What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 3%
UV Absorber
Homosalate 11.5%
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexyl Salicylate 5%
UV Absorber
Octocrylene 3%
UV Absorber
Water
Skin ConditioningC12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialGlycine Soja Seed Extract
Skin Conditioning
Dimethicone
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Phenyl Trimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Steareth-2
EmulsifyingSilica
Abrasive
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Arachidyl Alcohol
Emollient
Ethylene/Acrylic Acid Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCetearyl Glucoside
Emulsifying
Steareth-21
CleansingParfum
Masking
Polyacrylate-13
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Chlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Disodium EDTA
Polyisobutene
Arachidyl Glucoside
EmulsifyingPentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Tropolone
Skin ConditioningTitanium Dioxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantButyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 3%, Homosalate 11.5%, Ethylhexyl Salicylate 5%, Octocrylene 3%, Water, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Glycine Soja Seed Extract, Dimethicone, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Phenyl Trimethicone, Phenoxyethanol, Steareth-2, Silica, Panthenol, Arachidyl Alcohol, Ethylene/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Cetearyl Glucoside, Steareth-21, Parfum, Polyacrylate-13, Behenyl Alcohol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Chlorphenesin, Disodium EDTA, Polyisobutene, Arachidyl Glucoside, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Polysorbate 20, Tropolone, Titanium Dioxide, Mica
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is a lightweight emollient made by combinig benzoic acid with fatty alcohols that are 12-15 carbons long.
In cosmetics, it plays several roles:
The Cosmetic Review Expert Panel has concluded the alkyl benzoate group to be safe as used in cosmetics; it wasn't found to be a skin irritant and unlikely to be absorbed due to its low water solubility.
This report recorded almost 1000 reported uses with concentrations up to 59% in leave-on products but your cosmetics will typically use 0.5-15% depending on the product.
It's often called a "SPF booster": this is because it keeps UV filters properly dissolved and evenly distributed to support a sunscreen's performance. It doesn't actually raise SPF on its own.
Overall, this ingredient is well tolerated.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because it is an ester of benzoic acid.
Think of this ingredient as two parts stuck together: an oily part and an acid part. Malassezia only gets a meal when it can snip off a fatty acid to eat. With C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, the acid part is benzoic acid, which isn't a fatty acid and which the yeast can't use as food.
Benzoic acid is actually used as a preservative to stop yeast from growing.
The oily part is a blend of C12-15 fatty alcohols but fatty alcohols in this size range can support only a little Malassezia growth (mostly for one species of Malassezia as well).
In the ingredient, those alcohols stay locked inside the molecule. The yeast can only reach them by snipping the benzoate bond, and that type of bond is harder for it to cut than a normal fatty bond.
So not much gets released. And whatever does get snipped comes packaged with benzoic acid, which discourages yeast growth.
Learn more about C12-15 Alkyl BenzoateDimethicone is a type of synthetic silicone created from natural materials such as quartz. It is also known as polydimethylsiloxane.
What it does:
Dimethicone comes in different viscosities:
Depending on the viscosity, dimethicone has different properties.
Ingredients lists don't always show which type is used, so we recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the viscosity.
This ingredient is unlikely to cause irritation because it does not get absorbed into skin. However, people with silicone allergies should be careful about using this ingredient.
Note: Dimethicone may contribute to pilling. This is because it is not oil or water soluble, so pilling may occur when layered with products. When mixed with heavy oils in a formula, the outcome is also quite greasy.
Learn more about DimethiconeDisodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
Learn more about Disodium EDTAGlycerin (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 GlycerinSteareth-21 is a nonionic emulsifier made by reacting stearyl alcohol with 21 units of ethylene oxide. It is mainly a cleansing agent and emulsifier.
The "21" in the name just tells you it has a longer water-loving chain. This makes it more gentle and less likely to irritate skin compared to lower-numbered steareths.
You'll most likely see it paired with steareth-2 because the two work together to create stable formulations.
1,4-dioxane is often brought up as a concern but this is usually removed through purification.
Learn more about Steareth-21Water. 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
