This Is What I Really Think of The Ordinary's New £5 Concealer

I’d like to preface this review by telling you that concealer is both my most-loved and most-hated beauty product. I wouldn’t dream of leaving the house without covering my prominent under-eye circles, and it is because of my dependence on concealer that I have come to hate the very idea of it. When it comes to the likes of foundation, mascara, brow gel, and lipstick, we really are spoilt for choice with formulas that cater to just about every need. However, when it comes to concealer, it seems almost impossible to find a formula that manages to live up to its primary promise: the art of disguise.

You see, my dark circles have made me somewhat of a concealer aficionado. I have tried just about every concealer under the sun, and the truth is that I can count on one hand the products that genuinely help cover my areas of concern. Finding a formula that’s thick enough to cover but manageable enough to blend is actually very rare, so much so that I have used the same concealer for over four years (Nars's Soft Matte Complete Concealer, should you care). But this week, The Ordinary launched its own high-coverage concealer, and everything changed. 

When The Ordinary first launched into makeup a few years ago with two foundation offerings, the beauty world went mad. Just like the brand’s iconic skincare line, the formulas promised high-end results for seriously affordable prices. I did give the foundations a go, but I remained unmoved. While I have been known to dabble in foundation wearing from time to time, for the most part, I don’t really like the stuff. Concealer, on the other hand, is something I can get behind.

When I first heard that The Ordinary was launching a concealer this time last year, I geared up to give it a go. In fact, it was probably the first concealer in years that I was genuinely excited to try. But when the world turned upside down last spring, so too did our hopes of an imminent concealer launch from The Ordinary. And while having to wait a year for it to hit the shelves was long, it’s finally here, and I can say with confidence that it was worth the wait.

Costing just £5, it’s safe to say that I have never in all of my life come across a budget concealer that disguises my dark circles quite like this stuff does. A liquid formula housed in a squeezy tube, it’s easy to work into the skin with fingers, and a little goes a seriously long way. When it comes to base products, I’m all about glow. Though, I often have to compromise on concealer and go for matte, long-lasting formulas, as they tend to have more coverage. The new concealer from The Ordinary, however, doesn’t have the crease-prone, chalky finish that so many others do.

After dotting the smallest amount under my eyes, my whole face was illuminated. It works into the skin like putty and really does stay put. Plus, in 36 shades (an impressively diverse offering for a debut concealer), finding a suitable option is remarkably easy. Taking only a few seconds to apply, the creamy formula blends into skin seamlessly but still delivers unrivalled levels of coverage, making it just as great for novices as it is for experts. In fact, it’s so great that I have found myself reaching for it every day since first trying it.

Its blendability makes it the perfect foundation substitute. For no-makeup makeup days, simply blot into areas that you want to disguise (my areas of concern are my dark circles, the redness around my nose, and the pigmentation and scarring on my chin), and it gives the illusion of almost total coverage. My only gripe? It didn’t do a stand-up job on active breakouts. It seems The Ordinary's concealer thrives in areas of discolouration but doesn’t work particularly well at covering up active spots and blemishes.

Shop More The Ordinary Products