What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Hydroxyethyl Urea
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Potassium Olivoyl Hydrolyzed Oat Protein
CleansingCetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Dibutyl Adipate
EmollientCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Hydrolyzed Jojoba Esters
Skin Conditioning
Glyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
Palmitamide Mea
Squalane
Emollient
4-T-Butylcyclohexanol
Masking
Hyaluronic Acid/Polyisopropylacrylamide Copolymer
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6
Emulsion StabilisingHydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingTrilaureth-4 Phosphate
Emulsifying1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate
Skin Conditioning
Taraxacum Officinale Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningSodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Cholesterol
Emollient
Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Hydroxyethyl Urea, Pentylene Glycol, Potassium Olivoyl Hydrolyzed Oat Protein, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Oleate, Glyceryl Stearate, Dibutyl Adipate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Hydrolyzed Jojoba Esters, Glyceryl Glucoside, Palmitamide Mea, Squalane, 4-T-Butylcyclohexanol, Hyaluronic Acid/Polyisopropylacrylamide Copolymer, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Polyacrylate, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Trilaureth-4 Phosphate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate, Taraxacum Officinale Leaf Extract, Sodium PCA, Sodium Hyaluronate, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Phytosphingosine, Cholesterol, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Benzyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Myristoyl/Palmitoyl Oxostearamide/Arachamide Mea
Skin ConditioningPhytosterols
Skin Conditioning
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Oleamide Mea
Methylbenzyl Methylbenzimidazole Piperidinylmethanone
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Polyglyceryl-10 Distearate
Emulsifying
Beta-Glucan
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingArginine
Masking
Water, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, 1,2-Hexanediol, Myristoyl/Palmitoyl Oxostearamide/Arachamide Mea, Phytosterols, Stearic Acid, Oleamide Mea, Methylbenzyl Methylbenzimidazole Piperidinylmethanone, Tocopherol, Polyglyceryl-10 Distearate, Beta-Glucan, Sodium Hyaluronate, Allantoin, Sodium Polyacrylate, Carbomer, Arginine
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride (aka MCT Oil) is a lightweight emollient, solvent, and texture enhancer. It is considered a skin-softener by helping to prevent moisture loss.
Though it behaves like an oil, it is not technically one due to its chemical composition. One perk of this ingredient is that it is very stable, resistant to oxidation, and unlikely to go rancid.
In practice, that translates to a long shelf life and a consistently elegant skin feel.
While there is an assumption Caprylic Triglyceride can clog pores due to it being derived from coconut oil, there is no research supporting this. Just patch test if you have concerns.
Fractionated coconut oil and MCT Oil are both listed as Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride according to INCI. This is because INCI names are based on the ingredient’s final chemical composition and not its marketing name or source.
This ingredient is treated as the gold standard fungal acne safe oil. Even though it is coconut derived, the problematic lauric acid is stripped out.
This leaves just caprylic (C8) and capric (C10) acid. These chain lengths actually trend antifungal; a 2020 study found caprylic acid was enough to disrupt Malassezia furfur cell membrane, with a caprylic acid derivative damaging membrane structures at concentrations as low as 0.2%.
Learn more about Caprylic/Capric TriglycerideCarbomer is a high-molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid. It is used to form gels and thicken formulas.
Due to its large molecular size, carbomer has minimal skin penetration and is considered an inert ingredient.
A high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Don't worry, most products contain 1% or less of carbomer.
Learn more about CarbomerGlycerin (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 GlycerinSodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateSodium Polyacrylate is the sodium salt of polyacrylic acid. It is used as an absorber, emollient, and stabilizer.
This ingredient is a super-absorbent polymer - meaning it can absorb 100 to 1000 times its mass in water. As an emollient, Sodium Polyacrylate helps soften and soothe skin. Emollients work by creating a barrier to trap moisture in. This helps keep your skin hydrated.
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
