What's inside
What's inside
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Alcohol
Antimicrobial
Water
Skin ConditioningSucrose
Humectant
Glycerin
Humectant
Acacia Senegal Gum
MaskingHydrolyzed Rice Protein
Skin ConditioningChamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract
Skin Conditioning
Aspalathus Linearis Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningHoney Extract
Humectant
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil
Masking
Lactobacillus/Arundinaria Gigantea Leaf Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Hydrolyzed Quinoa
Skin ConditioningBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Linalool
Perfuming
Essential Oils
Alcohol, Water, Sucrose, Glycerin, Acacia Senegal Gum, Hydrolyzed Rice Protein, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Extract, Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Aspalathus Linearis Leaf Extract, Honey Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Lactobacillus/Arundinaria Gigantea Leaf Ferment Filtrate, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Hydrolyzed Quinoa, Benzyl Alcohol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Linalool, Essential Oils
Alternatives
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Acacia Senegal Gum has skin soothing, thickening, and formulation stabilizing properties. It comes from the Acacia tree that is native to sub-Saharan Africa.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinLinalool is a small, naturally occurring scent molecule found in plants like lavender, coriander, bergamot, and more.
It is one of the two most-used fragrance ingredients in cosmetics and added purely for smell. Since it's not used for a skin benefit, there's no "effective dose". Concentration depends on the fragrance load of the product.
The EU requires it to be named on the label above 0.001% in leave-on and 0.01% in rinse-off products.
Fresh linalool is a weak sensitizer but air exposure turns some of it into hydroperoxides, which are strong sensitizers. Those oxidation products are the actual allergy concern.
Patch-test clinics see positive reactions to linalool hydroperoxides in about 4% to 12% of dermatitis patients depending on country and test concentration.
Resassuringly, one analytical study found hydroperoxide levels in real fragranced products to be orders of magnitude below what induced sensitization in animal studies with no evidence of oxidation building up during normal storage.
The practical takeaway is that linalool is fine for most people but worth avoiding if you have a confirmed fragrance contact allergy or a badly compromised barrier.
Products stored a long time after opening are also the high-risk scenario since that is when oxidation happens.
The scent of linalool is described as floral, spicy tropical, and citrus-like.
Learn more about Linalool
