What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSqualane
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Olivate
Sorbitan Olivate
Emulsifying
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Centella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Adenosine
Skin Conditioning
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Lactobacillus
Skin ConditioningCocos Nucifera Fruit Extract
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
Water, Squalane, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Niacinamide, Glycerin, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Centella Asiatica Extract, Behenyl Alcohol, Jojoba Esters, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Adenosine, Allantoin, Lactobacillus, Cocos Nucifera Fruit Extract, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Water
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax
Skin Conditioning
Xylitylglucoside
Humectant
Cetearyl Glucoside
Emulsifying
Citrullus Lanatus Seed Oil
Emollient
Cocos Nucifera Fruit Juice
Emollient
Nelumbo Nucifera Extract
Skin ConditioningLaminaria Ochroleuca Extract
Skin Conditioning
Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Glycerin
Humectant
Sclerotium Gum
Emulsion StabilisingXylitol
Humectant
Polyglycerin-3
Humectant
Anhydroxylitol
Humectant
Sodium Phytate
Silicon
Abrasive
Maltodextrin
Absorbent
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Sorbic Acid
Preservative
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter, Cetearyl Alcohol, Jojoba Esters, Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax, Xylitylglucoside, Cetearyl Glucoside, Citrullus Lanatus Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera Fruit Juice, Nelumbo Nucifera Extract, Laminaria Ochroleuca Extract, Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax, Tocopherol, Glycerin, Sclerotium Gum, Xylitol, Polyglycerin-3, Anhydroxylitol, Sodium Phytate, Silicon, Maltodextrin, Benzyl Alcohol, Salicylic Acid, Sorbic Acid, Potassium Sorbate
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Cetearyl alcohol is a waxy mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is an emollient and emulsifier.
Despite having "alcohol" in its name, it has nothing to do with drying solvent alcohols; the FDA also allows "alcohol-free" products to contain fatty alcohols like this ingredient.
It plays several roles in a formula:
Typical use levels for this ingredient sit around 1-10% and the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has affirmed safety at concentrations up to 25% in leave-on products.
Multiple assessments have found it to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing to most people.
However, there have been some cases of allergic contact dermatitis in patients with chronically compromised skin barriers.
Cetearyl alcohol has a comedogenic rating of 2 and irritancy rating of 1. Both of these numbers come from the 1989 study that used rabbit ears; a "2" means mildly comedogenic and a "1" means low irritancy.
Here's the catch: rabbit skin is more sensitive than human skin and throws a lot of false positives. A 1996 reappraisal found that ingredients rated 1-2 in the rabbit ear tests are generally safe for humans.
Remember comedogenic ratings are unable to assess the entire formula of a product or how it will react on your skin. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure about certain ingredients.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol with chain lengths that fall within the range that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Cetearyl AlcoholGlycerin (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 GlycerinJojoba Esters is a wax created from Jojoba oil. It is an emollient and film-forming ingredient. In bead form, it is an exfoliator.
This ingredient has high oxidative stability, meaning it doesn't break down when exposed to oxygen.
Its similarity to our skin's natural oils makes it a great emollient. Emollients help soften and soothe our skin by creating a barrier on top. This barrier helps trap moisture in, keeping skin hydrated.
It is created using either the hydrogenation or transesterification processes on jojoba oil.
Learn more about Jojoba EstersWater. 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
