What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Lauramidopropyl Hydroxysultaine
CleansingSodium Cocoyl Glycinate
Cleansing
Sodium Chloride
MaskingHydroxypropyl Methylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingNiacinamide
Smoothing
Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Citric Acid
Buffering
Coconut Acid
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoate
Cleansing
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Skin ConditioningDisodium EDTA
Sodium Bisulfite
Antioxidant
Cereus Grandiflorus Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil
Humectant
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Sodium Citrate
BufferingRosa Damascena Flower Water
Masking
Rosa Damascena Flower Oil
Masking
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Lauramidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Sodium Chloride, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Niacinamide, Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Polysorbate 20, Citric Acid, Coconut Acid, Sodium Cocoate, Xanthan Gum, Pentylene Glycol, Saccharide Isomerate, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Benzoate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Bisulfite, Cereus Grandiflorus Flower Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Citrate, Rosa Damascena Flower Water, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Cocoamphoacetate
CleansingAcrylates Copolymer
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate
Cleansing
Sodium Chloride
MaskingPropanediol
Solvent
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
Sodium Hydroxide
Buffering1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Glycyrrhiza Uralensis Root Extract
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCoconut Acid
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoate
Cleansing
Sodium Bisulfite
Antioxidant
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Kojic Acid
Antioxidant
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Caprylhydroxamic Acid
Disodium EDTA
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Acrylates Copolymer, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Sodium Chloride, Propanediol, Glycolic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, 1,2-Hexanediol, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis Root Extract, Xanthan Gum, Coconut Acid, Sodium Cocoate, Sodium Bisulfite, Allantoin, Kojic Acid, Sodium PCA, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Hyaluronate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolCocamidopropyl 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 BetaineCoconut acid is a mixture of fatty acids obtains by hydrolyzing coconut oil and then distilling the fatty acid portion. It works as a cleansing surfactant, emollient, and emulsifier depending on the formulation.
This ingredient is not a single compound but reflects the fatty acid profile of coconut oil itself, which is about 90% saturated. The dominant fatty acid is lauric acid (44-54%) and then myristic acid (13-19%). There are small amount of caprylic, capric, palmitic, oleic, and linoleic acids.
Human testing from CIR has shown no indication this ingredient to be a primary irritant, sensitizer, or phototoxic compound. It's also COSMOS-approved for natural and organic products.
Due to the high fatty acid content, this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Coconut AcidDisodium 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 GlycerinSodium Bisulfite is an antioxidant and is a preservative.
Chances 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 cocoate is a salt created by saponifying coconut oil. It has cleansing and emulsifying properties.
As a cleansing agent, this ingredient helps reduce the surface tension of dirt, sebum, and other residue in skin and hair. This makes them easier to be rinsed away with water.
Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate is a cleansing agent. It can be naturally derived or synthetically-created.
As a surfactant, it helps clean your skin by gathering dirt, oil, and other pollutants to be rinsed away more easily.
Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateWater. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
