What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningMethylpropanediol
SolventCentella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Ectoin
Skin Conditioning
Betaine
Humectant
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Glycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Glyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
C13-14 Isoparaffin
Emollient
Squalane
Emollient
Chlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide
Cleansing
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Hydrogenated Lecithin
Emulsifying
Laureth-7
EmulsifyingButylene Glycol
Humectant
Disodium EDTA
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantMethyl Gluceth-20
Humectant
Lactobacillus Ferment
Skin Conditioning
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Cholesterol
Emollient
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Arginine
Masking
Aspartic Acid
Masking
Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract
Masking
PCA
Humectant
Tetrasodium EDTA
Glycine
Buffering
Alanine
Masking
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Serine
Masking
Valine
MaskingSodium Salicylate
Preservative
Citric Acid
Buffering
Cyanocobalamin
Skin ConditioningThreonine
Isoleucine
Skin ConditioningProline
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide As
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide Ns
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Histidine
Humectant
Phenylalanine
Masking
Polyacrylamide
Linolenic Acid
Cleansing
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Water, Methylpropanediol, Centella Asiatica Extract, Panthenol, Ectoin, Betaine, Propylene Glycol, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Phenoxyethanol, Glyceryl Glucoside, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Squalane, Chlorphenesin, Allantoin, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Ceramide NP, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Laureth-7, Butylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Dipropylene Glycol, Methyl Gluceth-20, Lactobacillus Ferment, Sodium PCA, Glyceryl Stearate, Sodium Lactate, Cholesterol, Hyaluronic Acid, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract, PCA, Tetrasodium EDTA, Glycine, Alanine, Sodium Benzoate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Serine, Valine, Sodium Salicylate, Citric Acid, Cyanocobalamin, Threonine, Isoleucine, Proline, Ceramide As, Ceramide Ns, Ceramide AP, Histidine, Phenylalanine, Polyacrylamide, Linolenic Acid, Ceramide EOP
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Urea
Buffering
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate
Emollient
Triisostearin
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Arginine Hcl
Skin ConditioningDimethicone
Emollient
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
EmulsifyingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingBiosaccharide Gum-1
Humectant
Lactic Acid
Buffering
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride (aka MCT Oil) is a lightweight emollient, solvent, and texture enhancer. It is considered a skin-softener by helping to prevent moisture loss.
Though it behaves like an oil, it is not technically one due to its chemical composition. One perk of this ingredient is that it is very stable, resistant to oxidation, and unlikely to go rancid.
In practice, that translates to a long shelf life and a consistently elegant skin feel.
While there is an assumption Caprylic Triglyceride can clog pores due to it being derived from coconut oil, there is no research supporting this. Just patch test if you have concerns.
Fractionated coconut oil and MCT Oil are both listed as Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride according to INCI. This is because INCI names are based on the ingredient’s final chemical composition and not its marketing name or source.
This ingredient is treated as the gold standard fungal acne safe oil. Even though it is coconut derived, the problematic lauric acid is stripped out.
This leaves just caprylic (C8) and capric (C10) acid. These chain lengths actually trend antifungal; a 2020 study found caprylic acid was enough to disrupt Malassezia furfur cell membrane, with a caprylic acid derivative damaging membrane structures at concentrations as low as 0.2%.
Learn more about Caprylic/Capric TriglycerideGlycerin (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 GlycerinGlyceryl 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 StearatePhenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).
It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.
On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.
Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).
You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.
Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.
Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.
Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.
Learn more about PhenoxyethanolSodium Lactate is the sodium salt of lactic acid, an AHA. It is a humectant and sometimes used to adjust the pH of a product.
This ingredient is part of our skin's NMF, or natural moisturizing factor. Our NMF is essential for the hydration of our top skin layers and plasticity of skin. NMF also influences our skin's natural acid mantle and pH, which protects our skin from harmful bacteria.
High percentages of Sodium Lactate can have an exfoliating effect.
Fun fact: Sodium Lactate is produced from fermented sugar.
Learn more about Sodium LactateWater. 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
