What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Polysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Sorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Parfum
Masking
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningLecithin
Emollient
Disodium EDTA
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Citric Acid
Buffering
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingThymus Vulgaris Flower/Leaf Oil
Masking
Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Polysorbate 60, Sorbitan Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Propylene Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Lecithin, Disodium EDTA, Tocopherol, Citric Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Potassium Hydroxide, Thymus Vulgaris Flower/Leaf Oil
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Polysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Polysorbate 80
Emulsifying
Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil
Skin Conditioning
Hydrogenated Olive Oil
Skin Conditioning
Euphorbia Cerifera Wax
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil
Masking
Melissa Officinalis Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningVanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Olea Europaea Oil Unsaponifiables
Skin Conditioning
Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil
Skin Protecting
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Antioxidant
Water
Skin ConditioningEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningTocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Limonene
Perfuming
Geraniol
Perfuming
Citral
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Polysorbate 60, Polysorbate 80, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Hydrogenated Olive Oil, Euphorbia Cerifera Wax, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil, Melissa Officinalis Leaf Extract, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract, Olea Europaea Oil Unsaponifiables, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Water, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tocopheryl Acetate, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Limonene, Geraniol, Citral, Linalool
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
This ingredient is a lightweight emollient, solvent, and texture enhancer. It is considered a skin-softener by helping the skin prevent moisture loss.
It helps thicken a product's formula and makes it easier to spread by dissolving clumping compounds.
Caprylic Triglyceride is made by combining glycerin with coconut oil, forming a clear liquid. Though it behaves like an oil, it is not technically one due to its chemical composition. It is very stable, resistant to oxidation, and unlikely to go rancid. In practice, that translates to a long shelf life and a consistently elegant skin feel.
While there is an assumption Caprylic Triglyceride can clog pores due to it being derived from coconut oil, there is no research supporting this. Be sure to patch test if you have concerns.
Fractionated coconut oil and MCT Oil are both listed as Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride according to INCI. This is because INCI names are based on the ingredient’s final chemical composition and not its marketing name or source.
Learn more about Caprylic/Capric TriglycerideCetearyl 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 AlcoholEthylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Polysorbate 60 is used to help stabilize products. It is a surfactant and emulsifier. These properties help keep ingredients together in a product. Surfactants help reduce surface tension between ingredients with different states, such as liquids and solids. Emulsifiers help prevent oils and waters from separating.
Polysorbate 60 is sorbitol-based and created from the ethoxylation of sorbitan. Ethoxylation is a chemical reaction used to add ethylene oxide. Sorbitan is a the dehydrated version of sorbitol, a sugar found in fruits.
In this case, the 60 comes from reacting 60 units of ethylene oxide with sorbitan.
Polysorbates are commonly used in medicine and foods.
Learn more about Polysorbate 60Tocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about TocopherolWater. 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
