Good Virtues Co. Glowing & Goodness Acne Control Facial Cleanser Versus Safi Perfect White 3X Serum Infused Gentle Cleanser
This glycolic acid gel cleanser is formulated around Glycolic Acid to exfoliate and smooth skin.
This mild gel cleanser is mild enough to cleanse without leaving skin feeling tight or stripped.
What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Zinc PCA
Humectant
Nigella Sativa Seed Oil
Emollient
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
Emulsifying
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningGlyceryl Caprylate
EmollientLactobacillus/Pear Juice Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningO-Cymen-5-Ol
Antimicrobial
Phellodendron Amurense Bark Extract
Skin ConditioningSalix Alba Bark Extract
Astringent
Rehmannia Chinensis Root Extract
Skin ConditioningMelia Azadirachta Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningScutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract
Astringent
Houttuynia Cordata Extract
Skin Conditioning
Glycine Soja Seed Extract
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingParfum
Masking
Methylchloroisothiazolinone
Preservative
Methylisothiazolinone
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Decyl Glucoside, Zinc PCA, Nigella Sativa Seed Oil, Butylene Glycol, Glycolic Acid, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Ethylhexylglycerin, Glyceryl Caprylate, Lactobacillus/Pear Juice Ferment Filtrate, O-Cymen-5-Ol, Phellodendron Amurense Bark Extract, Salix Alba Bark Extract, Rehmannia Chinensis Root Extract, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract, Glycine Soja Seed Extract, Citric Acid, Xanthan Gum, Parfum, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone
Glycerin
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Cocoyl Glycinate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Citric Acid
Buffering
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTerminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Borago Officinalis Seed Oil
Emollient
Arginine
Masking
Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract
Skin ConditioningPerfluorodecalin
Skin Conditioning4-Butylresorcinol
Antioxidant
Dextrin
AbsorbentMannitol
Humectant
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Diatomaceous Earth
Abrasive
Lecithin
Emollient
Glycosphingolipids
EmollientSucrose Palmitate
EmollientZinc Sulfate
Antimicrobial
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Chlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Glycerin, Water, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Decyl Glucoside, Citric Acid, Xanthan Gum, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Borago Officinalis Seed Oil, Arginine, Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract, Perfluorodecalin, 4-Butylresorcinol, Dextrin, Mannitol, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Diatomaceous Earth, Lecithin, Glycosphingolipids, Sucrose Palmitate, Zinc Sulfate, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Citric 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.
Rosacea skin has a lower threshold for acids generally, with 62.5% of rosacea subjects in one study reacting to lactic acid in a sting test. This is why we mark citric acid as a potential rosacea trigger.
However, this ingredient shows up as a pH adjuster or chelator at roughly 0.1-1% in many products. These low levels are unlikely to be an issue for rosacea skin and becomes a potential trigger at exfoliating concentrations (20%). Because everybody's skin is unique, we recommend a patch test if you are unsure.
Learn more about Citric AcidCocamidopropyl 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 BetaineDecyl Glucoside is a plant-derived surfactant and emulsion stabilizer. It is created by reacting glucose with the fatty acids from plants.
Like all surfactants, it works by lowering the surface tension between water and oil. This makes it so that dirt, sebum, and makeup can be lifted off your skin and rinsed away. It also produces a dense and creamy foam.
Because it has a neutral charge, it is compatible with a wide range of ingredients and stays stable across a broad pH range/water hardiness conditions.
Patch testing has shown it to have the lowest irritation potential among common cleansing surfactants (like SLS).
Typical use levels range from 5-20% in rinse-off cleansers.
One thing worth knowing: The American Contact Dermatitis Society named the parent family, alkyl glucosides, "Allergen of the Year" in 2017. The prevalence of allergy is pretty low but be sure to patch test if you've reacted to "gentle" or sulfate-free cleansers before.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because the fatty alcohol portion of this ingredient is not within the C11-24 chain length that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Decyl GlucosideGlycerin (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 Cocoyl Glycinate is a cleansing agent. It can be naturally derived or synthetically-created.
As a surfactant, it helps clean your skin by gathering dirt, oil, and other pollutants to be rinsed away more easily.
Water. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
