What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPotassium Myristate
EmulsifyingGlycerin
Humectant
Potassium Behenate
CleansingSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Potassium Palmitate
EmulsifyingPotassium Laurate
EmulsifyingPotassium Stearate
CleansingPersea Gratissima Oil
Skin Conditioning
Triticum Vulgare Germ Oil
Emollient
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil
Emollient
Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil
Emollient
Rosa Canina Fruit Oil
Emollient
Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil
Skin Conditioning
Oenothera Biennis Oil
Emollient
Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil
Masking
Brassica Campestris Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Citrus Grandis
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil
Masking
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil
Masking
Squalane
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Petrolatum
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Methyldihydrojasmonate
MaskingPolyquaternium-7
PEG-3 Distearate
Emulsifying
Disodium EDTA
Limonene
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Methylchloroisothiazolinone
Preservative
Methylisothiazolinone
Preservative
Water, Potassium Myristate, Glycerin, Potassium Behenate, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Potassium Palmitate, Potassium Laurate, Potassium Stearate, Persea Gratissima Oil, Triticum Vulgare Germ Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, Rosa Canina Fruit Oil, Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Oenothera Biennis Oil, Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil, Brassica Campestris Seed Oil, Citrus Grandis, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil, Squalane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Petrolatum, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Methyldihydrojasmonate, Polyquaternium-7, PEG-3 Distearate, Disodium EDTA, Limonene, Linalool, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone
Isopropyl Palmitate
Emollient
Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate
Emollient
Polybutene
PEG-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate
Emollient
Isohexadecane
EmollientPEG-8 Diisostearate
Emulsifying
Aleurites Moluccanus Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
PEG-12 Diisostearate
Emulsifying
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Methyldihydrojasmonate
MaskingSimmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Jasminum Officinale Flower Wax
EmollientCalophyllum Inophyllum Seed Oil
Antimicrobial
Camellia Japonica Seed Oil
Emollient
Lavandula Hybrida Oil
Emollient
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil
Masking
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Glycerin
Humectant
Glyceryl Laurate
Emollient
Water
Skin ConditioningPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Dipentaerythrityl Tri-Polyhydroxystearate
Emollient
Linalyl Acetate
Masking
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Isopropyl Palmitate, Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate, Polybutene, PEG-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate, Isohexadecane, PEG-8 Diisostearate, Aleurites Moluccanus Seed Oil, PEG-12 Diisostearate, Tocopherol, Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Methyldihydrojasmonate, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Jasminum Officinale Flower Wax, Calophyllum Inophyllum Seed Oil, Camellia Japonica Seed Oil, Lavandula Hybrida Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Bisabolol, Glycerin, Glyceryl Laurate, Water, Pentylene Glycol, Dipentaerythrityl Tri-Polyhydroxystearate, Linalyl Acetate, Tocopheryl Acetate
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 GlycerinLavandula Angustifolia Oil is more commonly known as lavender essential oil. It is considered a fragrancing ingredient.
Lavender imparts a famous scent. While the smell is lovely, this ingredient and may sensitize skin in topical products. This is because about 85% of the oil is made up of linalool and linalyl acetate.
When exposed to air, these two compounds become strong allergens. This ingredient exhibits cytotoxicity at low concentrations; amounts of 0.25% have been shown to damage skin cells.
A study from Japan found this ingredient caused lavender sensitivity after widespread exposure.
Lavender essential oil has some antimicrobial, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the cons of this ingredient may outweight the pros.
More research is needed to confirm lavender essential oil's effects when used in aromatherapy.
Lavandula Angustifolia is known as the English Lavender and famous for creating purple fields in Provence, France.
Learn more about Lavandula Angustifolia OilLimnanthes Alba Seed Oil is from the seeds of the meadowfoam plant. It is a skin conditioning agent and emollient that sits on top of skin to soften and hydrate it.
Over 98% of the oil is made up of long-chain fatty acids, mostly aachidic acid (61%), docosenoic acid (~16%), and docosadienoic acid (~18%).
This combination is not really found in any other plant oil and is the reason this is one of the most stable botanical oils available.
Some studies show it to be more stable than jojoba oil, helps a product resist going rancid, and can help extend the shelf life of a formula.
It also naturally contains vitamin E and phytosterols that give it a mild antioxidant benefit.
This ingredient is typically used from around 1% to fairly high levels since it's gentle; it's well-tolerated and low on the irritation scale.
Learn more about Limnanthes Alba Seed OilWe don't have a description for Methyldihydrojasmonate yet.
This ingredient is also known as olive oil. It has been used in skincare for centuries and science largely backs up its reputation as a nourishing emollient.
The main components of olive oil are oleic acid (55-83%), linoleic acid (3.5-20%), and palmitic acid (7-20%). Oleic acid promotes skin regeneration and helps regulate inflammatory responses.
Squalene is also naturally present in olive oil and exhibits moisturizing and antioxidant properties.
The polyphenols in olive oil also show anti-aging promise; one clinical study found a measurable improvement in skin appearance after 30 days of topical serum use.
Just be aware that applying olive oil directly to skin can weaken the barrier and cause redness. One study with volunteers found even people without sensitive skin experienced a significant reduction in stratum corneum integrity and induced mild erythema.
It's best to use this ingredient as part of a carefully crafted formula (instead of putting it on skin directly from the bottle).
Because it has a 2-3 on the comedogenic scale, it is a moderate risk for acne-prone skin. However, the overall formulation of a product matters more than a few ingredients with comedogenic ratings.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe because of the oleic and palmitic acid content. These fall within the C11-24 fatty acid range that the Malassezia yeast can metabolize to grow.
Overall, olive oil is a well-studied and nourishing skincare ingredient.
Learn more about Olea Europaea Fruit OilJojoba oil is one of the most well-studied plant-derived ingredients in cosmetics. It is an emollient with a special structure.
Because it is made up of 97-98% wax esters, it closely mirrors the linear monoesters found in human sebum. This makes it skin compatible, non-greasy, and lightweight.
Unlike other plant oils, jojoba wax doesn't easily penetrate skin. It mostly works in the uppermost layers as an emollient. This just means it forms a light barrier on the skin to help retain moisture.
Formulations with jojoba esters up to 90% reduced transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and increased barrier recovery by 81% (outperforming bisabolol at 47%).
Besides barrier support, the science also suggests jojoba to have anti-inflammatory effects and potential applications for skin infections, aging, and wound healing.
Fun fact: Indigenous cultures have used jojoba as a moisturizer and to help treat burns for centuries.
Fungal acne: The Malassezia yeast is known to metabolize fatty acids in the C11-24 range and jojoba's dominant fatty acid components fall into this range. This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Simmondsia Chinensis Seed OilWater. 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
