What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCaprylyl/Capryl Glucoside
CleansingCucumis Sativus Fruit Extract
Emollient
Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Glyceryl Caprylate
EmollientSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Citric Acid
Buffering
Polyglyceryl-6 Oleate
Emulsifying
Sodium Surfactin
CleansingTetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
CI 42090
Cosmetic ColorantCI 19140
Cosmetic ColorantParfum
Masking
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Glyceryl Caprylate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Citric Acid, Polyglyceryl-6 Oleate, Sodium Surfactin, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Lactic Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, CI 42090, CI 19140, Parfum
Water
Skin ConditioningPEG-12
HumectantDisodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingGlycerin
Humectant
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract
Emollient
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Glucose
Humectant
Ethoxydiglycol
HumectantPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
4-T-Butylcyclohexanol
Masking
Disodium EDTA
Methylparaben
Preservative
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, PEG-12, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Glycerin, Polysorbate 20, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Bisabolol, Lactic Acid, Glucose, Ethoxydiglycol, Pentylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, 4-T-Butylcyclohexanol, Disodium EDTA, Methylparaben, Phenoxyethanol
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice comes from leaves of the aloe plant. Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice is best known for helping to soothe sunburns. It is also anti-inflammatory, moisturizing, antiseptic, and can help heal wounds.
Aloe is packed with good stuff including Vitamins A, C, and E. These vitamins are antioxidants, which help fight free-radicals and the damage they may cause. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells, such as pollution.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice also contains sugars. These sugars come in the form of monosaccharides and polysaccharides, folic acid, and choline. These sugars are able to help bind moisture to skin.
It also contains minerals such as calcium, 12 anthraquinones, fatty acids, amino acids, and Vitamin B12.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceThis extract comes from cucumber. Cucumbers are mostly made up of water (95%), and the other 5% is composed of: vitamin C, caffeic acid, fatty acids, amino acids, and other minerals.
Cucumbers have anti-inflammatory, barrier repair, and hydrating properties.
They contain shikimate dehydrigenase, an enzyme shown to help reduce inflammation and soothe the skin.
The amino acids found in cucumbers help nourish our skin's natural acid mantle (it's an important part of our skin barrier). This slightly acidic film acts as a barrier to protect us from bacteria, viruses, and other contaminants.
Unless you have an allergy to cucumbers, this is generally a non-irritating ingredient.
Fun fact: Cucumis Sativus is native to South Asia and can now be found on every continent.
Learn more about Cucumis Sativus Fruit ExtractGlycerin (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 GlycerinLactic Acid is another well-loved alpha hydroxy acid (AHA). It is gentler than glycolic acid but still highly effective.
Its main role is to exfoliate the surface of the skin by loosening the âglueâ that holds dead skin cells together. Shedding those old cells leads to smoother, softer, and more even-toned skin.
Because lactic acid molecules are larger than glycolic acid, they donât penetrate as deeply. This means theyâre less likely to sting or irritate, making it a great choice for beginners or those with sensitive skin.
Like glycolic acid, it can:
Lactic acid also acts as a humectant (like hyaluronic acid). It can draw water into the skin to improve hydration and also plays a role in the skin's natural moisturizing factor (NMF) in the form of sodium lactate.
Studies show it can boost ceramide production to strengthen the skin barrier and even help balance the skinâs microbiome.
To get results, choose products with a pH between 3-4.
Lower strengths (5-12%) focus on surface exfoliation; higher strengths (12% and up) can reach deeper in the dermis (deeper, supportive layer) to improve skin texture and firmness over time.
Though it was originally derived from milk, most modern lactic acid used in skincare is vegan. It is made through non-dairy fermentation to create a bio-identical and stable form suitable for all formulations.
When lactic acid shows up near the end of an ingredient list, it usually means the brand added just a tiny amount to adjust the productâs pH.
Legend has it that Cleopatra used to bathe in sour milk to help reduce wrinkles.
Lactic acid is truly a gentle multitasker: it exfoliates, hydrates, strengthens, and brightens. It's a great ingredient for giving your skin a smooth, glowing, and healthy look without the harshness of stronger acids.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Lactic AcidPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Sodium 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 HyaluronateWater. 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
