bareMinerals Original Pure Serum Radiant Natural Liquid Foundation Mineral SPF 20 Versus Fenty Beauty Soft’Lit Naturally Luminous Longwear Foundation
What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Coconut Alkanes
Emollient
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantSilica
Abrasive
Stearalkonium Hectorite
Gel FormingCoco-Caprylate/Caprate
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Lecithin
Emollient
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Propylene Carbonate
SolventPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningMagnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Nymphaea Alba Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
CI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantIron Oxides
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Coconut Alkanes, Mica, Silica, Stearalkonium Hectorite, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Glycerin, Lecithin, Jojoba Esters, Propylene Carbonate, Phenoxyethanol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Butylene Glycol, Water, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Nymphaea Alba Flower Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, CI 77891, Iron Oxides
Water
Skin ConditioningDimethicone
Emollient
Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate
EmollientDiphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Synthetic Fluorphlogopite
Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Trisiloxane
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Trimethylsiloxysilicate
Emollient
Disteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingPEG-10 Dimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Polyphenylsilsesquioxane
Magnesium Sulfate
Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Emulsion Stabilising
Lauroyl Lysine
Skin Conditioning
Triethoxycaprylylsilane
Aluminum Hydroxide
EmollientPolyhydroxystearic Acid
Emulsifying
Ethylhexyl Palmitate
Emollient
Isopropyl Myristate
Emollient
Isostearic Acid
Cleansing
Lecithin
Emollient
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate
Emulsifying
Cyperus Rotundus Root Extract
Skin ConditioningCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantIron Oxides
Water, Dimethicone, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Diphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone, Glycerin, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Trisiloxane, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Polyphenylsilsesquioxane, Magnesium Sulfate, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Lauroyl Lysine, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Aluminum Hydroxide, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Isopropyl Myristate, Isostearic Acid, Lecithin, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Cyperus Rotundus Root Extract, CI 77891, Iron Oxides
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 GlycolCi 77891 is a white pigment from Titanium dioxide. It is naturally found in minerals such as rutile and ilmenite.
It's main function is to add a white color to cosmetics. It can also be mixed with other colors to create different shades.
Ci 77891 is commonly found in sunscreens due to its ability to block UV rays.
Learn more about CI 77891Glycerin (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 GlycerinLecithin is a term for a group of substances found in the cell membranes of plants, animals, and humans. They are made up of phospholipids.
Thanks to its amphiphilic structure (water-loving head and oil-loving tail), it is a true multitasker:
It plays well with most ingredients and is typically used at 0.1-1%. However, concentrations up to 50% have been reported in moisturizers.
Learn more about LecithinWater. 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 WaterThis ingredient is a combination of red, black, and yellow iron oxide pigments. This combination of colors is usually found in foundation, because it results in a "skin" color.
The EU typically uses CI numbers for colorants when applicable, such as CI 77489. In the US, iron oxides are regulated as color additives and "iron oxides" is the most commonly used name in US cosmetic practice.
A 2021 paper looked at skincare formulations containing iron oxides and found that they reduced transmission of blue light when measured optically. In simple terms, the pigment particles helped block or scatter part of the visible light spectrum in lab testing and the authors suggest this could translate into better protection against blue-light-related skin effects.
There is also clinical and experimental research showing that tinted products containing iron oxides can reduce visible light-induced pigmentation:
Please note, whether a product reduces visible or blue light depends on things like:
In the EU's CosIng database, iron oxides are only listed as a colorant. CosIng groups ingredients by their main cosmetic role, such as colorant, preservative, or UV filter.
Though studies say iron oxides can "attenuate blue light", they're describing an optical property and not an officially recognized cosmetic function.
So CosIng isn’t contradicting the research. It’s just classifying iron oxides by what they officially are: pigments that add color.
Learn more about Iron Oxides
