Skincare Comparison

Here's our complete breakdown comparing the ingredients, attributes, and more of CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser versus The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser .

  • these products are both face cleansers that both contain bha.
  • they both do not contain any parabens or silicones.
  • they both contain fragrances.
  • they're both likely to be good for fighting acne, anti aging, brightening skin, oily skin, reducing pores and scar healing.
  • they are reef safe.
  • these products have a total of 8 ingredients in common.
Face Cleanser Canadian Brand Canada
Face Cleanser British Brand United Kingdom

Face Cleanser

Face cleansers are used to remove makeup, dead skin cells, pollutants, oil, dirt, and/or clean out pores on the skin. Face cleansers may specialize in having one function (exa. just removing makeup) or may have multiple functions (exa. Removing makeup and cleaning pores).

Face Cleanser

Face cleansers are used to remove makeup, dead skin cells, pollutants, oil, dirt, and/or clean out pores on the skin. Face cleansers may specialize in having one function (exa. just removing makeup) or may have multiple functions (exa. Removing makeup and cleaning pores).

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and view relevant ingredients.
alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free
ph level
5.5
alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Notable Ingredients

BHA
Pha
Niacinamide
Ceramides (3)
Hyaluronic Acid

Benefits

Good For Oily Skin (3)
Redness Reducing (4)
Skin Texture
Reduces Large Pores
Anti-Aging (4)
Scar Healing
Acne Fighting (2)
Brightening (3)

Concerns

Drying (2)
Acne Trigger
Irritating (2)
Eczema

Notable Ingredients

AHA
BHA
Vitamin E

Benefits

Good For Oily Skin
Reduces Large Pores (2)
Anti-Aging
Scar Healing
Acne Fighting
Brightening (2)

Concerns

Drying (3)
Acne Trigger
Irritating (3)
Eczema

Ingredients Side-by-side

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

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Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

1
What it does: Skin Conditioning, Solvent
Community Rating: Loved

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's there to help dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. Talk about multi-purpose! If you see this, drink a glass of water. Stay hydrated!

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 1.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 4.

Learn more about Water
2
What it does: Humectant, Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Solvent
Community Rating: Loved

Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin and helps moisturize and protect your skin. A study from 2016 found glycerin to be more effective as a humectant than AHAs and hyaluronic acid.

Glycerin is a humectant, helping the skin retain moisture by pulling moisture to your skin. The low molecular weight of glycerin allows it to pull moisture into the deeper layers of your skin. Having moisturized skin helps improve the skin barrier. Your skin barrier protects against skin irritants and bacteria.

Glycerin has also been found to have antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Due to these properties, glycerin is often used in wound and burn treatments.

In cosmetics, glycerin is usually derived from plants such as soybean or palm. However, animal sources include tallow. It is organic, colorless, odorless, and non-toxic.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English while British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 3.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 5.

Learn more about Glycerin
3
What it does: Cleansing, Foaming
Community Rating: Disliked

Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate isn't fungal acne safe.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 9.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 6.

Learn more about Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
4
What it does: Masking
Community Rating: Very Disliked

Chances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. In skincare, sodium chloride plays many roles.

Sodium Chloride helps make product thicker. It also prevents ingredients from separating.

In some products, sodium chloride may be an abrasive, or exfoliator.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 16.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 14.

Learn more about Sodium Chloride
5
What it does: Masking, Preservative, Skin Conditioning
Community Rating: Liked

Salicylic Acid (also known as beta hydroxy acid or BHA) is one of the most well-known ingredients for treating skin that struggles with blackheads and acne. It helps to exfoliate the skin's surface and pores, and also acts as an anti-inflammatory agent.

Unlike AHAs which are water soluble, Salicylic Acid is oil soluble. This means that it's able to exfoliate the inside of pores and reduce blackheads.

Concentrations of 0.5-2% are recognized by the U.S. FDA as an over-the-counter topical acne product.

It can cause irritation and/or dryness if one's skin already has a compromised moisture barrier, so it's best to focus on repairing that before introducing a Salicylic Acid into your routine.

In general, Salicylic Acid is a great ingredient for oily acne-prone skin.

If you are looking for the ingredient called BHA or Butylated Hydroxyanisole, click here.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 17.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 1.

Learn more about Salicylic Acid
6
What it does: Masking, Preservative
Community Rating: Disliked

Sodium Benzoate is a preservative used in both cosmetic and food products.

Sodium Benzoate is the salt of benzoic acid. Benzoic acid is found naturally in common foods such as cinnamon, tomatoes, berries, apples, honey, mushrooms, and more.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 18.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 21.

Learn more about Sodium Benzoate
7
What it does: Preservative
Community Rating: Disliked

Phenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent germ and microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.

It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 22.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 13.

Learn more about Phenoxyethanol
8
What it does: Skin Conditioning
Community Rating: Mixed

Ethylhexylglycerin (we can't pronounce this either) is commonly used as a preservative and skin softener. It is derived from glyceryl.

You might see Ethylhexylglycerin often paired with other preservatives such as phenoxyethanol. Ethylhexylglycerin has been found to increase the effectiveness of these other preservatives.

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 29.

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 20.

Learn more about Ethylhexylglycerin

Here's what our community thinks of the ingredients in these two products.

34% are loved or liked
7% have mixed ratings
28% are disliked or very disliked
31% have no rating yet
33% are loved or liked
13% have mixed ratings
29% are disliked or very disliked
25% have no rating yet

Usage

Here's some more info on how this product is used by our community.

When to use

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Ratings

Here's what our community thinks

CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser 29 ingredients

2.7 /5
Not Good At All Lol

1. it didnt clear my acne 2. it irritated tf out of my skin\ 3. it broke me out

from kawaiidesuwu_683
Think Twice Befor Using On Dry/Combination Skin

I was super excited to start using this product because of all of the benefits but found it to be slightly drying and irritating to my skin.

from CarlaTriegaardt
Drastic Change

This is a great cheap alternative to get your skincare routine started

from KeatonHowell_23

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser 24 ingredients

4.0 /5
Great Option To Keep Skin Clear

Very gentle, lightly foaming cleanser, love the short squeezable bottle with flip top cap, perfect for keeping in the shower. Effective but not stripping on the skin like some other SA cleansers I’ve tried. Free from pore clogging ingredients, this has become one of my all time favorite cleansers. For background, I have dry skin that is also prone to dehydration and is sensitive with a fair amount of surface redness on it so I only use this once per week. It’s not often I can use a foamin...

from gemmajaws

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