What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
Cleansing
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acids
CleansingGlycol Distearate
Emollient
PEG-150 Distearate
Emulsifying
Hamamelis Virginiana Extract
Antiseborrhoeic
Glycerin
Humectant
Lavandula Angustifolia Extract
Skin Conditioning
Salvia Officinalis Leaf Extract
CleansingMatricaria Recutita Flower Oil
Perfuming
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil
Masking
Salvia Officinalis Leaf Oil
Lippia Citriodora Oil
PEG-8 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium PCA
Humectant
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Water, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acids, Glycol Distearate, PEG-150 Distearate, Hamamelis Virginiana Extract, Glycerin, Lavandula Angustifolia Extract, Salvia Officinalis Leaf Extract, Matricaria Recutita Flower Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil, Salvia Officinalis Leaf Oil, Lippia Citriodora Oil, PEG-8 Dimethicone, Sodium Chloride, Sodium PCA, Cetyl Alcohol, Citric Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate
Emulsifying
Parfum
Masking
Lauryl Glucoside
CleansingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningRosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialEucalyptus Globulus Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Juniperus Communis Fruit Extract
Perfuming
Ocimum Basilicum Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningCamellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Laminaria Digitata Extract
Skin Protecting
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder
Skin Conditioning
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Helianthus Annuus Extract
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Arnica Montana Flower Extract
Masking
Citrus Grandis Fruit Extract
Astringent
Oryza Sativa Bran Extract
Skin Conditioning
Thymus Vulgaris Leaf Extract
Skin ProtectingAscorbic Acid
Antioxidant
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Hydrolyzed Jojoba Protein
Skin ConditioningPanthenol
Skin Conditioning
Retinyl Palmitate
Skin Conditioning
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Glycerin
Humectant
Glycol Stearate
Emollient
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate
Emulsifying
Polyquaternium-7
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sorbic Acid
Preservative
Sodium Phytate
Sodium Chloride
MaskingChlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingAlcohol
Antimicrobial
Tetrasodium EDTA
Benzyl Benzoate
Antimicrobial
Coumarin
Perfuming
Geraniol
Perfuming
Citral
Perfuming
Limonene
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Water, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Parfum, Lauryl Glucoside, Ethylhexylglycerin, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Extract, Juniperus Communis Fruit Extract, Ocimum Basilicum Leaf Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Laminaria Digitata Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Helianthus Annuus Extract, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Arnica Montana Flower Extract, Citrus Grandis Fruit Extract, Oryza Sativa Bran Extract, Thymus Vulgaris Leaf Extract, Ascorbic Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Hydrolyzed Jojoba Protein, Panthenol, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Tocopherol, Glycerin, Glycol Stearate, Glycol Distearate, Citric Acid, PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Polyquaternium-7, Sodium Benzoate, Sorbic Acid, Sodium Phytate, Sodium Chloride, Chlorphenesin, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Hydroxide, Alcohol, Tetrasodium EDTA, Benzyl Benzoate, Coumarin, Geraniol, Citral, Limonene, Linalool
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.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
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 BetaineGlycerin (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 GlycerinGlycol Distearate serves as a pearlizing or opacifying agent in cosmetic products.
It's often included in cleansers and haircare products to give them a lustrous or shimmering appearance.
It is derived from stearic acid, a natural fatty acid commonly found in vegetable oils and animal fats.
Glycol Distearate isn't fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Glycol DistearateSodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate is a surfactant that helps water and oil mix so that dirt, sweat, sebum, and sunscreen can rinse away easily. It's not technically a sulfate, but behaves similarly in formulas.
What it does:
Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate is a strong cleansing surfactant and is much stronger than many mild cleansers. Because it works deeply, it can disrupt the skin's barrier. This can lead to dryness or irritation for those with sensitive skin.
Compared to gentler surfactants, it's effective but more likely to dry or irritate if not balanced with soothing ingredients.
CIR considers sodium α-olefin sulfonates (including C14-16) to be safe for use in rinse-off products when properly formulated. It is poorly absorbed through normal skin but absorption increases if the skin barrier is already damaged.
Learn more about Sodium C14-16 Olefin SulfonateChances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideWater. 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
