What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Sorbitol
Humectant
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Arginine
Masking
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Dimethiconol
Emollient
Disodium EDTA
Disodium Ethylene Dicocamide PEG-15 Disulfate
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine
Skin Conditioning
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Water, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitol, Behenyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Allantoin, Arginine, Caprylyl Glycol, Ceteareth-20, Cetyl Alcohol, Citric Acid, Dimethiconol, Disodium EDTA, Disodium Ethylene Dicocamide PEG-15 Disulfate, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine, Niacinamide, Panthenol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium PCA, Sodium Polyacrylate, Tocopheryl Acetate
Glycerin
Humectant
Petrolatum
Emollient
Paraffinum Liquidum
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Dimethicone
Emollient
PEG-12
HumectantTriethanolamine
BufferingAcrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingIsohexadecane
EmollientPolysorbate 80
Emulsifying
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingWater
Skin ConditioningIngredients 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 GlycerinGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearatePentylene glycol is typically used within a product to thicken it. It also adds a smooth, soft, and moisturizing feel to the product. It is naturally found in plants such as sugar beets.
The hydrophilic trait of Pentylene Glycol makes it a humectant. As a humectant, Pentylene Glycol helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
This property also makes Pentylene Glycol a great texture enhancer. It can also help thicken or stabilize a product.
Pentylene Glycol also acts as a mild preservative and helps to keep a product microbe-free.
Some people may experience mild eye and skin irritation from Pentylene Glycol. We always recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient in your routine.
Pentylene Glycol has a low molecular weight and is part of the 1,2-glycol family.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolWater. 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
