What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Saccharomyces/Rice Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningWater
Skin ConditioningIsopropyl Myristate
EmollientGlycerin
HumectantNiacinamide
SmoothingMethylpropanediol
Solvent1,2-Hexanediol
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
HumectantSodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Emulsion StabilisingDipropylene Glycol
HumectantHydroxyacetophenone
AntioxidantHydrogenated Polydecene
EmollientAcrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientGlyceryl Glucoside
HumectantTromethamine
BufferingTrideceth-10
CleansingDisodium EDTA
Heptasodium Hexacarboxymethyl Dipeptide-12
Skin ConditioningPentasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Acetylhydroxyprolyl Dipeptide-12
Skin ConditioningMelia Azadirachta Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningOcimum Sanctum Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningBetaine
HumectantMelia Azadirachta Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningPentasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Dipeptide-51
Skin ConditioningCurcuma Longa Root Extract
MaskingDipeptide-1
Skin ConditioningCorallina Officinalis Extract
Skin ConditioningDipotassium Glycyrrhizate
HumectantAnanas Sativus Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningMadecassoside
AntioxidantSaccharomyces/Rice Ferment Filtrate, Water, Isopropyl Myristate, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Methylpropanediol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Dipropylene Glycol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Glyceryl Glucoside, Tromethamine, Trideceth-10, Disodium EDTA, Heptasodium Hexacarboxymethyl Dipeptide-12, Pentasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Acetylhydroxyprolyl Dipeptide-12, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Betaine, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Pentasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Dipeptide-51, Curcuma Longa Root Extract, Dipeptide-1, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Ananas Sativus Fruit Extract, Pentylene Glycol, Madecassoside
Water
Skin ConditioningDipropylene Glycol
HumectantGlycerin
Humectant1,2-Hexanediol
Skin ConditioningHydroxyethyl Urea
HumectantButylene Glycol
HumectantHydrolyzed Carrot Extract
Skin ConditioningDiethoxyethyl Succinate
SolventCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Emulsion StabilisingTromethamine
BufferingBetaine
HumectantDisodium EDTA
Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer
HumectantHydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
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 BetaineButylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolDipropylene Glycol is a synthetically created humectant, stabilizer, and solvent.
This ingredient helps:
Dipropylene glycol is technically an alcohol, but it belongs to the glycol family (often considered part of the ‘good’ alcohols). This means it is hydrating and gentle on skin unlike drying solvent alcohols like denatured alcohol.
As a masking agent, Dipropylene Glycol can be used to cover the smell of other ingredients. However, it does not have a scent.
Studies show Dipropylene Glycol is considered safe to use in skincare.
Learn more about Dipropylene GlycolDisodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
Learn more about Disodium EDTAGlycerin (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 GlycerinHydroxyacetophenone is a small phenolic molecule that earns its place in a formulas as an antioxidant and preservative booster.
As a phenol, it is able to neutralize free radicals to protect both the product and the skin from oxidative stress.
Though it can't kill microbes on its own, it works as a good supporting agent when combined with other preservatives like Phenoxyethanol or 1,2-Hexanediol.
This ingredient naturally occurs as piceol in Norwegian spruce needles (~0.4-1.1% dry weight and in cloudberries). Though the cosmetic-grade material is synthesized for purity and consistency.
You'll usually see it used at low levels and suppliers recommend up to 1% added to a water phase.
Safety testing was done at concentrations like 0.05% in SPF products and 0.5% in a Human Repeated Insult Patch Test. The safety evidence is assuring; this ingredient is safe for cosmetics in current use and also holds safety status as a food flavoring as well.
An honest caveat: the "soothing" and "anti-inflammatory" claims come mostly from supplier marketing rather than published clinical trials. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review's own literature search found no useful efficacy studies on this ingredient.
So the antioxidant and preservative-boosting roles are the well supported ones while the calming benefit is plausible but thinly evidenced.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated, low-irritation multitasker that quietly helps a formula stay fresh and stable.
Learn more about HydroxyacetophenoneThis is a lab-made ingredient that plays a huge role in improving the texture of a formula.
It's used to thicken watery gel-creams, prevent water + oil from separating, and give products a silky, non-greasy glide.
Safety-wise, a panel of independent toxicologists reviewed this ingredient and concluded it to be safe in cosmetics in the present practices of use and concentration.
A separate sensitization patch test on humans also showed no evidence of allergic reactivity, and a true allergy to this ingredient is considered rare.
Typical usage levels range from 0.015%-3% in leave-on products and 0.078%-3.2% in rinse-off products.
Learn more about Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl TaurateTromethamine (aka THAM) is a synthetic amino acid that shows up in skincare as a helper ingredient.
It functions as a pH adjuster to help neutralize acidic ingredients and set a formula's pH to the right spot.
This matters a lot because a lot of actives (like vitamin C) needs a specific pH to work well and feel comfortable on skin.
Concentration use ranges from 0.1-1.0% depending on the formula.
Learn more about TromethamineWater. 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