What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Coconut Acid
Cleansing
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingColloidal Oatmeal
Absorbent
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Emollient
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Sodium Isethionate
CleansingHydroxypropyl Methylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingMaltodextrin
Absorbent
Sodium Phytate
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Glycerin, Stearic Acid, Coconut Acid, Stearyl Alcohol, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Colloidal Oatmeal, Allantoin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tocopherol, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate, Sodium PCA, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Sodium Isethionate, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Maltodextrin, Sodium Phytate, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Phenoxyethanol
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Coco-Betaine
Cleansing
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingPropanediol
Solvent
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Sodium Chloride
MaskingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil
Masking
Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-4 Oleate
Emulsifying
Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingAsiaticoside
Antioxidant
Madecassic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Asiatic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-8
Skin Conditioning
Dextran
Citric Acid
Buffering
Isopentyldiol
Humectant
Hexylene Glycol
EmulsifyingSodium Surfactin
CleansingLinalool
Perfuming
Sodium Phytate
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Water, Glycerin, Coco-Betaine, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Propanediol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Sodium Chloride, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Allantoin, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil, Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract, Butylene Glycol, Polyglyceryl-4 Oleate, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Asiaticoside, Madecassic Acid, Asiatic Acid, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-8, Dextran, Citric Acid, Isopentyldiol, Hexylene Glycol, Sodium Surfactin, Linalool, Sodium Phytate, Tocopherol
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Allantoin is a soothing ingredient known for its protective and moisturizing properties; it's basically a quiet workhorse ingredient you can find in a huge range of cosmetics.
Though it can be derived from the comfrey plant, allantoin is produced synthetically for cosmetic products to ensure purity.
Research shows it can encourage your skin cells to turn over and renew by stimulating keratinocyte and fibroblast proliferation.
It also has mild keratolytic properties to help loosen and shed dead skin cells without being harsh.
Studies also suggest allantoin can help calm inflammation by dialing down some of the chemical signals your skin sends out when it is irritated.
This ingredient is typically used in the 0.1-0.5% range, and the FDA recognizes it as a skin protectant in OTC products up to 2%.
Overall, allantoin is a wonderful addition to most routines; it is stable across a wide pH range (~4-8), works well with other ingredients, and is considered non-sensitizing/non-irritating.
Fun fact: Allantoin is naturally occurring in comfrey root, beets, chamomile, and wheat sprouts. Our bodies even produce it as a byproduct of uric acid metabolism.
Learn more about AllantoinCitric 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 Cocoamphodiacetate is a surfactant and helps cleanse skin. It is created from the fatty acids of coconut oil.
Surfactants help rinse oil, dirt, and other pollutants easily from skin. It has a faint fruit-like scent.
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 GlycerinSodium Phytate is the synthetic salt form of phytic acid. Phytic acid is an antioxidant and can be found in plant seeds.
Sodium Phytate is a chelating agent. Chelating agents help prevent metals from binding to water. This helps stabilize the ingredients and the product.
Tocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about TocopherolWater. 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
