What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
Cleansing
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder
Skin Conditioning
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Triethyl Citrate
Masking
PEG-55 Propylene Glycol Oleate
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingCoco-Betaine
Cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Citric Acid
Buffering
Acrylates Copolymer
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Benzoic Acid
Masking
Parfum
Masking
Water, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder, Glycol Distearate, Triethyl Citrate, PEG-55 Propylene Glycol Oleate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Coco-Betaine, Propylene Glycol, Citric Acid, Acrylates Copolymer, Sodium Benzoate, Benzoic Acid, Parfum
Glycerin
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningBetaine
Humectant
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoamphoacetate
CleansingCoco-Betaine
Cleansing
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSorbitan Caprylate
EmulsifyingGlycol Distearate
Emollient
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Squalane
Emollient
Sodium Chloride
MaskingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Gluconolactone
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Benzoic Acid
Masking
Sodium Citrate
BufferingGlycerin, Water, Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Coco-Betaine, Glyceryl Oleate, Xanthan Gum, Sorbitan Caprylate, Glycol Distearate, Lactic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Squalane, Sodium Chloride, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate, Saccharide Isomerate, Gluconolactone, Sodium Hyaluronate, Glyceryl Stearate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder, Citric Acid, Benzoic Acid, Sodium Citrate
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 Juice Powder comes from the aloe plant.
You may know Aloe to be a good sunburn reliever and inflammation reducer. This is because it contains many components that are known to help reduce irritation and itchiness.
Aloe leaves are also great moisturizers. They are naturally rich in polysaccharides, a carbohydrate made of sugars. Polysaccharides are able to mimic the carbs found in the top layer of your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
Aloe contains the antioxidants Vitamins A, C, and E. These vitamins neutralize free radicals. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells, such as pollution.
Aloe does not protect against UV rays, despite it soothing sunburns.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice PowderBenzoic Acid is used to preserve and adjust the pH of products.
The antimicrobial property of Benzoic Acid helps elongate a product's shelf life. Its main role is to reduce fungi growth and is not found to be effective at fighting bacteria. Therefore Benzoic Acid is always added along with other preservatives.
In its pure form, Benzoic Acid looks like a white crystalline solid. It has slight solubility in water.
The name of Benzoic Acid comes from gum benzoin, which used to be the sole source of deriving this ingredient. Benzoic Acid is the most simple aromatic carboxylic acid.
Benzoic Acid is naturally occuring in strawberries, mustard, cinnamon, and cloves. It has a slight scent but is not considered to be a fragrance.
Learn more about Benzoic AcidCitric 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 AcidCoco-Betaine is the natural version of Cocamidopropyl Betaine. It is often derived from coconuts.
Coco-Betaine is a surfactant, meaning it helps remove dirt and oil from the skin.
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 GlycerinGlycol Distearate serves as a pearlizing or opacifying agent in cosmetic products.
It's often included in cleansers and haircare products to give them a lustrous or shimmering appearance.
It is derived from stearic acid, a natural fatty acid commonly found in vegetable oils and animal fats.
Glycol Distearate isn't fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Glycol DistearateChances 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 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
