Versus

COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser Versus Soul Apothecary Salicylic Acid Cleanser

Face Cleanser
Face Cleanser
Korean Brand South Korea
Filipino Brand Philippines

Updated on July 19, 2024

Overview

What they are

These products are both cruelty-free and reef safe face cleansers. They have a total of 3 ingredients in common

Cool Features

They both contain BHA

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne, dry skin, sensitive skin, oily skin, reducing pores and scar healing

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, common allergens, parabens, silicones or sulfates

What's Inside

They both contain fragrances and oils

We independently verify ingredients, and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Spot a product that needs an update? Let us know.

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and see relevant ingredients

What's inside (and what isn't)

What's inside (and what isn't)

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

found in both products
Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Soothing

Allantoin plays a role in soothing and moisturizing the skin. Because of this, it is often added to products with strong active ingredients.

Some studies have shown this ingredient can promote wound healing with higher concentrations.

Allantoin is derived from the comfrey plant but produced synthetically for cosmetic products to ensure purity.

Learn more about Allantoin
Skin Conditioning

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.

Buffering, Masking

Citric Acid is an AHA derived from citrus fruits (think oranges, lemons, and limes!).

As an AHA, Citric Acid removes the top layer of skin cells from the newer layer of skin underneath. This helps skin to remove dark spots and even out skin tone.

If you spot Citric Acid near the end of an ingredient list, it's likely there as a pH adjuster rather than an active ingredient.

Read more about some other popular AHA's here:

Learn more about Citric Acid

When to use

5,641 Routines
55% use in am
45% use in pm
97% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->
88 Routines
39% use in am
61% use in pm
83% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->

Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser 25 ingredients

2.9 /5
from 102 ratings
Drying (33) Light Scent (21) Great Value (21)
Roseblushbliss's avatar

Roseblushbliss

1 year ago
Review

You will find better things out there.

This wasn’t completely destructive to my skin back in my late teens (dehydrated oily-combo skin with hormonal acne I assume) but there’s a reason why I only aimed to finish my tube of this. Doesn’t cleanse very deeply so I felt I needed to use more product (I was oily, sweaty, and in a very place with very polluted air), and tends to leave me more dry Show more

#drying
#broke me out
#irritating
#strong scent
katrina1's avatar

katrina1

1 year ago
Review

works great on my oily skin, cleanses while not being stripping, so it doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight. 10/10 :)

#great value
#strong scent

Soul Apothecary Salicylic Acid Cleanser 21 ingredients

5.0 /5
from 2 ratings
Great Value (2) Light Scent (2) Works Well (2)
bowad's avatar

bowad

8 months ago
Review

I have a combination skin type (oily t-zone, normal for the rest).

I use this cleanser once nightly. It has a mild medicinal-like scent typically found in ointment balms albularyos (witch doctors) tend to use. 1 pump from this bottle is enough to cover my whole face. I expected that this cleanser would dry my skin due to salicylic acid but it didn't. Instead, it leaves my face clean and soft Show more

#great value
#light scent
#works well
AndreaLian's avatar

AndreaLian

1 year ago
Review

Great cleanser for skincare newbies. Definitely gentle on the skin and lessens my breakouts. There is a faint weird smell and it doesn't lather as much, but I am ok with it.

#great value
#light scent
#works well