What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Lauryl Sulfate
Cleansing
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Sodium Citrate
BufferingCocamide Mea
Emulsifying
Sodium Xylenesulfonate
Parfum
Masking
Sodium Chloride
MaskingCitric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Tetrasodium EDTA
Limonene
Perfuming
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingMagnesium Nitrate
Cannabis Sativa Seed Extract
EmollientMethylchloroisothiazolinone
Preservative
Magnesium Chloride
Methylisothiazolinone
Preservative
Water, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycol Distearate, Sodium Citrate, Cocamide Mea, Sodium Xylenesulfonate, Parfum, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Glycerin, Tetrasodium EDTA, Limonene, Sodium Hydroxide, Magnesium Nitrate, Cannabis Sativa Seed Extract, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Magnesium Chloride, Methylisothiazolinone
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Pisum Sativum Peptide
Skin Conditioning
Coco-Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Cleansing
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Maltooligosyl Glucoside
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
Buffering
Cocamide Mea
Emulsifying
Laureth-10
EmulsifyingPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningHydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate
HumectantSodium Chloride
MaskingLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Lysate Filtrate
Skin Conditioning
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Pg-Propyl Silanetriol
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
EDTA
Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Pisum Sativum Peptide, Coco-Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Glycol Distearate, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Maltooligosyl Glucoside, Citric Acid, Cocamide Mea, Laureth-10, Potassium Sorbate, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Sodium Chloride, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Lysate Filtrate, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein Pg-Propyl Silanetriol, Phenoxyethanol, EDTA
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidThis ingredient is made by combining the fatty acids from coconut oil with monoethanolamine. It is an emulsifier that helps boost foam, thicken texture, and help keep ingredients together in a formula.
Cocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.
This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.
Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.
While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.
Learn more about Cocamidopropyl BetaineGlycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.
Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.
This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.
Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Learn more about GlycerinGlycol Distearate serves as a pearlizing or opacifying agent in cosmetic products.
It's often included in cleansers and haircare products to give them a lustrous or shimmering appearance.
It is derived from stearic acid, a natural fatty acid commonly found in vegetable oils and animal fats.
Glycol Distearate isn't fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Glycol DistearateThis ingredient is derived from guar gum. It is a skin conditioning agent that creates a thin, breathable film to reduce water loss during cleansing.
This leaves the skin feeling soft rather than stripped and also contributes to a creamier lather.
Due to the large molecule size, this ingredient is unlikely to penetrate skin.
Learn more about Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium ChlorideSodium Benzoate is a preservative. It's used in both cosmetic and food products to inhibit the growth of mold and bacteria. It is typically produced synthetically.
Both the US FDA and EU Health Committee have approved the use of sodium benzoate. In the US, levels of 0.1% (of the total product) are allowed.
Sodium benzoate works as a preservative by inhibiting the growth of bacteria inside of cells. It prevents the cell from fermenting a type of sugar using an enzyme called phosphofructokinase.
It is the salt of benzoic acid. Foods containing sodium benzoate include soda, salad dressings, condiments, fruit juices, wines, and snack foods.
Studies for using ascorbic acid and sodium benzoate in cosmetics are lacking, especially in skincare routines with multiple steps.
We always recommend speaking with a professional, such as a dermatologist, if you have any concerns.
Learn more about Sodium BenzoateChances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideSodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) is a foaming, cleansing, and emulsifying ingredient. It is created from palm kernel oil or coconut oil. SLES is not the same as sodium lauryl sulfate. It is much milder and less likely to irritate.
SLES helps create foam in personal products. It also prevents ingredients from separating, helping to elongate the shelf life.
Sodium Laureth Sulfate is a type of sulfate. It can be drying. We recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient if you have concerns.
Learn more about Sodium Laureth SulfateWater. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.
So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.
You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about Water
