What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCoco-Betaine
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate
CleansingSodium Chloride
MaskingDisodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Inulin
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Parfum
Masking
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium PEG-7 Olive Oil Carboxylate
Emulsifying
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Limonene
Perfuming
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Disodium EDTA
Saccharomyces/Rice Ferment Filtrate
Skin Conditioning
Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide
Cleansing
Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil
Humectant
Candida Bombicola/Glucose/Methyl Rapeseedate Ferment
AntimicrobialAgave Americana Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningSaccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract
Skin Conditioning
Lavandula Hybrida Grosso Herb Oil
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Sodium Mangoamphoacetate
CleansingGeraniol
Perfuming
Citrus Aurantium Amara Leaf/Twig Oil
Masking
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Citral
Perfuming
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Centella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Lactobacillus/Soybean Ferment Extract
Skin ConditioningWater, Coco-Betaine, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Sodium Chloride, Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Inulin, Citric Acid, Parfum, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium PEG-7 Olive Oil Carboxylate, Propylene Glycol, Limonene, Potassium Sorbate, Disodium EDTA, Saccharomyces/Rice Ferment Filtrate, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil, Candida Bombicola/Glucose/Methyl Rapeseedate Ferment, Agave Americana Leaf Extract, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract, Lavandula Hybrida Grosso Herb Oil, Linalool, Sodium Mangoamphoacetate, Geraniol, Citrus Aurantium Amara Leaf/Twig Oil, Butylene Glycol, Citral, Phenoxyethanol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Glycerin, Benzyl Alcohol, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Centella Asiatica Extract, Lactobacillus/Soybean Ferment Extract
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate
CleansingPEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate
Emulsifying
Niacinamide
Smoothing
PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides
EmulsifyingSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingMethylparaben
Preservative
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Lauroyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingCholesterol
Emollient
Disodium EDTA
Propylparaben
Preservative
Citric Acid
Buffering
Tetrasodium EDTA
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Glycerin, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate, Niacinamide, PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Propylene Glycol, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Carbomer, Methylparaben, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Cholesterol, Disodium EDTA, Propylparaben, Citric Acid, Tetrasodium EDTA, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Phytosphingosine, Xanthan Gum
Reviews
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 AcidDisodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
Learn more about Disodium EDTAGlycerin (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 GlycolChances 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 ChlorideSodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate is a cleansing agent and emulsifier. It is a surfactant derived from sarcosine, and a common source is coconut oil.
As a surfactant, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate helps lift dirts, oil, and other molecules to be washed away. In leave-on products, this ingredient is used as an emulsifier. Emulsifier help prevent ingredients such as oils and waters from separating.
Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate is also commonly found as a foaming agent in shampoo, toothpaste, and shaving foam. It is amphiphilic, meaning it loves both water and fats.
Learn more about Sodium Lauroyl SarcosinateWater. 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
