What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningNiacinamide
Smoothing
Glycerin
Humectant
Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate
Skin Conditioning
Tranexamic Acid
Astringent
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Alpha-Arbutin
Antioxidant
Citric Acid
Buffering
Squalane
Emollient
Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi Leaf Extract
Skin Conditioning
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Bleaching
Mitracarpus Scaber Extract
Skin ConditioningHydrolyzed Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum
AbsorbentCaesalpinia Spinosa Gum
Skin ConditioningPolyglyceryl-6 Caprylate
EmulsifyingPolyglyceryl-4 Caprate
EmulsifyingBiotin
AntiseborrhoeicButylene Glycol
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingDehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Sodium Metabisulfite
Antioxidant
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Niacinamide, Glycerin, Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate, Tranexamic Acid, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Alpha-Arbutin, Citric Acid, Squalane, Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi Leaf Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Mitracarpus Scaber Extract, Hydrolyzed Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum, Caesalpinia Spinosa Gum, Polyglyceryl-6 Caprylate, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate, Biotin, Butylene Glycol, Xanthan Gum, Dehydroacetic Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Sodium Metabisulfite, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinPolyglyceryl-4 Caprate comes from Capric Acid and Polyglycerin-4. It is an emulsifier.
Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. They do this by preventing ingredients from separating, such as oils and water which do not mix naturally.
Polyglyceryl-6 Caprylate comes from caprylic acid and Polyglycerin-6. It is an emulsifier, emollient, and cleansing agent.
Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. It does this by preventing certain ingredients from separating. Common ingredients include oils and water, which do not mix naturally. Emulsifiers have properties that help keep ingredients such as these together. There is emerging research that shows emulsifiers may also help in delivering ingredients into the skin.
As an emollient, polyglyceryl-6 caprylate helps soften skin.
Learn more about Polyglyceryl-6 CaprylateWater. 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
