What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Cleansing
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Acetamidoethoxyethanol
Humectant
Gluconolactone
Skin Conditioning
PEG-150 Distearate
Emulsifying
Propanediol
Solvent
Glycol Stearate
Emollient
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingHydroxypropyl Methylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Zinc PCA
Humectant
Xylitylglucoside
Humectant
Anhydroxylitol
Humectant
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Parfum
Masking
Xylitol
Humectant
Triethylene Glycol
Masking
Glucose
Humectant
Sodium Chloride
MaskingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Water, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Glycerin, Acetamidoethoxyethanol, Gluconolactone, PEG-150 Distearate, Propanediol, Glycol Stearate, Sodium Hydroxide, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Phenoxyethanol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Panthenol, Zinc PCA, Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Propylene Glycol, Parfum, Xylitol, Triethylene Glycol, Glucose, Sodium Chloride, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleansing
PEG-200
HumectantPEG-200 Hydrogenated Glyceryl Palmate
Cleansing
Coco-Betaine
Cleansing
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Citric Acid
Buffering
PEG-7
HumectantGlyceryl Cocoate
Emollient
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Acrylates Copolymer
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cocamide Mea
Emulsifying
Disodium EDTA
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Mannose
HumectantPolyquaternium-11
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingVitreoscilla Ferment
Skin Conditioning
Water, Glycerin, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, PEG-200, PEG-200 Hydrogenated Glyceryl Palmate, Coco-Betaine, Polysorbate 20, Citric Acid, PEG-7, Glyceryl Cocoate, Niacinamide, Acrylates Copolymer, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cocamide Mea, Disodium EDTA, Glycol Distearate, Mannose, Polyquaternium-11, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hydroxide, Vitreoscilla Ferment
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (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 ChlorideSodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.
In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.
Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.
"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.
Learn more about Sodium HydroxideWater. 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
