What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Isononanoate
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Dicaprylyl Carbonate
EmollientPolyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate
Emulsifying
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Magnesium Aluminum Silicate
Absorbent
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Cholesterol
Emollient
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Sorbitol
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Galactoarabinan
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPolyglyceryl-2 Dipolyhydroxystearate
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingWater, Pentylene Glycol, Cetearyl Isononanoate, Glycerin, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Glyceryl Stearate, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Phytosphingosine, Cholesterol, Ceramide AP, Ceramide NP, Sorbitol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Tocopherol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Galactoarabinan, Xanthan Gum, Polyglyceryl-2 Dipolyhydroxystearate, Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate, Sodium Gluconate, Citric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide
Ingredients 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 GlycerinWater. 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
