What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningDimethyl Isosorbide
SolventButylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Betaine
Humectant
Trehalose
Humectant
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Retinol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Retinoyl Hyaluronate
Retinal
Skin Conditioning
Epigallocatechin Gallate
Antioxidant
Tetraacetylphytosphingosine
Skin ConditioningLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Glyceryl Citrate/Lactate/Linoleate/Oleate
Emulsifying
Ethyl Oleate
Emollient
Acacia Senegal Gum
MaskingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTetrasodium EDTA
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Citrate
BufferingWater, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Glycerin, Niacinamide, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Betaine, Trehalose, Phospholipids, Panthenol, Retinol, Sodium Retinoyl Hyaluronate, Retinal, Epigallocatechin Gallate, Tetraacetylphytosphingosine, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Glyceryl Citrate/Lactate/Linoleate/Oleate, Ethyl Oleate, Acacia Senegal Gum, Xanthan Gum, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate
Reviews
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 GlycolDimethyl Isosorbide is a low-irritation solvent that helps deliver actives into your skin. It is created from glucose.
Research shows how well this ingredient works depends on the active and formulation rather than the concentration alone. This means adding more Dimethyl Isosorbide does not guarantee better penetration of ingredients into the skin.
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 GlycerinPhospholipids are a family of skin-identical lipids that makeup the structural backbone of every cell membrane in your body.
In cosmetics, they function as skin conditioning agents with emulsifier and surfactant properties. They're typically sourced from soybean or sunflower lecithin (or sometimes egg yolk or marine sources).
Because they mirror the lipids naturally found in the deeper layers of your skin, topical phospholipids help reinforce the lipid matrix, reduce transepidermal water loss, and leave skin feeling conditioned.
They're also used to form liposomes, or tiny self-assembling vesible used to stabilize actives like vitamin c or retinol. This helps these ingredients integrate into the upper layers of skin more easily.
Phospholipids are compatible with everything and the CIR Expert Panel has concluded them to be safe at current use levels.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe since phospholipids contain fatty acid chains in the C11-24 range that the malassezia yeast likes to feed on.
Some types of phospholipids include:
Learn more about PhospholipidsRetinal is a form of retinoid. Retinoids are the gold-standard class of anti-aging ingredients.
Retinal has many benefits as other retinoids: improve skin texture, reduce large pores, reduce the effects of aging, reduce the visibility of dark spots, heal scars, and fight acne.
Studies show retinal may work at a faster rate than retinol due to its structure.
All retinoids have to be converted into retinoic acid before starting to work. Some retinoids take several steps of conversion before binding. Retinal is only one step away, making it more potent.
Like other retinoids, retinal may be irritating. It is best to ease into using this ingredient frequently.
Using the 'ramp up' method, start by using retinol once a week. This gives your skin time to adjust and decrease irritation. Once you feel ready, you can slowly increase the frequency of retinol use.
Using retinoids will increase sun-sensitivity in the first few weeks of use. Though studies show retinoids increase your skin's natural SPF with continuous use, it is best to always wear sunscreen and sun-protection.
Learn more about RetinalWater. 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
