What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
HumectantGlycerin
HumectantPropanediol
SolventPolysorbate 20
EmulsifyingPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientParfum
MaskingSodium Benzoate
MaskingPanthenol
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
PreservativeEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPPG-26-Buteth-26
Skin ConditioningPEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
EmulsifyingSerenoa Serrulata Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
BufferingDimethyl Phenylethyl Carbinyl Acetate
PerfumingBenzyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialHexamethylindanopyran
MaskingTrimethylbenzenepropanol
MaskingTerpineol
MaskingAcetyl Cedrene
Coffea Arabica Seed Extract
MaskingApigenin
AntioxidantAlpha-Damascone
MaskingChamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
MaskingEquisetum Arvense Extract
AstringentRosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialUrtica Dioica Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningOleanolic Acid
Skin ConditioningBiotinoyl Tripeptide-1
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Propanediol, Polysorbate 20, Pentylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Parfum, Sodium Benzoate, Panthenol, Potassium Sorbate, Ethylhexylglycerin, PPG-26-Buteth-26, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Serenoa Serrulata Fruit Extract, Citric Acid, Dimethyl Phenylethyl Carbinyl Acetate, Benzyl Benzoate, Hexamethylindanopyran, Trimethylbenzenepropanol, Terpineol, Acetyl Cedrene, Coffea Arabica Seed Extract, Apigenin, Alpha-Damascone, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Equisetum Arvense Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Urtica Dioica Leaf Extract, Oleanolic Acid, Biotinoyl Tripeptide-1
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin ConditioningCetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingKeratin
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Glutamate
CleansingCocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine
CleansingPolysorbate 20
EmulsifyingBiotin
AntiseborrhoeicPolyquaternium-73
Cocamide Mipa
EmulsifyingArgania Spinosa Kernel Oil
EmollientMelaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil
AntioxidantMentha Piperita Oil
MaskingCitrus Limon Peel Oil
MaskingCedrus Atlantica Bark Oil
MaskingLavandula Angustifolia Oil
MaskingSalvia Sclarea Oil
MaskingPersea Gratissima Oil
Skin ConditioningPogostemon Cablin Leaf Oil
MaskingIsobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol
BleachingRiboflavin
Cosmetic ColorantNiacin
SmoothingPantothenic Acid
Skin ConditioningPyridoxine
Skin ConditioningFolic Acid
Skin ConditioningCyanocobalamin
Skin ConditioningAscorbic Acid
AntioxidantZinc Gluconate
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
AntioxidantCaprylhydroxamic Acid
Caprylyl Glycol
EmollientGlycerin
HumectantCitric Acid
BufferingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose, Sodium Hydroxide, Keratin, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Polysorbate 20, Biotin, Polyquaternium-73, Cocamide Mipa, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil, Mentha Piperita Oil, Citrus Limon Peel Oil, Cedrus Atlantica Bark Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Salvia Sclarea Oil, Persea Gratissima Oil, Pogostemon Cablin Leaf Oil, Isobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Pyridoxine, Folic Acid, Cyanocobalamin, Ascorbic Acid, Zinc Gluconate, Tocopherol, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Glycerin, Citric Acid
Alternatives
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
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 JuiceCaprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.
Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.
Because it is not a free-fatty acid or alcohol, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolCitric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidGlycerin (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 GlycerinPolysorbate 20 is a gentle, water-soluble emulsifier and mild surfactant. It stops oil and water from separating to keep your formulas blended and stable.
It also acts as a mild penetration enhancer by helping active ingredients absorb slightly better.
The common safety discussion around this ingredient involves a manufacturing byproduct called 1,4-dioxane.
Trace amounts can form during production but the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety has concluded that levels at/below 10 ppm in finished products are safe (commercial products consistently fall within acceptable margins).
True allergic reactions are uncommon and the CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be safe as used in cosmetics.
Because it is derived from lauric acid, it may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Polysorbate 20