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The Ordinary

Squalane Cleanser.

The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser
Cleansers

About this product

A cleanser formulated with squalane that combines the texture and efficacy of both a cream and cleansing oil to remove makeup and impurities.

Cleansers

The Guru Index verdict

77%

Approved

Approved · 77%
9Reviewers
6Approved
0Mixed
3Skip
#13 in Best Cleansers

What the gurus are saying

Gurus overwhelmingly praise this as an affordable, gentle, hydrating cleanser that leaves skin soft and non-stripped. The consensus strength is removing light to moderate makeup and sunscreen effectively. The recurring limitation is that waterproof and heavy eye makeup requires a dedicated remover. One dissenting view suggests newer The Ordinary formulas (foaming and glycolipid) perform better, though this remains a minority take.
Synthesized from 9 expert reviews

Key actives & flags

Vitamin ESqualaneFragrance-freeAlcohol-free

Full ingredients

Squalane, Aqua (Water), Coco-Caprylate/​Caprate, Glycerin, Sucrose Stearate, Ethyl Macadamiate, Caprylic/​Capric Triglyceride, Sucrose Laurate, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Sucrose Dilaurate, Sucrose Trilaurate, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Isoceteth-20, Sodium Polyacrylate, Tocopherol, Hydroxymethoxyphenyl Decanone, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Malic Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, 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
Approved
"I love this. This is just a squalane-based cream cleanser. You apply it to dry skin, smooth it in a little bit and then rinse it off and it rinses off nice and clean. It leaves your skin feeling soft, fresh and even a little bit plumper than it was before you applied it. And it does a great job removing most makeup and sunscreen. It does struggle with waterproof eye makeup, but most other makeup and sunscreen products it washes right off really nice. It's got squalane, it's got sucrose which is a humectant from sugar, and then it's got vitamin E for hydration and 8 bucks. So you can't beat that."
Top Pick: cleanser
All 12 takes from No BS Beauty
I Tested Everything from The Ordinary & NIOD 🙌😍 Don’t Buy Until You See This! Slowvember Sale
"I love this. It's a nice product. You just apply it to dry skin and then emulsify it with water and rinse off. It's great for removing sunscreen, lightweight makeup. It struggles a little bit with waterproof makeup, so you might want a separate makeup remover for that. But otherwise, it's just a nice cleanser. It leaves your skin feeling supple, plumped up, and not dry or dehydrated or flaky like a lot of other cleansers can. Out of all their cleansers at The Ordinary, I didn't love any of them except this one."
June 2023 Skincare and Beauty Product Empties
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, another one I absolutely love from them. It's a great makeup removing cleansing balm. I just love it, it's really wonderful."
The Only Products From The Ordinary I've Repurchased - And I've Tried Them All!
"Their squalane cleanser is amazing. I finished it and that is one I've repurchased."
No BS Beauty Award Show - 7th Annual Awards - Best In Skincare and Beauty
"Some of my favorite cleansers are The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, the Geek and Gorgeous Jelly Joker Cleanser and the Pre-quill Facial Cleanse."
Top Picks And Flops: Ulta Beauty's Facial Cleansers Evaluated - Fragrance Free Cleansers I Love
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser is $10 in the 1.7 ounce tube or now I've got a giant tube that's $20 or $22 something like that. It's a great makeup remover, sunscreen remover, and it rinses clean with no residue. It does everything and it's really affordable. Nice ingredient list. It leaves skin feeling soft and hydrated and smooth and pretty much removes most things, maybe with the exception of super stubborn eyeliner, but otherwise it does a really good job removing everything. It's a bargain in my opinion."
I've Tried Every Product From The Ordinary & These are the Skincare I'm Still Using Years Later
"If you have light makeup or sunscreen on, it does a pretty good job removing that. If you have heavy makeup or eye makeup or waterproof makeup, you probably might want a general oil-based cleanser for that. But this one's just really nice and lightweight. It's fragrance free. It's got squalane, sucrose, vitamin E, really nice cleanser. I prefer it for the morning cleanser, but it's just really nice, lightweight, and feels nice. Your skin doesn't feel dry at all after you rinse it off or stripped at all."
The Ordinary Evening Skincare Routine 🌙 Anti-Aging & Hydrating Night Time Skin Care on a Budget
"Out of all their cleansers, my favorite is still their original Squalane Cleanser. I love this. You can just apply it to dry skin, rinse it off with water and it does a great job removing makeup, sunscreen, oil, anything you can think of. The Squalane Cleanser is great at removing makeup. You just apply it over dry skin and rinse. I kind of just like oil cleansing and really cleansing and things that are gentle, and The Ordinary does have that."
The Ordinary & NIOD 23% Off Sale During April
"I love this. This is just a squalane-based cream cleanser. You apply it to dry skin, smooth it in a little bit and then rinse it off and it rinses off nice and clean. It leaves your skin feeling soft, fresh and even a little bit plumper than it was before you applied it. And it does a great job removing most makeup and sunscreen. It does struggle with waterproof eye makeup, but most other makeup and sunscreen products it washes right off really nice. It's got squalane, it's got sucrose which is a humectant from sugar, and then it's got vitamin E for hydration and 8 bucks. So you can't beat that."
Best One Step Do-It-All Evening Cleansers - Favorite Face Cleansers That Remove Makeup & Sunscreen
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser is really lovely and really does a pretty good job, especially with my makeup and things like that. There's no scent to it, it has a nice texture. You just apply it to dry skin, smooth it over, and then rinse it off with water and you're good to go. It does a pretty good job and is pretty affordable if you get the big size."
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"The Ordinary has some nice affordable alternatives. They've got lots of good oils, rose hip oils are wonderful, and the cleansers, the Squalane Cleanser is my favorite. They came out with a couple new cleansers this year and I didn't love either one of them, but I just like their Squalane one. That's the one I like."
Rosacea - Do You Have Rosacea? How to Treat Rosacea & Best Skincare Products for Rosacea & Redness
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, which I ordered I'm probably on my third bottle of it or so. Squalane is a really nice ingredient. It's a nice gentle cleanser that's not drying. It does a good job removing makeup and sunscreen, and when you rinse it off your skin still feels soft and supple. A lot of people with rosacea were mentioning that they really found it nice."
The Ordinary Sale Picks ✔ I've Tried Everything From The Ordinary and These Are Their Best Products
"Their squalane cleanser is 16 bucks. It's a really nice cleanser, a gentle cleansing balm that works to remove makeup and sunscreen. You apply it to dry skin and it rinses pretty clean but doesn't leave skin feeling like it has any residue to it, and it does a pretty good job removing anything on your skin. It has squalane, sucrose stearate, and vitamin E in it. I will repurchase it during the sale."
Skip
"The squalane cleanser, again a really nice affordable gentle cleanser, but the newer versions, which is their foaming cleanser and their glycolipid cleanser, just work a little bit better. The glycolipid one great for super dry skin, the foaming cleanser great if you want that gentle but foaming cleansing action, great again for us oily folk. Those two are amazing, rendering the squalane cleanser again a little bit redundant."
Approved
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, it's like a cream but it's almost a cleansing oil at the same time. There's nothing quite like it."
All 3 takes from Caroline Hirons
Glad We Had This Chat Takes New York - Katie Jane Hughes
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, it's like a cream but it's almost a cleansing oil at the same time. There's nothing quite like it."
S2 Ep22: GLAD WE HAD THIS CHAT TAKES NEW YORK: Katie Jane Hughes
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, it's like a cream but it's almost a cleansing oil at the same time. There's nothing quite like it."
Skincare Empties - August 2023
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, love it. If you have really young oily bouncy skin you might find that you don't need these, however this you'll be fine with. Squalene you'll find a bit too oily, they make better cleansers for an oilier skin."
Approved
"My favorite cleanser from them is the Squalane Cleanser that costs $9 because it is multifunctional. It works really well without stripping your skin. It comes in a creamier emulsion texture, and it really is great at removing the basics of makeup, sunscreen, and sebum without feeling like your skin is stripped. For anyone who is looking for just one cleanser without needing to double cleanse to remove all of that, this would be the one to go with. It contains squalane, natural moisturizing factors, and lipophilic esters that help to soften your skin and reduce the harm essentially to your skin barrier that cleansing does naturally. It doesn't leave a lot of residue on your skin and it's not comedogenic, so it's really suitable for all skin types. If you're looking for a one-stop shop cleanser that is effective yet gentle at the same time, I would definitely pick this one."
Top Pick: cleanser
Approved
"My most favorite cleanser within the Ordinary range is the squalane based cleanser. Squalane is a great ingredient that's not only anti-inflammatory but it's also non-comedogenic so it's not going to break you out. It's very calm to the skin and it's also going to decrease inflammation. So squalane based cleanser is going to be your first point of call."
Top Pick: cleanser
All 8 takes from Dr. Somji Skin
You Should Try These Products | Rosacea Relief
"My most favorite cleanser within the Ordinary range is the squalane based cleanser. Squalane is a great ingredient that's not only anti-inflammatory but it's also non-comedogenic so it's not going to break you out. It's very calm to the skin and it's also going to decrease inflammation. So squalane based cleanser is going to be your first point of call."
Doctor Recommends The Ordinary for Acne Solutions
"The squalane cleanser is fantastic because it helps with the skin barrier, it's a great antioxidant for the skin, and it won't break you out and it's a great cleanser. You may want to double cleanse if you're using things like makeup, but in the AM that's what you're going to use."
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"From The Ordinary my favorite sing cleanser is fantastic so something that just moisturizes even whilst cleansing that's your step one."
How to Effectively Treat Rosacea | How To Use The Ordinary Skincare for Rosacea
"My most favorite cleanser within the Ordinary range is the squalane based cleanser. If you've got rosacea you've got damage to your skin barrier and you really want to limit the amount of moisture loss that you have. Squalane is a great ingredient that's not only anti-inflammatory but it's also non-comedogenic so it's not going to break you out. It's very calm to the skin and it's also going to decrease inflammation, so a squalane based cleanser is going to be your first point of call."
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"Squalane is fantastic because it helps with the skin barrier. It's a great antioxidant for the skin and it won't break you out and it's a great cleanser."
Doctor's Guide to Radiant Skincare: Crafting Your Routine
"My top tip is to use something squalane based so there's a squalane based cleanser from The Ordinary which is fantastic because it's great for sensitive skin and it's also going to help build the skin barrier as well."
What Is Squalane Oil? What Are The Benefits Of The INKEY LIST Squalane Oil? | Dr. Somji Explains
"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser is fantastic, can be used for all skin types, it's not drying, it's not stripping. So especially if you suffer from things like eczema or psoriasis, using a combo of The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser and squalane oil is a great win-win combination."
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"The Ordinary actually have a great product, the Squalane Cleanser, which is great for compromised skin. So if you have really dehydrated skin, maybe like psoriasis or eczema, the Squalane Cleanser is actually quite a good product."
Approved
"I actually love this cleanser, comes out a little bit kind of creamy jelly, it's actually really hydrating to the skin. No smell, I would say maybe very very mild smell but it's fragrance free."
All 2 takes from Dr. Vanita Rattan
HYPERPIGMENTATION LAYERING
"The product I'd recommend from the ordinary would be The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser. The reason I love it is it's very hydrating. A lot of these cleansers on the market strip the skin, and when you lose water from that top layer of skin you no longer have a healing environment, which is the exact opposite of what we're trying to do. When the skin is well hydrated, all the actives that you put onto the skin work better. If you look at the ingredients list at the back, it's in descending order. We've got squalene, which is very hydrating, it's an emollient, plus glycerin. Glycerin is a wonderful ingredient, it's a water magnet, a humectant, and we want that actually in our cleansers and in our moisturizers so that it plumps up the skin cells and also helps reduce the appearance of hyperpigmentation."
ACNE THE ORDINARY AM/PM LAYERING
"I actually love this cleanser, comes out a little bit kind of creamy jelly, it's actually really hydrating to the skin. No smell, I would say maybe very very mild smell but it's fragrance free."
Approved
"The Squalane Cleanser is especially good for dry skin and it's super super gentle."
All 3 takes from Cassandra Bankson
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"The Squalane Cleanser is especially good for dry skin and it's super super gentle."
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"I hate The Ordinary's cleanser and we've spoken about that. This squalane cleanser is just not for me. If you're going to get started with The Ordinary I wouldn't recommend that you use this product. You're going to need an entire tube of this and it is not worth it. I do not like this stuff."
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"If you have dry skin, this cleanser is phenomenal. Many cleansers feel like they strip the skin or make dryness worse, especially in creases like the marionette lines, but this cleanser doesn't do that. For dry skin, combo skin, or dry-combo-oily skin, people go head over heels for this. You can use it as a double cleanse to remove makeup. The squalane is similar to squalene, which is an oil our skin produces naturally and has antioxidant benefits. But a lot of people don't realize this cleanser also has glycerin in it. Glycerin is a humectant, meaning it holds on to moisture. This has glycerin which you'll find in good moisturizers, but it's in this formula to really enhance the moisturizing properties of this cleanser so it literally moisturizes and coats and supports the skin even once you wash the cleanser off. This cleanser also has sucrose stearate and sucrose laurate, both fantastic emollients that act as surfactants, which means they help the water and oil molecules get along together."
Skip
"I just feel like it leaves a residue on my skin and my skin never feels clean with the Squalane Cleanser. That's based on my own opinion of course, but it's my least favorite out of all of them."
All 2 takes from Sincerely Miss Ash
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"I just feel like it leaves a residue on my skin and my skin never feels clean with the Squalane Cleanser. That's based on my own opinion of course, but it's my least favorite out of all of them."
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"This is way better than the squealing cleanser and I like this one a lot more because it's very gentle, it's very moisturizing on the skin, it's not stripping in the least. But this one also doesn't leave a film left behind after you've rinsed your skin, and that's why I much prefer this over the squealing cleanser because the squealing cleanser always left a film and I didn't always feel like my skin felt clean after I've rinsed it off. This one will remove your makeup and sunscreen at the end of the day as well, so if you want to use this as that first cleanse to remove your makeup and sunscreen and then go back in with your second cleanse afterwards, or even in your morning routine, feel free to use this every day twice a day. This contains plant derived glycol lipid, so again very gentle. This is another cleanser that never burns my eyes. There's a lot of cleansers that when they get into the eyes they start burning. I never get that with this, so if you are more on that sensitive side, I feel like you're going to absolutely love this."
Skip
"One of my favorite cleansers is their Squalane Cleanser, but I have had to stop using that because it was irritating my eye area. I'm curious to pick that up again though, I was just wondering if it might be a problem that I was having during my allergy season."
All 5 takes from Beyond50Skin
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"One of my favorite cleansers is their Squalane Cleanser, but I have had to stop using that because it was irritating my eye area. I'm curious to pick that up again though, I was just wondering if it might be a problem that I was having during my allergy season."
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"Another option is The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, but I have to admit that I think they might have done something to that formula. I've used that now for two years and right now it is stinging around my eye area."
Makeup, Skincare & Supplements: Empties, Fails n' Favorites /Beauty Over 50
"I think I always have it in my cupboard I'm always using this cleanser even if I'm trying out other cleansers this is a staple I love it for a single cleanse or a double cleanse it gets the makeup and the mascara off and gets rid of the sunscreen that I have picked on during the day but unfortunately this latest purchase ended up really stinging my eyes and I have heard from others who have also said that this product doesn't really work well around your eye area and all of a sudden it didn't for me too. I thought I could attribute that maybe to my terrible allergy season that I had but I'm thinking maybe they tweak the formula a little bit. I'm going to be retiring this cleanser."
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"The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, but I have to admit that I think they might have done something to that formula. I've used that now for two years and right now it is stinging around my eye area."
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"My previous favorite Holy Grail was The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser. I had been using that for maybe three, maybe even four years, loved it, no problems. And then all of a sudden it started irritating my eyes."
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