What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate
Surfactant
Acrylates Copolymer
Niacinamide
Smoothing
PEG-150 Distearate
Emulsifying
Potassium Cocoate
Emulsifying
Triethanolamine
BufferingCentella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Parfum
Masking
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate, Acrylates Copolymer, Niacinamide, PEG-150 Distearate, Potassium Cocoate, Triethanolamine, Centella Asiatica Extract, Propylene Glycol, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Stearic Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Citric Acid, Parfum, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
PEG-150 Distearate
Emulsifying
Triethanolamine
BufferingAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Succinic Acid
BufferingStearic Acid
Cleansing
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine
Emulsifying
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPolyglyceryl-4 Caprate
EmulsifyingPolyglyceryl-6 Caprylate
EmulsifyingCamellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Centella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Glycyrrhiza Uralensis Root Extract
Skin Conditioning
Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract
Antioxidant
Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract
Astringent
Viola Mandshurica Flower Extract
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate
Skin Conditioning
Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate
Potassium Hyaluronate
Skin ConditioningPEG-9 Diglycidyl Ether/Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
Skin ConditioningSodium Acetylated Hyaluronate
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, PEG-150 Distearate, Triethanolamine, Allantoin, Succinic Acid, Stearic Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Salicylic Acid, Bisabolol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate, Polyglyceryl-6 Caprylate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis Root Extract, Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Viola Mandshurica Flower Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Potassium Hyaluronate, PEG-9 Diglycidyl Ether/Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Phenoxyethanol
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
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (tea extract) is one of the most well-researched plant extracts in skincare with an impressive resume.
Black tea, green tea, and oolong tea are all harvested from the Camellia Sinensis plant.
Studies show green tea extract and its catechins (like epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)) help your skin cells product energy more efficiently and reducing the number of free-radicals that can damage your skin from the inside.
In lab-grown skin models, this translated to younger, healthier, and stronger skin.
There's also good sun protection data; researchers saw less DNA damage and redness on human skin when green tea was applied before UVB exposure. And the more they applied, the better the protection.
Needless to say, this ingredient shouldn't replace your sunscreen. But it is a great supportive ingredient that you can already find in many sunscreens and antioxidant serums.
A 2009 study found a 2% green tea lotion was effective for mild-to-moderate acne thanks to its anti-inflammatory and mild antimicrobial activity.
The quality of the extract matters a lot here:
Good extracts contain 50-90% catechins while lower quality ones are mostly there for marketing. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the quality or source of their ingredients.
Human Repeated Insult Patch Testing showed no irritation or sensitization at use concentrations (0.86% in leave-on products and up to 30% as leaf water).
Learn more about Camellia Sinensis Leaf ExtractCentella Asiatica Extract (Centella) is derived from an herb native to Southeast Asia. It is famous for its anti-inflammatory and soothing properties.
Centella is rich in antioxidants and amino acids, such as Madecassic Acid and Asiaticoside.
Studies show the compounds in centella help with:
The combination of all these properties makes centella effective at soothing, hydrating, and protecting the skin.
Other great components of centella include Vitamin A, vitamin C, several B vitamins, and Asiatic Acid.
Fun fact: Centella has been used as a medicine and in food for many centuries. As a medicine, it is used to treat burns, scratches, and wounds.
Learn more about Centella Asiatica ExtractCocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.
This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.
Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.
While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.
Learn more about Cocamidopropyl BetaineGlycerin (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 GlycerinPEG-150 Distearate is a hardworking ingredient that is usually found at the end of a lot of cleansers whose main job is to act as a micellar thickening agent for surfactant-based cleansers.
It works by physically linking up surfactant micelles already in a formula to bump up viscosity and gives products a pourable-but-not-runny body.
Safety-wise, it's been found safe in cosmetics with minimal skin irritation and no evidence of toxicity.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe; it's a diester of stearic acid (C18) that falls into the C11-24 range that the Malassezia yeast feeds on. In vitro studies have also shown the Malassezia can metabolize PEG stearates by cleaving the ester bond to release the fatty acid.
Learn more about PEG-150 DistearatePhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Stearic 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 AcidTriethanolamine (TEA) is an emulsifier and pH adjuster. It is created using ethylene oxide and ammonia. This gives Triethanolamine a nitrogen core and a similar scent to ammonia.
As an emulsifier, it prevents ingredients from separating and enhances texture by adding volume to a product.
PH adjusters are common in cosmetic products. The pH of a product can affect the effectiveness of other ingredients. A product with a high pH may also irritate the skin.
If you are looking for the tea leaf ingredient, click here.
Learn more about TriethanolamineWater. 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
