What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Coco-Sulfate
CleansingSodium Laureth Sulfate
CleansingGlycerin
HumectantCocamidopropyl Betaine
CleansingParfum
MaskingPEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate
EmulsifyingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin ConditioningSclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil
HumectantHydroxypropyl Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Disodium EDTA
PEG-150 Distearate
EmulsifyingPhenoxyethanol
PreservativeDehydroacetic Acid
PreservativeBenzyl Alcohol
PerfumingCitric Acid
BufferingSodium Chloride
MaskingWater, Sodium Coco-Sulfate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Parfum, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sclerocarya Birrea Seed Oil, Hydroxypropyl Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Disodium EDTA, PEG-150 Distearate, Phenoxyethanol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride
Salicylic Acid 2%
MaskingBenzyl Alcohol
PerfumingButyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
CleansingGlycerin
HumectantGlycine Soja Oil
EmollientGuar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningHydrogenated Soybean Oil
EmollientHydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate
Lactic Acid
BufferingLauric Acid
CleansingPalmitic Acid
EmollientPhenoxyethanol
PreservativeSodium Benzoate
MaskingSodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Lauroyl Glycinate
CleansingSodium Lauroyl Isethionate
CleansingStearic Acid
CleansingTetrasodium EDTA
Water
Skin ConditioningSalicylic Acid 2%, Benzyl Alcohol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Glycine Soja Oil, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Hydroxypropyl Starch Phosphate, Lactic Acid, Lauric Acid, Palmitic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Lauroyl Glycinate, Sodium Lauroyl Isethionate, Stearic Acid, Tetrasodium EDTA, Water
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Benzyl Alcohol is most commonly used as a preservative. It also has a subtle, sweet smell. Small amounts of Benzyl Alcohol is not irritating and safe to use in skincare products. Most Benzyl Alcohol is derived from fruits such as apricots.
Benzyl Alcohol has both antibacterial and antioxidant properties. These properties help lengthen the shelf life of products. Benzyl Alcohol is a solvent and helps dissolve other ingredients. It can also improve the texture and spreadability.
Alcohol comes in many different forms. Different types of alcohol will have different effects on skin. This ingredient is an astringent alcohol.
Using high concentrations of these alcohols are drying on the skin. They may strip away your skin's natural oils and even damage your skin barrier. Astringent alcohols may also irritate skin.
Other types of astringent alcohols include:
According to the National Rosacea Society based in the US, you should be mindful of products with these alcohols in the top half of ingredients.
Any type of sanitizing product will have high amounts of alcohol to help kill bacteria and viruses.
Learn more about Benzyl AlcoholCocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.
This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.
Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.
While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.
Learn more about Cocamidopropyl BetaineGlycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent 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.
Chances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideWater. 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