Beauty Elixir

The Ordinary · Toner · leave-on

Is The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner pore-clogging or fungal-acne safe?

63%clean
Mild risk

No heavy pore-cloggers found, but 1 ingredient is rated 2. Most people are fine; very acne-prone skin should watch for small bumps.

Not fungal-acne safe

1 ingredient can feed Malassezia yeast (itchy, uniform forehead or chest bumps).

#IngredientPoresFungal acneIrritancy
37 Sodium Chloride 5/5 · Low amount Safe
34 Polysorbate 20 0/5 · Low Trigger
1 Aqua 0/5 · Low Safe
7 Glycerin 0/5 · Low Safe
38 ingredients not in our pore-clogging database

These have no published comedogenic rating in our data. Most are preservatives, fragrance, extracts or actives that are not known pore-cloggers.

glycolic acidrosa damascena flower watercentaurea cyanus flower wateraloe barbadensis leaf waterpropanedioltriethanolamineaminomethyl propanolpanax ginseng root extracttasmannia lanceolata fruit/leaf extractaspartic acidalanineglycineserinevalineisoleucineprolinethreoninehistidinephenylalanineglutamic acidargininepcasodium pcasodium lactatefructoseglucosesucroseureahexyl nicotinatedextrincitric acidgellan gumtrisodium ethylenediamine disuccinatehexylene glycolpotassium sorbatesodium benzoate1,2-hexanediolcaprylyl glycol

Ingredients rated 3–5 that appear after position 15 are usually present below about 1%, so they are shown as "Low amount" and do not trigger the pore-clog alert. Ratings come from the Fulton comedogenic scale (0–5) and published Malassezia research. They are a rough guide: the concentration and the whole formula matter, and everyone's skin is different.

Acne-safe breakdown

We found no ingredients rated 3 or higher in The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner. The ingredients doing most of the work are Aqua, Glycerin, Polysorbate 20 and Sodium Chloride, which are all low-risk for pores.

Full ingredient list

Aqua (Water), Glycolic Acid, Rosa Damascena Flower Water, Centaurea Cyanus Flower Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Water, Propanediol, Glycerin, Triethanolamine, Aminomethyl Propanol, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Tasmannia Lanceolata Fruit/Leaf Extract, Aspartic Acid, Alanine, Glycine, Serine, Valine, Isoleucine, Proline, Threonine, Histidine, Phenylalanine, Glutamic Acid, Arginine, Pca, Sodium Pca, Sodium Lactate, Fructose, Glucose, Sucrose, Urea, Hexyl Nicotinate, Dextrin, Citric Acid, Polysorbate 20, Gellan Gum, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Sodium Chloride, Hexylene Glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol.

Source: official The Ordinary product page, checked 27 Sep 2026. Formulas vary by country and change over time, so always check your pack.

Check price on Amazon Nykaa

Have another product on your shelf? Paste its ingredients.

Open the scanner →

Frequently asked questions

Is The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner pore-clogging?

Mild risk. No heavy pore-cloggers found, but 1 ingredient is rated 2. Most people are fine; very acne-prone skin should watch for small bumps.

Is The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner safe for fungal acne?

No. It contains Polysorbate 20, which can feed Malassezia yeast.

What is the clean score of The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner?

The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner scores 63% on our pore-clog and fungal-acne scan, based on 4 recognised ingredients out of 42.

More free tools

Pore-Clog CheckerIs it acne & fungal-acne safe? Can I Mix…?Check two actives or your routine Routine Builder7-day AM/PM plan in 30s Hair Porosity TestOils & wash schedule for your hair Spray CalculatorHow many sprays is right? Perfume DupesLuxury smell, budget price Batch Code CheckerIs your makeup expired?