What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Silica
Abrasive
Betaine
Humectant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Cetearyl Isononanoate
Emollient
Zea Mays Starch
Absorbent
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingGlyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingPerlite
Absorbent
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingBehentrimonium Methosulfate
Dimethicone
Emollient
Petrolatum
Emollient
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Potassium Phosphate
BufferingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningDisodium EDTA
Dipotassium Phosphate
BufferingPanthenol
Skin Conditioning
Betaine
Humectant
Synthetic Wax
Abrasive
Hydrogenated Lecithin
Emulsifying
Squalane
Emollient
Propanediol
Solvent
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
PCA
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-10 Stearate
Skin Conditioning
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Serine
Masking
Alanine
Masking
Glycine
Buffering
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Glutamic Acid
Humectant
Lysine Hcl
Skin Conditioning
Threonine
Arginine
Masking
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
Humectant
Cholesterol
Emollient
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Proline
Skin Conditioning
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Ceramide Ns
Skin Conditioning
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate
Humectant
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide As
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Water, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cetyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Dimethicone, Petrolatum, Butylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Potassium Phosphate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA, Dipotassium Phosphate, Panthenol, Betaine, Synthetic Wax, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Squalane, Propanediol, Sodium PCA, Sodium Lactate, Stearic Acid, PCA, Sodium Hyaluronate, Polyglyceryl-10 Stearate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Serine, Alanine, Glycine, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Glutamic Acid, Lysine Hcl, Threonine, Arginine, Ceramide NP, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Cholesterol, Hyaluronic Acid, Tocopherol, Proline, Palmitic Acid, Ceramide Ns, Phytosphingosine, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Ceramide AP, Ceramide As, Ceramide EOP
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Betaine is a humectant. Like hyaluronic acid, it helps attract and retain moisture in the skin. It’s known for being gentle and for helping the skin maintain balanced hydration.
Betaine is mainly used to improve hydration and support calmer skin. It helps skin cells regulate water balance because it functions as an osmolyte.
Some studies suggest betaine may support making skin tone more even.
Fun fact: Betaine naturally exists in the skin and the body. In cosmetic products, it can be either plant-derived (most commonly from sugar beets) or synthetically produced for consistency and stability.
Betaine is also known as trimethylglycine.
Learn more about BetaineCaprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.
Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.
Because it is not a free-fatty acid or alcohol, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolCeramide NP (formerly known as Ceramide 3) is one of the skin's naturally occurring lipids.
Since ceramides are the major lipid components of the skin, they are crucial for maintaining skin barrier and hydration. Ceramide NP most closely mirrors the dominant kind in human skin amongst ceramide subtypes.
This ceramide works by slotting into gaps within the stratum corneum's lipid matrix to limit trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) and shield the skin against external irritants.
A study with 312 patients found that using a ceramide-containing routine for 4 weeks reduced the severity of atopic dermatitis by over 61%.
Another clinical study in subjects aged 60 and older found that a ceramide body wash and moisturizer improved skin dryness and itchy skin in 15 days.
Overall, ceramides are considered non-irritating and safety tests have found little to no observable adverse effects from using this ingredient.
Ceramide NP is usually sourced from plants (like soybean or rice bran), or produced synthetically.
Learn more about Ceramide NPGlycerin (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 Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateWater. 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
