What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantTranexamic Acid
Astringent
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Diglycerin
Humectant
PEG-8
HumectantPEG-6
HumectantPEG-32
HumectantStyrene/Vp Copolymer
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Hydroxylated Lecithin
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Disodium EDTA
Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Water, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, Tranexamic Acid, Butylene Glycol, Diglycerin, PEG-8, PEG-6, PEG-32, Styrene/Vp Copolymer, Polysorbate 20, Hydroxylated Lecithin, Citric Acid, Tocopherol, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Pentylene Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Disodium EDTA
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Α-Olefin Oligomer
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantButylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate
Emollient
PEG-90
HumectantPetrolatum
Emollient
Decamethyltetrasiloxane
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Batyl Alcohol
EmollientCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingPEG/PPG-17/4 Dimethyl Ether
Skin ConditioningPotassium Hydroxide
BufferingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPhytosteryl/Behenyl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate
Skin ConditioningSodium Metaphosphate
BufferingSodium Metabisulfite
Antioxidant
Calcium Chloride
AstringentMagnesium Chloride
Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate
SurfactantSodium PCA
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Allantoin, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Water, Glycerin, Α-Olefin Oligomer, Dipropylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate, PEG-90, Petrolatum, Decamethyltetrasiloxane, Behenyl Alcohol, Batyl Alcohol, Carbomer, PEG/PPG-17/4 Dimethyl Ether, Potassium Hydroxide, Xanthan Gum, Phytosteryl/Behenyl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate, Sodium Metaphosphate, Sodium Metabisulfite, Calcium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Sodium PCA, Phenoxyethanol
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolDipotassium Glycyrrhizate comes from licorice root.
Extracts of licorice have demonstrated to have antibacterial, anti‐inflammatory, antiviral, antioxidant properties.
One component, glabridin, has extra potent antioxidant and soothing properties. It has also been found to block pigmentation from UVB rays in guinea pigs.
Licorice Root also contains a flavonoid. Flavonoids are a natural substance from in plants. Flavonoids also have antioxidant properties.
Another component, glycyrrhizin, has been found to have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial benefits. This may make licorice root extract effective at treating acne. However, more research is needed to support this.
Liquiritin is one of the flavone compounds found in licorice. It has been found to help lighten skin by preventing tyrosinase from reacting with tyrosine. When the two react, protein is converted to melanin. Melanin is the substance in your body that gives your features pigmentation.
Licorice root is native to Southern Europe and Asia. It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine to help with respiratory issues.
Learn more about Dipotassium GlycyrrhizateDipropylene Glycol is a synthetically created humectant, stabilizer, and solvent.
This ingredient helps:
Dipropylene glycol is technically an alcohol, but it belongs to the glycol family (often considered part of the ‘good’ alcohols). This means it is hydrating and gentle on skin unlike drying solvent alcohols like denatured alcohol.
As a masking agent, Dipropylene Glycol can be used to cover the smell of other ingredients. However, it does not have a scent.
Studies show Dipropylene Glycol is considered safe to use in skincare.
Learn more about Dipropylene GlycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol 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 PhenoxyethanolWater. 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
