Olay vs Pond’s (The Definitive Guide)

We're positive you've seen Olay and Pond's on the shelves at your local beauty store before. But which is best? And which brand should you choose?

Come with us as we compare their best-selling face creams side-by-side to help you decide which is best for you and your skincare routine.

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Olay vs Pond's

Who ever said you need to spend tens or hundreds for a quality face cream? A trip to your local pharmacy will suffice. Why? There are plenty of brands that deliver results for a fraction of the cost that big, bougie brands demand.

Moreover, two of our favorites—Olay and Pond’s—are your mom’s and grandma’s longtime beauty staples for a reason: they work. So, let’s take a closer look at Olay’s Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream and Pond’s Rejuveness Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream.

Olay’s Regenerist face cream works to penetrate the skin’s surface for intense hydration and a smoother skin texture. Ingredients such as Vitamin B3, hyaluronic acid, and Amino Peptides optimize surface cell renewal to visibly turn back the clock after only 28 days. Pond’s formula includes alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) and collagen to exfoliate, reverse the appearance of fine lines, and improve skin’s firmness and elasticity.

Both sound promising, but what do the reviews have to say? Well, Olay’s cream has received a 3.9-star rating after 23,370 reviews. Not bad. On the other hand, Pond’s received a 4-star rating with 6,872 reviews. Thus, it appears both creams are good enough for your beauty cabinet—perhaps even made better by the addition of your other skincare routine products.

Pricewise, Olay’s moisturizer is $27.49 for a 1.7oz jar, whereas Pond’s 7oz jar ranges from $8.98-$14.49, depending on where you purchase it.

In the battle of choosing one over the other, Pond’s seems to be the clear winner. Not only is its rating slightly better, but you get more bang for your buck. However, what does each brand represent from an ethical standpoint?

According to Ethical Elephant, Olay isn’t cruelty-free or 100% vegan. Evidently, they allow their products or ingredients to be tested on animals when required by law (including when selling in stores in mainland China). But Olay claims to support the Humane Society’s #BeCrueltyFree campaign to ban animal testing by 2023, so perhaps they will be vegan and cruelty-free by the end of this year.

Moreover, their philanthropic efforts are quite impressive. They’ve committed $5 million to #TakeOnRace, which supports organizations fighting systemic bias and inequality. Regarding eco-friendly actions, they began experimenting with refillable packaging back in 2019 in the United Kingdom, but it appears this practice didn’t extend to the United States and it’s unclear if they’re still working towards refillables.

Cruelty-Free Kitty reports that Pond’s is not cruelty-free, nor do they market themselves as having vegan options. Further, while Pond’s takes pride in their 150+ year heritage, they don’t seem to have any information listed about their sustainable or philanthropic initiatives.

Overall, Pond’s may save you a few dollars, but Olay will be an investment you can feel a little bit better about.