The Ordinary Serum Foundation
by The Ordinary · makeup
Editor's Take
The serum texture earns its name in feel, not treatment: clever water-break slip and durable pigment wear, but the silicone-heavy base keeps the innovation skin-deep.
Four-pillar formula scores
- Performance: 7.4 / 10
- Innovative Ingredients: 6.8 / 10
- Clean Standards: 3.5 / 10
- Formula Sustainability: 4.5 / 10
The Verdict
Cyclopentasiloxane and Caprylyl Methicone make this fluid, quick-spreading, and easy to wear, while Trimethylsiloxysilicate helps pigment stay put. The water-break emulsion and multi-dispersant pigment work are more considered than in a basic liquid tint. Still, the silicone-dominant base falls well outside stricter clean standards and carries real persistence drawbacks, without presenting a reason for skin-health alarm. A credible lightweight foundation with modern sensory engineering, not a treatment or sustainability leader.
Is The Ordinary Serum Foundation clean?
DARE scores The Ordinary Serum Foundation by The Ordinary 3.5 / 10 on Clean Standards, the human-health pillar of the Formulation Architecture Model™. That reading comes from the published INCI list read as a system — preservative, fragrance and surfactant choices in context — not from flagging single ingredients in isolation.
What are the key ingredients in The Ordinary Serum Foundation?
The formula leads with Cyclopentasiloxane, Aqua/Water/Eau, Caprylyl Methicone, Coconut Alkanes, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone. DARE reads the full INCI list below in order, so position and pairing shape how each ingredient contributes under Performance and Innovative Ingredients.
How does DARE score The Ordinary Serum Foundation?
Under the Formulation Architecture Model™, The Ordinary Serum Foundation by The Ordinary scores Performance 7.4 / 10, Clean Standards 3.5 / 10, Innovative Ingredients 6.8 / 10, and Formula Sustainability 4.5 / 10. Each pillar is scored from the finished formula rather than from isolated ingredient flags.
Full INCI list
Cyclopentasiloxane, Aqua/Water/Eau, Caprylyl Methicone, Coconut Alkanes, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone, Coco Caprylate/Caprate, Dimethicone/PEG-10/15 Crosspolymer, Cetyl Diglyceryl Tris(Trimethylsiloxy)silylethyl Dimethicone, Dipropylene Glycol, Tocopherol, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Hectorite, Sodium Chloride, Hexyl Laurate, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Stearic Acid, Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer, Alumina, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin. May Contain \ +/-\ : Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Tin Oxide, Aluminum Hydroxide, Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163), Mica, Magnesium Stearate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane
Last updated September 19, 2026