What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides
EmulsifyingSodium Chloride
MaskingLactobionic Acid
Buffering
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Alteromonas Ferment Extract
Skin Conditioning
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Magnesium PCA
Humectant
Zinc PCA
Humectant
Manganese PCA
HumectantAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Dextrin
AbsorbentPolydextrose
HumectantAmylopectin
Sodium Cocoamphoacetate
CleansingButylene Glycol
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Sodium Chloride, Lactobionic Acid, Salicylic Acid, Lactic Acid, Niacinamide, Alteromonas Ferment Extract, Sodium PCA, Magnesium PCA, Zinc PCA, Manganese PCA, Allantoin, Dextrin, Polydextrose, Amylopectin, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Butylene Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Potassium Sorbate
Water
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Coco-Betaine
Cleansing
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingPCA Ethyl Cocoyl Arginate
Moisturising
Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Beta Vulgaris Root Extract
Skin ConditioningFructooligosaccharides
Humectant
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
Caprylhydroxamic Acid
Piroctone Olamine
Preservative
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Bakuchiol
Antimicrobial
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Artemisia Vulgaris Extract
Skin Conditioning
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Laminaria Digitata Extract
Skin Protecting
Zinc PCA
Humectant
Cinnamomum Cassia Bark Extract
Masking
Sanguisorba Officinalis Root Extract
CleansingZingiber Officinale Root Extract
Masking
Water, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Glycerin, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Coco-Betaine, Caprylyl Glycol, Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose, PCA Ethyl Cocoyl Arginate, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Beta Vulgaris Root Extract, Fructooligosaccharides, Glycolic Acid, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Piroctone Olamine, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Bakuchiol, Sodium PCA, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Artemisia Vulgaris Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Laminaria Digitata Extract, Zinc PCA, Cinnamomum Cassia Bark Extract, Sanguisorba Officinalis Root Extract, Zingiber Officinale Root Extract
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 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 GlycerinSodium Cocoyl Glutamate is a gentle cleanser and surfactant. It is the sodium salt of the Cocoyl Glutamic Acid and comes from coconut oil. As a surfactant, it helps lift dirt and oil to be washed away.
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate also has an emolliating effect and can help leave the skin feeling soft.
Sodium PCA (the salt of PCA) is one of the most well-established humectants in skincare.
Why is it so special? Your skin already makes it naturally; it's a natural component of your skin's Natural Moisturizing Factor (NMF), or the mix of water-binding compounds inside your skin cells that keeps things soft and hydrated.
As a cosmetic ingredient, it grabs water and holds it in the upper layers of skin to smooth roughness and ease dehydration.
There's some clinical support for the NMF approach with a study showing that a cream built to mimic the skin's NMF significantly boosted hydration.
Safety-wise, this ingredient non-irritating, non-comedogenic, and non-phototoxic in testing, with minimal skin absorption.
It also works really well with other hydrators like glycerin or hyaluronic acid, and typical usage is somewhere between 0.2-4%.
Learn more about Sodium PCAWater. 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 WaterZinc PCA is a clever two-in-one molecule: the zinc salt of pyrrolidone carboxylic acid (PCA).
Think of it as two useful things bonded together; the PCA half is one of your skin's own natural moisturizing factors (NMF) so it helps hold water in the upper layers. On the other hand, the zinc half does the heavy lifting on oil and bacteria.
The zinc part slows down an enzyme that turns testosterone into DHT, the hormone that tells your oil glands to pump out more sebum. Less of that signal means less oil. It also gently fights acne-causing bacteria and soothes redness/irritation.
This is why Zinc PCA often shows up in products for oily, breakout-prone skin and greasy scalps.
One lab study also hinted it might have a small anti-aging perk because it seemed to protect collagen from UVA damage and even helped the skin make a bit more of it. That last bit is still early research done in a dish and not real skin, so take it as a nice bonus rather than a promise for now.
As for scar healing, the picture is more "maybe" than a firm yes. Zinc itself plays a real role in wound repair because it is a cofactor for the enzymes involved in collagen building, calming inflammation, and helping new skin cells cover a wound. Lower zinc levels are also linked to slower healing.
Most of the scar healing research is on zinc oxide or oral zinc rather than zinc PCA specifically, with a focus on healing fresh wounds instead of scars that are already there.
Direct evidence that zinc PCA improves the look of established scars is still limited at this time. Though it would be fair to say zinc PCA supports the general skin-repair environment thanks to its zinc content .
This ingredient is water-soluble and plays nicely with other actives like niacinamide and salicylic acid. It works best at mildly acidic formulas (~4-6 pH) and is effective at low levels. Around 0.1% is enough to be active and finished products commonly use it anywhere up to 4%.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated, low-drama multitasker that suits oily and acne-prone skin.
Learn more about Zinc PCA
