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The Ordinary

Multi-Active Delivery Essence.

The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence
Mists & Essences

About this product

A lightweight hydrating essence designed to prep skin and enhance penetration of subsequent skincare products, formulated with glycerin and humectants.

Mists & Essences

The Guru Index verdict

58%

Mixed

~Mixed · 58%
4Reviewers
1Approved
2Mixed
1Skip

What the gurus are saying

The community splits sharply. Mad About Skin (sponsored reviews) consistently praises it as an underrated powerhouse that boosts the efficacy of other actives, especially for those optimizing their routines, and calls it excellent value. Skeptics (Dray, some takes from Ash and No BS Beauty) view it as unnecessary marketing hype around a basic glycerin-and-water formula that duplicates what serums already do. The middle ground acknowledges it hydrates and preps skin well but questions whether the penetration-enhancement claim justifies the extra step. All agree application matters: use hands or minimal cotton pad contact to avoid waste, and apply quickly before it dries.
Synthesized from 4 expert reviews

Key actives & flags

Fragrance-freeAlcohol-free

Full ingredients

Aqua/​Water/​Eau, Glycerin, Propanediol, Sodium Caproyl Prolinate, Glycogen, Gellan Gum, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin

Every take, in full

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.

All takes Approved only Skip only Mixed only Hide sponsored
~Mixed
"It's thin and lightweight but also very hydrating. It has glycerin and other types of humectants in here as well. The ingredient list is very short and sweet. It's more of that essence that is just straight to the point. It's great for that prepping process, for hydration, and that's really it. I feel like the other essences do a little bit more for our skin. But if you're not really looking for all that and you're just looking for the basics, like for hydrating and prepping, then this is a great addition to incorporate. It's quite affordable as well. There is no fragrance. You're getting 100 mls of product. I just put five or six drops into the palm of my hand and apply it to my face that way, and then I have to go right in with my serums afterwards because this dries up so quickly. You have to work really fast with this. If you want to apply your serums and products onto this while this is still damp on your face, go right in. Don't waste any time. Your skin will feel so hydrated, more hydrated if you can apply everything on top of this while this is still damp on your skin. The Ordinary also says that this can be brightening. I honestly haven't found that. I don't feel like this brightens my skin at all. If you truly want that brightening effect, that glow, and you want to fade dark spots, post acne marks, this may not be the product for you."
All 3 takes from Sincerely Miss Ash
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"Besides that ingredient, there really isn't anything exciting with this formulation list. For me personally, I want more out of my skin care and this is just too basic for me to have in my skincare routine. I just wasn't wowed by it. I feel like they could have done better with this formula by adding other key ingredients. This one kind of was a flop for me."
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"It's thin and lightweight but also very hydrating. It has glycerin and other types of humectants in here as well. The ingredient list is very short and sweet. It's more of that essence that is just straight to the point. It's great for that prepping process, for hydration, and that's really it. I feel like the other essences do a little bit more for our skin. But if you're not really looking for all that and you're just looking for the basics, like for hydrating and prepping, then this is a great addition to incorporate. It's quite affordable as well. There is no fragrance. You're getting 100 mls of product. I just put five or six drops into the palm of my hand and apply it to my face that way, and then I have to go right in with my serums afterwards because this dries up so quickly. You have to work really fast with this. If you want to apply your serums and products onto this while this is still damp on your face, go right in. Don't waste any time. Your skin will feel so hydrated, more hydrated if you can apply everything on top of this while this is still damp on your skin. The Ordinary also says that this can be brightening. I honestly haven't found that. I don't feel like this brightens my skin at all. If you truly want that brightening effect, that glow, and you want to fade dark spots, post acne marks, this may not be the product for you."
2 MONTH UPDATE! I TESTED THE ORDINARY MULTI-ACTIVE DELIVERY ESSENCE AND HERE'S THE VERDICT!
"I love it. I do recommend this. I think that they did a really good job with this formulation. Essences in general will all help to allow your skincare products to absorb better into your skin. This is a lovely one. And I really do think that it's going to be something that can benefit a lot of people."
Skip
"For me personally I would not repurchase this product because it really felt like just an unnecessary step in my routine. I'd like to think that the ingredients in serums that I apply do what this does, they have water, they have glycerin, and I like to think that they're formulated in a way that allows for good penetration. Coupled with the things I already do in my routine like using a topical retinoid, washing my face regularly, moisturizing regularly, I feel like this is just unnecessary and superfluous. The other thing I found odd about their instructions is they really heavily caution you not to use this near the eye contour area. I mean, obviously don't pour it in your eye, but do they really think a watery glycerin solution is going to be completely hazardous around here? I am doubtful. It kind of gives the illusion that this is really active and makes you think be careful around the eyes. I would say you honestly skip this."
~Mixed
"It's just supposed to be applied with a cotton pad which is brilliant because the cotton pad probably ends up soaking up most of the product. You use it over your skin and then go on to use your products so it's supposed to help ingredients that don't penetrate easily to penetrate better. It's kind of a lot of marketing to me but I will test it out. Yeah, so there's other tips and tricks to get things to penetrate better, penetration enhance the ingredients that could be in the product, things like that. It really doesn't have many ingredients in here. Yeah, glycerin and water and propane are the main ingredients and then probably a couple ingredients that may help something soak in better or absorb better. I'm thinking this might be a lot of marketing and not so much delivery but we'll see."
Approved
"This is The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence. This is just a really nice toner that works to elevate the rest of your skincare routine. Whatever brands you're using, whatever actives you're incorporating, just slapping a little of this on the skin before you start your serums will help them penetrate into the skin, giving enhanced results. For the best part of like £12, which is what this costs, you can really elevate the rest of your skincare routine without spending any more coin. It also works as a hydrating toner, too. So, if you already have a toner in your routine, swap that out for this one. You'll get all that hydration, but you'll also get that elevated experience when it comes to the rest of your serums. They don't have to be from The Ordinary. This works with any serums from any brand. It just helps with the overall penetration rate of your actives, which is going to make them work that little bit harder for you. This will work with anything. The things that I would say maybe not to use it alongside is don't use it alongside high potency retinoids such as tretinoin because it will enhance the penetration of those which could cause sensitivity. I also wouldn't use it alongside exfoliating acids for the same reason. But everything else you're good and this is just a great way of elevating the results you see without having to have a whole suite of new products."
Sponsored
All 14 takes from Mad About Skin
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"The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence is fantastic, one of their newer launches but one that's really slipped under the radar. You don't hear a lot of people talking about it and I think that's a shame because this is probably one of the very best toners you're going to see on the market. It's actually formulated with ingredients specifically chosen to help enhance the penetration rate of the rest of your skincare routine so this not only hydrates and gives that dampness to the skin, it will also further enhance the absorption meaning this really is a powerhouse to pair alongside your retinoid. It's really inexpensive so it doesn't need to break the bank and I like to use a couple of drops of this, pat it into the skin and then you can follow with the rest of your skincare routine and you'll just notice a definite boost in terms of the results that you're going to see."
THIS TONER CHANGES EVERYTHING - The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence
"This genuinely is a beautiful product. Where this works best is if you use it in place of your existing hydrating toner. Most of us will have a toner somewhere in our skincare routine that we use to hydrate, nourish, and plump. If you discard your existing one and use this instead, you'll get all of those benefits and you'll also get some additional benefits in terms of increasing the efficacy of the rest of your routine. It delivers exactly what the brand says it does: hydrate you to the gods, it plumps the skin, it feels beautifully soft and nourishing. I used it by cleansing the skin first, then going in with a good amount of this delivery essence. Be lavish with it. It's an affordable product and it works better if you use a good amount, so really go in with it on the palms, work it together in the palms, and then press it into the skin. I think this is going to work far better if you use it on your hands and press it in rather than using it on a cotton round, which will just absorb and waste a lot of the product."
THIS TONER CHANGES EVERYTHING - The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence
"The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence is certainly something new for the brand, they've never had an Essence before. I feel that this is going to be a little bit of an unsung hero. It's maybe not as sexy sounding or as glamorous as some of their other recent launches, so I worry that it might get forgotten about. However, I've been genuinely impressed. At £10.99, which is the UK retail price, I think it's a really good price point when you look at the amount of product you get. I was actually quite shocked when I saw that price."
THIS TONER CHANGES EVERYTHING - The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence
"It delivers exactly what the brand says it does: hydrate you to the gods, it plumps the skin, it feels beautifully soft and nourishing. In summer this is going to be a perfect product to keep in the fridge to add that instant cooling, that anti-inflammatory effect to start your skincare routine. It's an affordable product and it works better if you use a good amount. Use your hands, which are warm, so they're actually going to help the product get into the skin. This will work perfectly with every other product in your skincare routine so it doesn't matter if you're using vitamin C, peptides, retinoids, tretinoin, whatever you're using, you can follow on from using this and just know that it's going to work that little bit better, enhancing that penetration rate."
THIS TONER CHANGES EVERYTHING - The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence
"It is a beautiful product to slot into your skincare routine in the place of your existing hydrating toner, get a little extra benefit from the rest of your skincare routine without breaking the bank. Just be mindful that if you have very sensitive skin, you're going to be getting a little extra action from your actives, and that might not be applicable if you have super sensitive skin or you're new to a particularly high potency active. Other than that it is plain sailing. I think for us hardcore skincare afficionados that know exactly what we're doing in terms of getting the most from our routine, this is going to work out to be one of the best investments you make."
THIS TONER CHANGES EVERYTHING - The Ordinary Multi Active Delivery Essence
"I'm going to continue to use it. I think it's something different, it's something enjoyable, and whilst this might not get all the hype that some of the other Ordinary launches get because it's not the most glamorous looking or the sexy sounding product, I think for us hardcore skincare afficionados that know exactly what we're doing in terms of getting the most from our routine, this is going to work out to be one of the best investments you make."
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"This is the Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence. I've honestly been loving this product so much. It launched about a year ago and nobody talked about it. The more I read into the ingredients, how they work, and the benefits, the more I realized, actually, I think we're all sleeping on this one. It's a fantastic essence which hydrates, it plumps, and it moisturizes. But most importantly, it has ingredients in here that actually enhance the penetration rate of the rest of your skin care. So if you're somebody that really wants to get the maximum results from your routine, I think this is a really inexpensive way of achieving it. It's one of my absolute favorite ways to kickstart my morning, my evening, my everything skincare routine. If you keep it in the fridge like I do, it is super cooling on application. So it just feels so so good in the summer."
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"One of my favorite products to use is this. This is The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence. This gives the dampness to help enhance the rate of penetration of your product, but it also has some ingredients which further enhance that. So, this is kind of the most effective way of getting maximum results."
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"This is The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence. They launched this about a year ago and it kind of just disappeared without a trace, and that's a shame because this actually works. It hydrates, it nourishes, and it definitely helps to smooth and soothe the skin. But the way this is formulated is actually designed to enhance the penetration rate of the rest of your skincare. So if you're somebody that wants to get double the benefit from the rest of your skincare for very little, I think this costs like £14 here in the UK, I think this is just a no-brainer. It's not just about buying more and more products, it's about thinking how we can layer and pair them together to maximize the benefits. If you just want to enhance the delivery, I think this is a really great option. There have been some studies into this recently that showed certain ingredients. It works really well on vitamin C, niacinamide. It can really help increase the penetration rate of things such as glutathione, which is a brightening ingredient."
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"This is The Ordinary Multi-Active Delivery Essence. This is just a really nice toner that works to elevate the rest of your skincare routine. Whatever brands you're using, whatever actives you're incorporating, just slapping a little of this on the skin before you start your serums will help them penetrate into the skin, giving enhanced results. For the best part of like £12, which is what this costs, you can really elevate the rest of your skincare routine without spending any more coin. It also works as a hydrating toner, too. So, if you already have a toner in your routine, swap that out for this one. You'll get all that hydration, but you'll also get that elevated experience when it comes to the rest of your serums. They don't have to be from The Ordinary. This works with any serums from any brand. It just helps with the overall penetration rate of your actives, which is going to make them work that little bit harder for you. This will work with anything. The things that I would say maybe not to use it alongside is don't use it alongside high potency retinoids such as tretinoin because it will enhance the penetration of those which could cause sensitivity. I also wouldn't use it alongside exfoliating acids for the same reason. But everything else you're good and this is just a great way of elevating the results you see without having to have a whole suite of new products."
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"The Multi-Active Delivery Essence is best for people that look to boost the rest of their skincare routine. It's got some specific ingredients in here that enhance the penetration rate of the rest of your actives. And so, everything that you apply on after this will just work that little bit better. You get extra bang for your buck. And I think this is a great way of getting hydration because ultimately this is a hydrating toner that also has that additional benefit of boosting the efficacy of the rest of your skincare."
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"You look at this product, which is one of my personal favorites, the Multi-Active Delivery Essence. It sold many many units on launch and is genuinely something innovative and different which we're not seeing from other brands."
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"This is pretty unique in skincare. What this does is it actually helps the rest of your skin care penetrate better into the skin. So it's a quick and easy way of getting an extra bang for your buck from the rest of your skincare routine. It works with the Ordinary products. It works with other brands products. It's just a great thing to apply to the skin after you've cleansed to get some hydration going, but also to help make the rest of your skin care just work a little harder for you. It's super inexpensive, which is why I use it every single day. It does have a marginal impact on the penetration rate of the rest of your skincare. It's not groundbreaking. It's not going to change and transform your entire skincare routine. But for a few extra coin, you can get a lot of extra benefit and that for me, it is worth it. This also hydrates. If you've already got your favorite hydrating toner, swap that out for this and you'll see some additional benefits from the rest of your skincare routine and maintain that hydration. I've been using it every morning. I just do it without even thinking. I know the rest of my skin care is working better for me and I get some extra hydration, too."
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"The essence is designed to enhance the penetration rate of the rest of your skincare. So you get a little extra bang for your buck from every other product that you put on after it."
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