The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Discontinued: Yes or No?

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Has The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Solution been discontinued? While it doesn’t look to have been discontinued, it seems it has been restricted in some countries. A lot of users from the UK and Canada are complaining that they are unable to buy it anywhere. There are some complaints from US users but the majority are from those two mentioned countries.

Interestingly, a few people have been able to buy it outside of these areas.

From what I read (during my research), the UK and Canadian governments have some restrictions on how much azelaic acid can be used in a skincare product.

So, that may have caused The Ordinary to stop selling in those countries for fear of regulations. 

St. Ives Lotion Alternatives?

There are plenty of alternatives but you want to be sure about the percentage your country allows. I read somewhere (but not too sure) that Canada accepts around 5%.

This may be why The Ordinary isn’t selling there as the concentration in The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension is 10%.

A few alternatives I can suggest include the following:

  • SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic® With 15% L-Ascorbic Acid
  • The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
  • Dr. Lara Devgan Vitamin C+B+E Ferulic Serum
  • Paula’s Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster

How Do You Know When a Product Has Been Discontinued?

And this doesn’t just apply to body lotions. It can also be shampoos, conditioners, moisturizers, and any other skincare products.

Therefore, if you find any of your favorite products have been discontinued by the brand, the following may apply:

There are a lot of signs that can lead you to believe a skin care product is no longer in production. The first sign is usually scarcity but not always.

The other, which is very common, is for the manufacturer to state that it has been discontinued.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen as many brands don’t say when they are stopping a product.

They just stop it and you’ll only find out when the product becomes unavailable and you ask the brand.

Also, there are quite a few reasons a brand may decide to stop a product. It may be due to poor sales or to allow for a new product.

What to do then?

The best you can do is to look for alternatives. Usually, there will be an alternative product that can serve as a substitute for the discontinued one.

You can ask the manufacturer if it has a close substitute that you can switch to. However, if there is none, you can look further in the market for other brands.

There are some websites that are focused on just providing alternatives to discontinued products.

You can also look at eBay, which usually has discontinued products on sale (after the manufacturer has stopped making them) but they can be quite expensive.

Summary of The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Solution

Has The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Solution been discontinued? While it doesn’t look to have been discontinued, it seems it has been restricted in some countries. A lot of users from the UK and Canada are complaining that they are unable to buy it anywhere.

There are some complaints from US users but the majority are from those two mentioned countries. Interestingly, a few people have been able to buy it outside of these areas.

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