What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
PEG-40 Stearate
Emulsifying
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Potassium Phosphate
BufferingCeramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Behentrimonium Methosulfate
Surfactant
Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Cholesterol
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Disodium EDTA
Dipotassium Phosphate
BufferingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningWater, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, PEG-40 Stearate, Stearyl Alcohol, Potassium Phosphate, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Carbomer, Glyceryl Stearate, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Cholesterol, Phenoxyethanol, Disodium EDTA, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tocopherol, Phytosphingosine, Xanthan Gum, Cetyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 20, Ethylhexylglycerin
Benzoyl Peroxide 10%
Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingDecyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Diethylhexyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate
CleansingDimethicone
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
PEG-40 Stearate
Emulsifying
Propanediol
Solvent
Silica
Abrasive
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Citrate
BufferingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Hydroxypropylsulfonate Laurylglucoside Crosspolymer
CleansingSorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater
Skin ConditioningBenzoyl Peroxide 10%, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Carbomer, Decyl Glucoside, Diethylhexyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate, Dimethicone, Glycerin, PEG-40 Stearate, Propanediol, Silica, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Hydroxypropylsulfonate Laurylglucoside Crosspolymer, Sorbitan Stearate, Stearic Acid, Xanthan Gum, Water
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Carbomer is a high-molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid. It is used to form gels and thicken formulas.
Due to its large molecular size, carbomer has minimal skin penetration and is considered an inert ingredient.
A high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Don't worry, most products contain 1% or less of carbomer.
Learn more about CarbomerGlycerin (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 GlycerinPEG-40 Stearate is a nonionic emulsifier and surfactant made from stearic acid.
It's water-soluble and good at coaxing oil + water to mix to keep everything stable.
The CIR Expert Panel has repeatedly concluded this ingredient to be safe at current cosmetic use levels with minimal skin/eye irritation when tested at 100%.
Your skincare also won't be containing 100% of this ingredient: the supplier recommends using 1-5% in a formula.
Broader reviews back this up: PEGs and their fatty-acid esters produce little or no skin/eye irritation, don't readily penetract intact skin, and rarely cause sensitization.
Because this ingredient is a PEG ester of stearic acid, it may not be fungal acne, or Malassezia, safe. Stearic acid (C18) sits in the C11-24 "edible window" that Malassezia lipases can cleave and metabolize.
Learn more about PEG-40 StearateWater. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
