What's inside
What's inside
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningTridecyl Stearate
Emollient
Neopentyl Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate
EmollientTridecyl Trimellitate
EmollientCarthamus Tinctorius Seed Oil
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingSqualane
Emollient
Glyceryl Polymethacrylate
Cocos Nucifera Oil
Masking
PEG-4 Olivate
Emulsifying
Glyceryl Stearate Se
Emulsifying
Ceteareth-6 Olivate
EmulsifyingDimethicone
Emollient
Tricaprin
Masking
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingChondrus Crispus
Masking
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Triethanolamine
Buffering1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Disodium EDTA
Ahnfeltia Concinna Extract
Skin ConditioningWater, Tridecyl Stearate, Neopentyl Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Tridecyl Trimellitate, Carthamus Tinctorius Seed Oil, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Squalane, Glyceryl Polymethacrylate, Cocos Nucifera Oil, PEG-4 Olivate, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Ceteareth-6 Olivate, Dimethicone, Tricaprin, Carbomer, Chondrus Crispus, Butylene Glycol, Triethanolamine, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Ahnfeltia Concinna Extract
Water
Skin ConditioningSilver Chloride
Preservative
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
Ceteareth-20
CleansingCetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Sorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Beeswax
Emulsion Stabilising
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Hydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingEucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil
Perfuming
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningLactic Acid
Buffering
Limonene
Perfuming
Citral
Perfuming
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Linalool
Perfuming
Water, Silver Chloride, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Ceteareth-20, Cetearyl Alcohol, Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Sorbitan Stearate, Beeswax, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil, Ethylhexylglycerin, Lactic Acid, Limonene, Citral, Potassium Sorbate, Linalool
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ceteareth-20 is an emulsifier and surfactant made by reacting cetearyl alcohol with 20 moles of ethylene oxide.
This gives it both oil and water-loving properties that makes it an effect emulsifier; it's really great at pulling oil droplets into water to create a stable, creamy, and easy-to-spread base.
Typical use ranges from 0.5-30%. Most leave-on products are in the 1-10% zone.
The 20 ethylene oxide units is well above the PEG-10 threshold and therefore not a food source for Malassezia (it's fungal acne safe).
This ingredient has a comedogenic rating of 2 and an irritancy rating of 3. These numbers come from testing the raw ingredient on rabbit ears and doesn't reflect how it will behave in a finished product.
In practice, this ingredient is a well-tolerated ingredient. The ratings reflect cautious lab conditions and not real-world use. Just be sure to patch test any formulas you feel unsure about.
Learn more about Ceteareth-20Cetearyl alcohol is a waxy mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is an emollient and emulsifier.
Despite having "alcohol" in its name, it has nothing to do with drying solvent alcohols; the FDA also allows "alcohol-free" products to contain fatty alcohols like this ingredient.
It plays several roles in a formula:
Typical use levels for this ingredient sit around 1-10% and the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has affirmed safety at concentrations up to 25% in leave-on products.
Multiple assessments have found it to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing to most people.
However, there have been some cases of allergic contact dermatitis in patients with chronically compromised skin barriers.
Cetearyl alcohol has a comedogenic rating of 2 and irritancy rating of 1. Both of these numbers come from the 1989 study that used rabbit ears; a "2" means mildly comedogenic and a "1" means low irritancy.
Here's the catch: rabbit skin is more sensitive than human skin and throws a lot of false positives. A 1996 reappraisal found that ingredients rated 1-2 in the rabbit ear tests are generally safe for humans.
Remember comedogenic ratings are unable to assess the entire formula of a product or how it will react on your skin. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure about certain ingredients.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol with chain lengths that fall within the range that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Cetearyl AlcoholGlycerin (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 GlycerinWater. 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
