What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2
AbsorbentButylene Glycol
Humectant
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Salix Alba Bark Extract
Astringent
Laminaria Saccharina Extract
Skin ProtectingLactobacillus Ferment
Skin Conditioning
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Trimethylpentanediol/Adipic Acid/Glycerin Crosspolymer
Skin ConditioningAcetyl Glucosamine
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Pyridoxine Hcl
Skin ConditioningZinc Sulfate
Antimicrobial
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2, Butylene Glycol, Dipropylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Salix Alba Bark Extract, Laminaria Saccharina Extract, Lactobacillus Ferment, Niacinamide, Trimethylpentanediol/Adipic Acid/Glycerin Crosspolymer, Acetyl Glucosamine, Sodium Hyaluronate, Pyridoxine Hcl, Zinc Sulfate, Phenoxyethanol
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Dicaprylyl Ether
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Propanediol
Solvent
Cetyl Esters
Emollient
Coco-Caprylate/Caprate
Emollient
Polyglyceryl-6 Distearate
Emulsifying
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Pelargonium Graveolens Extract
Masking
Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax
Emollient
Glycine Soja Oil
Emollient
Zingiber Officinale Root Extract
Masking
Sanguisorba Officinalis Root Extract
CleansingHelianthus Annuus Seed Wax
Skin Conditioning
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Haematococcus Pluvialis Extract
Antioxidant
Cinnamomum Cassia Bark Extract
Masking
Tin Oxide
Abrasive
Sorbitan Oleate
Emulsifying
Isohexadecane
EmollientSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingSilica Silylate
Emollient
Hydrolyzed Opuntia Ficus-Indica Flower Extract
Abrasive
Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate
Capryloyl Salicylic Acid
Exfoliating
Citric Acid
Buffering
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Synthetic Fluorphlogopite
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPolyglycerin-3
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-3 Beeswax
Emulsifying
Polysorbate 80
Emulsifying
Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
CI 77491
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantParfum
Masking
Water, Glycerin, Dicaprylyl Ether, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Pentylene Glycol, Jojoba Esters, Propanediol, Cetyl Esters, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Polyglyceryl-6 Distearate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Behenyl Alcohol, Pelargonium Graveolens Extract, Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax, Glycine Soja Oil, Zingiber Officinale Root Extract, Sanguisorba Officinalis Root Extract, Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Haematococcus Pluvialis Extract, Cinnamomum Cassia Bark Extract, Tin Oxide, Sorbitan Oleate, Isohexadecane, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Silica Silylate, Hydrolyzed Opuntia Ficus-Indica Flower Extract, Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate, Capryloyl Salicylic Acid, Citric Acid, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polyglycerin-3, Polyglyceryl-3 Beeswax, Polysorbate 80, Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer, Cetyl Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, CI 77491, CI 77891, Parfum
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinPentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:
Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.
On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.
Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolPhenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).
It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.
On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.
Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).
You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.
Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.
Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.
Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.
Learn more about PhenoxyethanolSodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateWater. 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
