What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Citric Acid
Buffering
PPG-2 Hydroxyethyl Cocamide
Emulsifying
PEG-16 Soy Sterol
EmulsifyingPolysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Disodium Lauroamphodiacetate
CleansingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Coco Pg-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate
CleansingSodium Citrate
BufferingTetrasodium EDTA
Methylparaben
Preservative
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPropylparaben
Preservative
Ethylparaben
Preservative
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Amino Acids
Cleansing
Sarcosine
Skin Conditioning
Potassium Aspartate
Skin ConditioningMagnesium Aspartate
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingWater, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Decyl Glucoside, Citric Acid, PPG-2 Hydroxyethyl Cocamide, PEG-16 Soy Sterol, Polysorbate 20, Disodium Lauroamphodiacetate, Phenoxyethanol, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Coco Pg-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate, Sodium Citrate, Tetrasodium EDTA, Methylparaben, Xanthan Gum, Propylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylene Glycol, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Sodium Cocoyl Amino Acids, Sarcosine, Potassium Aspartate, Magnesium Aspartate, Sodium Hydroxide
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingAcrylates Copolymer
Lauryl Glucoside
CleansingPEG-200 Hydrogenated Glyceryl Palmate
Cleansing
Triethanolamine
BufferingSodium Chloride
MaskingPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate
Emulsifying
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingCitric Acid
Buffering
Hexylene Glycol
EmulsifyingBehenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Distearyl Ether
Skin ConditioningSodium Benzoate
Masking
Laureth-2
CleansingSqualane
Emollient
Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil
Skin Conditioning
Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil
Masking
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Ascorbyl Glucoside
Antioxidant
Persea Gratissima Oil
Skin Conditioning
Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Decyl Glucoside, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Acrylates Copolymer, Lauryl Glucoside, PEG-200 Hydrogenated Glyceryl Palmate, Triethanolamine, Sodium Chloride, Pentylene Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Hexylene Glycol, Behenyl Alcohol, Distearyl Ether, Sodium Benzoate, Laureth-2, Squalane, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil, Tocopherol, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Persea Gratissima Oil
Reviews
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 AcidCocamidopropyl 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 BetaineDecyl Glucoside is a plant-derived surfactant and emulsion stabilizer. It is created by reacting glucose with the fatty acids from plants.
Like all surfactants, it works by lowering the surface tension between water and oil. This makes it so that dirt, sebum, and makeup can be lifted off your skin and rinsed away. It also produces a dense and creamy foam.
Because it has a neutral charge, it is compatible with a wide range of ingredients and stays stable across a broad pH range/water hardiness conditions.
Patch testing has shown it to have the lowest irritation potential among common cleansing surfactants (like SLS).
Typical use levels range from 5-20% in rinse-off cleansers.
One thing worth knowing: The American Contact Dermatitis Society named the parent family, alkyl glucosides, "Allergen of the Year" in 2017. The prevalence of allergy is pretty low but be sure to patch test if you've reacted to "gentle" or sulfate-free cleansers before.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because the fatty alcohol portion of this ingredient is not within the C11-24 chain length that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Decyl GlucosideGlycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Sodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.
In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.
Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.
"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.
Learn more about Sodium HydroxideWater. 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
