What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningVaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract
AstringentSaccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract
MaskingCitrus Limon Fruit Extract
Masking
Acer Saccharum Extract
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Ascorbyl Methylsilanol Pectinate
Antioxidant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Panax Ginseng Root
Emollient
Sodium Levulinate
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Water, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Fruit Extract, Acer Saccharum Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Ascorbyl Methylsilanol Pectinate, Niacinamide, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Saccharide Isomerate, Panthenol, Allantoin, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Panax Ginseng Root, Sodium Levulinate, Potassium Sorbate
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Water
Skin ConditioningHamamelis Virginiana Water
Astringent
Salix Nigra Bark Extract
Skin ProtectingLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf
Skin ConditioningSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Glycerin
Humectant
Levulinic Acid
Perfuming
Sodium Levulinate
Skin ConditioningVaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract
AstringentSaccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingAcer Saccharum Extract
Skin ConditioningCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract
MaskingCitrus Limon Fruit Extract
Masking
Oryza Sativa Extract
Absorbent
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Betula Pendula Sap
Skin ConditioningLactobacillus/Arundinaria Gigantea Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningCaprylyl/Capryl Wheat Bran/Straw Glycosides
CleansingFusel Wheat Bran/Straw Glycosides
EmulsifyingPolyglyceryl-5 Oleate
Emulsifying
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Glyceryl Caprylate
EmollientOlea Europaea Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Pseudotsuga Menziesii Branch/Leaf Oil
Perfuming
Lavandula Angustifolia Flower Oil
Masking
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil
Masking
Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil
Masking
Boswellia Carterii Resin Extract
MaskingAlcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Water, Hamamelis Virginiana Water, Salix Nigra Bark Extract, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf, Sodium Hyaluronate, Glycerin, Levulinic Acid, Sodium Levulinate, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Acer Saccharum Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Fruit Extract, Oryza Sativa Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Betula Pendula Sap, Lactobacillus/Arundinaria Gigantea Ferment Filtrate, Caprylyl/Capryl Wheat Bran/Straw Glycosides, Fusel Wheat Bran/Straw Glycosides, Polyglyceryl-5 Oleate, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Glyceryl Caprylate, Olea Europaea Leaf Extract, Pseudotsuga Menziesii Branch/Leaf Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia Flower Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Boswellia Carterii Resin Extract, Alcohol Denat.
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
We don't have a description for Acer Saccharum Extract yet.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice comes from leaves of the aloe plant. Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice is best known for helping to soothe sunburns. It is also anti-inflammatory, moisturizing, antiseptic, and can help heal wounds.
Aloe is packed with good stuff including Vitamins A, C, and E. These vitamins are antioxidants, which help fight free-radicals and the damage they may cause. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells, such as pollution.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice also contains sugars. These sugars come in the form of monosaccharides and polysaccharides, folic acid, and choline. These sugars are able to help bind moisture to skin.
It also contains minerals such as calcium, 12 anthraquinones, fatty acids, amino acids, and Vitamin B12.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceCamellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (tea extract) is one of the most well-researched plant extracts in skincare with an impressive resume.
Black tea, green tea, and oolong tea are all harvested from the Camellia Sinensis plant.
Studies show green tea extract and its catechins (like epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)) help your skin cells product energy more efficiently and reducing the number of free-radicals that can damage your skin from the inside.
In lab-grown skin models, this translated to younger, healthier, and stronger skin.
There's also good sun protection data; researchers saw less DNA damage and redness on human skin when green tea was applied before UVB exposure. And the more they applied, the better the protection.
Needless to say, this ingredient shouldn't replace your sunscreen. But it is a great supportive ingredient that you can already find in many sunscreens and antioxidant serums.
A 2009 study found a 2% green tea lotion was effective for mild-to-moderate acne thanks to its anti-inflammatory and mild antimicrobial activity.
The quality of the extract matters a lot here:
Good extracts contain 50-90% catechins while lower quality ones are mostly there for marketing. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the quality or source of their ingredients.
Human Repeated Insult Patch Testing showed no irritation or sensitization at use concentrations (0.86% in leave-on products and up to 30% as leaf water).
Learn more about Camellia Sinensis Leaf ExtractCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract is more commonly known as the bitter orange. Native to Southeast Asia, this extract is commonly found in both cosmetics and foods.
The bitter orange possesses antibacterial and antioxidant properties.
It can also be mildly exfoliating due to the citric acid, an AHA.
Citrus fruits are rich in flavonoids, alkaloids, and vitamin C.
Learn more about Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit ExtractCitrus Limon Fruit Extract comes from lemons. While lemon extract is exfoliating and antimicrobial, it can also cause skin sensitivity.
Lemons contains antioxidants, which may help with anti-aging. They are also rich in citric acid, an AHA.
And of course, lemons are rich in Vitamin C. Vitamin C helps with skin-brightening and increasing collagen production.
The acidity of lemons may work as an astringent for acne.
However, lemons can also cause skin sensitivity due to its limonene content. It can also increase photosensitivity, or sensitivity to the sun.
This ingredient is also used to add a lemon scent to products.
Learn more about Citrus Limon Fruit ExtractGlycerin (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 GlycerinThis ingredient is also called sugarcane extract. It is a moisturizing humectant and has skin soothing properties.
Similar to hyaluronic acid, sugarcane can attract moisture to your skin.
Glycolic acid is a derivative of sugarcane. While glycolic acid is an AHA with exfoliating properties, sugarcane is not an AHA.
A study from 2021 found the compounds in sugarcane extract to have antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory activity. The study also suggests these compounds can inhibit skin ageing enzymes and promote collagen synthesis.
Learn more about Saccharum Officinarum ExtractSodium 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 HyaluronateSodium levulinate is the a sodium salt of Levulinic Acid. Oncedissolved in an aqueous solution, the two ingredients become identical. It is usually derived from renewable plant sources like corn starch or sugarcane.
In skincare, it mostly acts as a skin conditioning agent that keeps skin soft and hydrated. It also acts as a preservative booster by inhibiting the growth of mold, yeast, and bacteria.
It's often paired with Sodium Anisate as the two create a broad-spectrum preservative system that is popular in "natural" formulations.
This ingredient is water-soluble.
The CIR Expert Panel for Cosmetic Ingredient Safety has concluded this ingredient to be non-irritated and there are no restrictions for use in EU cosmetics. The FDA also allows this ingredient to be used as a food-grade flavoring agent.
Learn more about Sodium LevulinateWe don't have a description for Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit/Leaf Extract yet.
Water. 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
