Versus

innisfree Volcanic Pore BHA Cleansing Foam Versus CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser - Canada

Face Cleanser
Face Cleanser
Korean Brand South Korea
American Brand United States

Updated on April 21, 2025

Overview

What they are

These products are both reef safe face cleansers. They have a total of 5 ingredients in common

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne, anti aging, dry skin, brightening skin, sensitive skin, oily skin, reducing pores and scar healing

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, common allergens, oils, parabens, silicones or sulfates

We independently verify ingredients, and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Spot a product that needs an update? Let us know.

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and see relevant ingredients

What's inside (and what isn't)

What's inside (and what isn't)

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

found in both products

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Skin Conditioning, Solvent

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. Stay hydrated!

Learn more about Water
Humectant, Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting

Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin. It helps moisturize and protect your skin.

A study from 2016 found glycerin to be more effective as a humectant than AHAs and hyaluronic acid.

As a humectant, it helps the skin stay hydrated by pulling moisture to your skin. The low molecular weight of glycerin allows it to pull moisture into the deeper layers of your skin.

Hydrated skin improves your skin barrier; Your skin barrier helps protect against irritants and bacteria.

Glycerin has also been found to have antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Due to these properties, glycerin is often used in wound and burn treatments.

In cosmetics, glycerin is usually derived from plants such as soybean or palm. However, it can also be sourced from animals, such as tallow or animal fat.

This ingredient is organic, colorless, odorless, and non-toxic.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Learn more about Glycerin

Potassium hydroxide is commonly known as caustic potash. It is used to fix the pH of a product or as a cleaning agent in soap. In cleansers, it is used for the saponification of oils.

Sapnification is the process of creating fatty acid metal salts from triglycerides and a strong base. During this process, Potassium Hydroxide is used up and is not present in the final product.

Using high concentrations of Potassium Hydroxide have shown to irritate the skin.

Learn more about Potassium Hydroxide
Solvent

Propanediol is an all-star ingredient. It softens, hydrates, and smooths the skin. 

It’s often used to:

Propanediol is not likely to cause sensitivity and considered safe to use. It is derived from corn or petroleum with a clear color and no scent.

Learn more about Propanediol
Skin Conditioning

Ethylhexylglycerin (we can't pronounce this either) is commonly used as a preservative and skin softener. It is derived from glyceryl.

You might see Ethylhexylglycerin often paired with other preservatives such as phenoxyethanol. Ethylhexylglycerin has been found to increase the effectiveness of these other preservatives.

When to use

207 Routines
42% use in am
58% use in pm
91% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->
219 Routines
44% use in am
56% use in pm
94% use every day
When to use See routines that use it ->

Reviews

Here's what our community thinks

innisfree Volcanic Pore BHA Cleansing Foam 25 ingredients

1.0 /5
from 1 rating
Drying (1) Expensive (1) Heavy (1)
Khang69's avatar

K

5 months ago
Review

pH level of this product is 9.5. I have experienced extreme dryness and dull skin after using this for 2 days

#expensive
#drying
#heavy
#light scent

CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser 27 ingredients

3.5 /5
from 23 ratings
Great Value (8) Works Well (8) Drying (5)
Rainybear's avatar

Rainybear

9 months ago
Review

I had loved this product when i first got it. Then after a few months of use i started getting chemical burns under my eyes, and super dry itchy skin whenever using benzoyl peroxide.

#drying
#irritating
#doesn't work
Shannononon's avatar

Shannononon

11 months ago
Review

Used this product for a month seeing good reviews for it. I ended up getting horrible cystic acne something I never had in my life. I didn’t know what was causing it until I realized with pictures I take that before the breakout happened I started this product. As soon as I stopped using it I didn’t get any new breakouts but I am still struggling with the scarring it left behind.

#broke me out