vitamin C Suspension 23% + HA Spheres 2%– a white grainy cream with a sticky texture on application, in a tube
  • Vitamin C Suspension 30%  in Silicone– a white silicone textured cream
  • 100% Ascorbic Acid Powder– a very fine pure white powder in a jar
  • Is Your The Ordinary a Fake? How to Tell From the Packaging

    I’ll say it again, the only way to know if your product is safe is if you buy it from a reputable source. Over on my The Ordinary subreddit we have a lot of posts asking if this or that dropper looks right or whether the batch number should match. If you want a second opinion about your product, head to our Fake To? thread.

    • The box– The card box should have a sort of velvety feel to it rather than shiny and glossy.
    • The text– Deciem has some variations to it’s packaging, so your genuine product may well not match a photo you find on the net. There are subtle differences in wording, units of volume and positioning of the text. Below is an example- these boxes are both real Deciem, you can see differences in the boldness of the text and font. Sometimes it says U.S. after the fl oz. If you see this on your product, it’s not necessarily a copy. This is why it’s so difficult to spot.
    This article was originally published by Beautyblogwales.com. Read the original article here.