What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCentaurea Cyanus Flower Water
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Alcohol
Antimicrobial
Euphrasia Officinalis Extract
AntimicrobialAcmella Oleracea Extract
Skin ProtectingHydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Pantolactone
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside
CleansingSclerotium Gum
Emulsion StabilisingGranite
Skin ConditioningWater, Centaurea Cyanus Flower Water, Glycerin, Panthenol, Pentylene Glycol, Alcohol, Euphrasia Officinalis Extract, Acmella Oleracea Extract, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Pantolactone, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Sclerotium Gum, Granite
Water
Skin ConditioningMethylpropanediol
SolventGlycerin
Humectant
Alpinia Galanga Extract
Skin ConditioningCaesalpinia Spinosa Fruit Extract
Skin ProtectingTripleurospermum Maritimum Extract
Skin ProtectingKappaphycus Alvarezii Extract
Skin ConditioningHydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside
CleansingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Sorbic Acid
Preservative
Parfum
Masking
Water, Methylpropanediol, Glycerin, Alpinia Galanga Extract, Caesalpinia Spinosa Fruit Extract, Tripleurospermum Maritimum Extract, Kappaphycus Alvarezii Extract, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Xanthan Gum, Tocopherol, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Citric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Sorbic Acid, Parfum
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
This ingredient is a mild surfactant made by sticking glucose onto a blend of fatty acids.
It does two jobs because it has a sugar head that loves water and a fatty tail that loves oil:
Typical use levels range from 10-20% in cleansers and 15-30% in shower products.
Once on your skin, your skin's glucoside hydrolases breaks it down into glucose and the parent fatty alcohols.
This ingredient is considered fungal acne safe because its fatty alcohol portion sits outside the Malassezia yeast's metabolization range.
Learn more about Caprylyl/Capryl 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 GlycerinHydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is hyaluronic acid (HA) that is broken down into lower molecular weight fragments.
It's a humectant that pulls and holds water in the skin to help with hydration, plumpness, and reduce transepidermal water loss.
Because hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid is smaller in size, it can slip past your outermost layer of skin more easily than full-sized HA.
Most formulations will combine all sizes to get the best of both worlds.
Typical usage levels range from 0.01-1%. Any percentage higher than 2% might become goopy and tacky.
Learn more about Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic AcidThis ingredient is created by putting sodium hyaluronate through hydrolysis.
You might know this as 'mini' or 'ultra low-molecular weight' hyaluronic acid. The small molecule size means it is able to travel deeper in the skin.
According to studies, low molecular-weight hyaluronic acid can:
One study from 2011 found ultra-low weight HA to show pro-inflammatory properties. Another study from 2022 found it to downregulate UV-B induced inflammation.
Hydrolysis is a process of changing a molecule using water or enzymes.
This ingredient is water-soluble.
Learn more about Hydrolyzed Sodium HyaluronatePentylene glycol is typically used within a product to thicken it. It also adds a smooth, soft, and moisturizing feel to the product. It is naturally found in plants such as sugar beets.
The hydrophilic trait of Pentylene Glycol makes it a humectant. As a humectant, Pentylene Glycol helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
This property also makes Pentylene Glycol a great texture enhancer. It can also help thicken or stabilize a product.
Pentylene Glycol also acts as a mild preservative and helps to keep a product microbe-free.
Some people may experience mild eye and skin irritation from Pentylene Glycol. We always recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient in your routine.
Pentylene Glycol has a low molecular weight and is part of the 1,2-glycol family.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolPolyglyceryl-10 Laurate is a cleansing agent and emulsifier.
It rounds up dirt, oil, and grime, so they can be rinsed off easily as a cleanser. On the emulsifier side, it keeps your formula smooth and well-mixed by playing peacekeeper for ingredients that don't naturally get along (like oil and water).
Because it has a C12 (lauric acid) fatty acid chain, this ingredient can potentially feed the Malassezia yeast that causes fungal acne. The Malassezia yeast prefers esters with C11-C24 fatty acids If you're prone to flare-ups, you might want to patch-test or skip this one.
This ingredient is an ester of lauric acid and Polyglycerin-10.
Learn more about Polyglyceryl-10 LaurateSodium 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 Water
