What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Salicylic Acid 1%
Masking
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Methyl Lauroyl Taurate
CleansingGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Chloride
MaskingStearic Acid
Cleansing
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Hydroxystearic Acid
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Parfum
Masking
Cocamide Mea
Emulsifying
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
Buffering
Geraniol
Perfuming
Hexyl Cinnamal
Perfuming
Limonene
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Methyl Isethionate
Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Chloride
MaskingPolyquaternium-73
Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil
Masking
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Ascorbyl Glucoside
Antioxidant
Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit/Seed Oil
Antimicrobial
Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Polyquaternium-10
Magnesium PCA
Humectant
Manganese PCA
HumectantZinc PCA
Humectant
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
PCA
Humectant
Alanine
Masking
Glycine
Buffering
Glutamic Acid
Humectant
Lysine Hcl
Skin Conditioning
Threonine
Arginine
Masking
Proline
Skin Conditioning
Lauryl Glucoside
CleansingTocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Betaine
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCitrus Limon Peel Extract
EmollientLavandula Angustifolia Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract
Masking
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialRubus Idaeus Fruit Extract
AstringentSalvia Officinalis Leaf Extract
CleansingVanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Isethionate
CleansingSodium Methyl Isethionate
EmulsifyingSodium Laurate
CleansingCoconut Acid
Cleansing
Serine
Masking
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPropanediol
Solvent
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Water, Sodium Cocoyl Methyl Isethionate, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, Glycerin, Sodium Chloride, Polyquaternium-73, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Niacinamide, Panthenol, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit/Seed Oil, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Polyquaternium-10, Magnesium PCA, Manganese PCA, Zinc PCA, Sodium PCA, Sodium Lactate, PCA, Alanine, Glycine, Glutamic Acid, Lysine Hcl, Threonine, Arginine, Proline, Lauryl Glucoside, Tocopheryl Acetate, Betaine, Caprylyl Glycol, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Peel Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Rubus Idaeus Fruit Extract, Salvia Officinalis Leaf Extract, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract, Decyl Glucoside, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Citric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Isethionate, Sodium Methyl Isethionate, Sodium Laurate, Coconut Acid, Serine, Pentylene Glycol, Xanthan Gum, Propanediol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidCocamidopropyl 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 GlycerinChances 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
