What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Xylitylglucoside
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Xylitol
Humectant
Anhydroxylitol
Humectant
Urea
Buffering
Zinc PCA
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Capryloyl Glycine
CleansingParfum
Masking
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Emollient
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
Buffering
O-Cymen-5-Ol
Antimicrobial
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Xylitylglucoside, Pentylene Glycol, Xylitol, Anhydroxylitol, Urea, Zinc PCA, Tocopherol, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Capryloyl Glycine, Parfum, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Propylene Glycol, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Citric Acid, O-Cymen-5-Ol, Sodium Benzoate
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Maltitol
HumectantPropylene Glycol
Humectant
PEG-150
HumectantSodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Sodium Lauroyl Aspartate
CleansingLauryl Hydroxysultaine
CleansingPolysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningDisodium EDTA
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Methylparaben
Preservative
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinPropylene Glycol is a synthetic, colorless, odorless liquid that has been a staple in cosmetics for decades. It is a skin conditioning agent, humectant, and solvent.
As a humectant, it draw water to the skin to reduce flaking and restore suppleness. It's also a solvent that helps dissolve other actives and keeps formulas stable across temperature changes.
The CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be nontoxic and clinical studies show no sensitization at cosmetic use concentrations.
True allergic reactions are quite rare: a 15-year retrospective study of 6,751 patients found only 0.31% had a positive reaction (and less than half were considered clinically relevant).
It seemed that when sensitization does occur, it's most commonly linked to topical medication (like corticosteroids) and not cosmetics. Allergic contact dermatitis also appears largely limited to individuals with underlying skin conditions.
Overall, propylene glycol is a well-studied ingredient that most people can tolerate without issue.
Learn more about Propylene GlycolSodium Cocoyl Glutamate is a gentle cleanser and surfactant. It is the sodium salt of the Cocoyl Glutamic Acid and comes from coconut oil. As a surfactant, it helps lift dirt and oil to be washed away.
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate also has an emolliating effect and can help leave the skin feeling soft.
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. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about Water
