COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum Versus HALE Brightening Potion

See how these products line up with your preferences

Here's our complete breakdown comparing the ingredients, attributes, and more of COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum versus HALE Brightening Potion .

Published on September 03, 2023

Overview

What they are

These products are both cruelty-free, fungal acne (malassezia) safe, and reef safe serums. They have a total of 10 ingredients in common

Cool Features

They both contain niacinamide and Vitamin E

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne, brightening skin, oily skin, reducing pores, scar healing and dark spots

Free From

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

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

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COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum

HALE Brightening Potion

Serum South Korean Brand

Serum Indonesian Brand

Serum

Serums are highly concentrated with ingredients to provide skin with benefits. They should be used after cleansing and before moisturizing.

Serum

Serums are highly concentrated with ingredients to provide skin with benefits. They should be used after cleansing and before moisturizing.

Price

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Buy The Niacinamide 15 Serum

Starts at $15.29

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Buy Brightening Potion

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and view relevant ingredients.

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

HALE Brightening Potion 15 ingredients

alcohol-free

silicon-free

fragrance-free

sulfate-free

paraben-free

oil-free

fungal-acne safe

reef-safe

eu-allergen-free

vegan

cruelty-free

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

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

HALE Brightening Potion 15 ingredients

Notable Ingredients

Vitamin E

Niacinamide

Benefits

Good For Oily Skin

Redness Reducing (2)

Reduces Irritation

Reduces Large Pores

Dark Spots

Scar Healing (2)

Acne Fighting (2)

Brightening (2)

Notable Ingredients

Vitamin E

Niacinamide

Benefits

Good For Oily Skin

Redness Reducing

Reduces Large Pores

Dark Spots

Scar Healing

Acne Fighting (2)

Brightening (2)

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Ingredients Compared

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

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

HALE Brightening Potion 15 ingredients

Water • Pentylene Glycol • Niacinamide 15% • Butylene Glycol • Acetyl Glucosamine • 1,2-Hexanediol • Zinc PCA • Trehalose • Xanthan Gum • Pullulan • Allantoin • Ethylhexylglycerin • Sodium Phytate • Citric Acid • Tocopherol

Water • Niacinamide • Glycereth-26 • Acetyl Glucosamine • 1,2-Hexanediol • Propanediol • Pentylene Glycol • Zinc PCA • Peg-11 Methyl Ether Dimethicone • Hydroxyethylcellulose • Ethylhexylglycerin • Sodium Citrate • Citric Acid • Sodium Phytate • Tocopherol

Ingredients Side-by-side

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

Learn more about what what Com. / Irr. ratings are

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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.

Water

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 helps 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!

Learn more about Water

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 1.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 1.

Pentylene Glycol

What it does: Skin Conditioning, Solvent

Community Rating: Mixed

Pentylene 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 help thicken or emulsify a product. Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. It does this by preventing certain ingredients from separating.

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 Glycol

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 2.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 7.

Niacinamide

What it does: Smoothing

Community Rating: Loved

Niacinamide has emerged as an all-star ingredient due to its many benefits.

It is known to treat acne by reducing inflammation. It also helps fade dark-spots and strengthen the skin by promoting the growth of the ceramide barrier.

Other benefits include smoothing wrinkles and minimizing redness.

The cherry on top? Niacinamide can also help build keratin, a protein that keeps skin firm.

When incorporating niacinamide into your routine, look out for concentration amounts. Typically, 5% niacinamide provides benefits such as fading dark spots. However, if you have sensitive skin, it is better to begin with a smaller concentration.

Niacinamide can be mixed with other ingredients to boost benefits. For instance, it has shown to be effective when used with copper, folic acid, and zinc to treat acne.

Learn more about Niacinamide

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 3.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 2.

Acetyl Glucosamine

What it does: Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Liked

Acetyl Glucosamine is an antioxidant and humectant. It is a form of Vitamin C.

Acetyl Glucosamine helps the skin produce hyaluronic acid and boost hydration.

Antioxidants help fight off free-radicals, molecules that may damage skin cells.

When paired with niacinamide, Acetyl Glucosamine has been shown to be effective at reducing discoloration.

Read more about other types of Vitamin C:

Learn more about Acetyl Glucosamine

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 5.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 4.

1,2-Hexanediol

What it does: Skin Conditioning, Solvent

Community Rating: Mixed

1,2-Hexanediol is a multi-tasker ingredient. It acts as a preservative to increase shelf-life and can aid other preservatives in preventing microbe growth. 1,2-Hexanediol also helps the skin retain moisture as a humectant.

In products that are water-based, this ingredient can help stabilize perfumes and fragrances. It can also help make the texture of products softer and more smooth.

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 6.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 5.

Zinc PCA

What it does: Humectant, Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Loved

Zinc PCA (or "zinc salt") differs slightly from zinc itself. PCA stands for pyrrolidone carboxylic acid. However, Zinc PCA comes from zinc.

It can help reduce redness, regulate sebum, and promote the general healing process of the skin.

Zinc PCA tends to be especially useful for those with oily, acne-prone skin. It's certainly an ingredient worth trying out!

Learn more about Zinc PCA

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 7.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 8.

Ethylhexylglycerin

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.

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 12.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 11.

Sodium Phytate

What it does:

Community Rating: Liked

Sodium Phytate is the synthetic salt form of phytic acid. Phytic acid is an antioxidant and can be found in plant seeds.

Sodium Phytate is a chelating agent. Chelating agents help prevent metals from binding to water. This helps stabilize the ingredients and the product.

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 13.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 14.

Citric Acid

What it does: Buffering, Masking

Community Rating: Disliked

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

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.

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 look more even.

Read more about some other popular AHA's here:

Learn more about Citric Acid

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 14.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 13.

Tocopherol

What it does: Antioxidant, Masking, Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Liked

Tocopherol (also known as Vitamin E) is a common antioxidant used to help protect the skin from free-radicals and strengthen the skin barrier. It's also fat soluble - this means our skin is great at absorbing it.

Vitamin E also helps keep your natural skin lipids healthy. Your lipid skin barrier naturally consists of lipids, ceramides, and fatty acids. Vitamin E offers extra protection for your skin’s lipid barrier, keeping your skin healthy and nourished.

Another benefit is a bit of UV protection. Vitamin E helps reduce the damage caused by UVB rays. (It should not replace your sunscreen). Combining it with Vitamin C can decrease sunburned cells and hyperpigmentation after UV exposure.

You might have noticed Vitamin E + C often paired together. This is because it is great at stabilizing Vitamin C. Using the two together helps increase the effectiveness of both ingredients.

There are often claims that Vitamin E can reduce/prevent scarring, but these claims haven't been confirmed by scientific research.

Learn more about Tocopherol

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum contains this as ingredient number 15.

HALE Brightening Potion contains this as ingredient number 15.

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

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

HALE Brightening Potion 15 ingredients

60% are loved or liked

27% have mixed ratings

13% are disliked or very disliked

0% have no rating yet

47% are loved or liked

40% have mixed ratings

7% are disliked or very disliked

7% have no rating yet

Usage

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

When to use

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

HALE Brightening Potion 15 ingredients

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Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

COSRX The Niacinamide 15 Serum 15 ingredients

4.0 /5

from 3 ratings

ChienYun_CY

7 months ago · Combination Skin

Review

HG acne scar serum
Initially, this serum had helped fade away most of my old acne scars. After while, I thought it didn't do anything more for my...

HG acne scar serum
Initially, this serum had helped fade away most of my old acne scars. After while, I thought it didn't do anything more for my new acne growth. So I ditched this serum for about 3 months and tried other new niacinamide products. I REGRET it. Soon after, I got more and more whiteheads and acne. My skin texture becomes uneven and dry. The new acne scars couldn't fade away at all. I decided to repurchase this serum, and almost immediately, my scars cleared and had reduced inflammation on new cystic acne. It also helped to control sebum production and I have lesser acne growth. One of the products I cannot live without.