What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Paraffinum Liquidum
Emollient
Snail Secretion Filtrate
Skin Conditioning
Beeswax
Emulsion Stabilising
Cyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
PEG-150 Distearate
Emulsifying
Cyclohexasiloxane
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingWater
Skin ConditioningParaffinum Liquidum
Emollient
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Triethanolamine
BufferingCera Alba
Emollient
Cetyl Palmitate
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Steareth-10
Emulsifying
Polyacrylamide
C13-14 Isoparaffin
Emollient
Laureth-7
EmulsifyingPropylene Glycol
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Soy Protein
Humectant
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Tropolone
Skin ConditioningParfum
Masking
Water, Paraffinum Liquidum, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, Triethanolamine, Cera Alba, Cetyl Palmitate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Steareth-10, Polyacrylamide, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Laureth-7, Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Tropolone, Parfum
Reviews
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 Extract is an extract of the leaves of the aloe, Aloe barbadensis, Liliaceae.
Aloe is one of the most well-known natural soothing ingredients, and for good reason. It’s full of water and has a cooling, calming effect on the skin, especially when it’s sunburned, itchy, or irritated. Aloe also helps your skin stay hydrated and smooth by mimicking what healthy skin naturally produces. On top of that, it contains vitamins and nutrients that support skin recovery.
It doesn’t protect you from the sun, but it can help your skin bounce back after too much time in it.
Let’s get into the details:
Aloe contains antioxidant Vitamins A, C, and E, which help fight off free radicals (unstable molecules from things like pollution that can damage your skin).
It’s also rich in polysaccharides, which are natural sugars that help hydrate the skin by acting like the skin’s own moisturizing agents. These, along with other sugars like monosaccharides, help form a protective barrier that locks in moisture.
Aloe works as both a humectant and an emollient. That means it draws water into the skin (humectant) and helps trap it there (emollient), making it an effective natural moisturizer.
You’ll also find a mix of other skin-supporting ingredients in aloe, including folic acid, choline, calcium, amino acids, fatty acids, and even Vitamin B12.
Out of the 420+ species of aloe, Aloe barbadensis is the most widely used in skincare products thanks to its gentle yet effective properties.
There are over 420 species of aloe but Aloe Barbadensis is the most commonly used for topical products.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf ExtractGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearateParaffinum Liquidum is a highly-refined cosmetic-grade mineral oil. It is also known as liquid paraffin.
Despite its controversial reputation, the science is pretty clear: it's one of the most well-studied and effective moisturizing ingredients out there.
As an occlusive, it forms a protective layer on the skin that locks in moisture and prevents transepidermal water loss (TEWL). This makes it especially great for compromised skin barriers.
The "it clogs your pores" myth has been around for decades; a study found that industrial-grade mineral oil may be comedogenic but cosmetic-grade mineral oil is not (these two are very, very different).
A 2017 review concluded that cosmetic use of mineral oils and waxes does not present a risk to consumers due to absorption.
Mineral oil got a bad rap from the old rabbit ear studies. When tested on actual human skin, cosmetic-grade mineral oil showed no comedogenic activity. The rating of 0 is a correction of outdated science.
Mineral oil is an inert substance with no fatty acids so there's nothing to feed Malassezia. This ingredient is fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Paraffinum LiquidumStearic Acid is a fatty acid that is already found in your skin. It's one of the free fatty acids that works alongside ceramides and cholesterols to maintain your barrier.
In cosmetics, it is a multitasker:
Safety-wise, the CIR Expert Panel has concluded it to be safe in cosmetics when formulated to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing.
Free stearic acid is a C18 fatty acid that the Malassezia yeast can substrate, so this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Stearic AcidWater. 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
