What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Titanium Dioxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Hydrogenated Polyisobutene
EmollientDiisostearyl Malate
EmollientVinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer
Dimethicone
Emollient
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialPolyethylene
Abrasive
Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2
Emollient
Tridecyl Trimellitate
EmollientDisodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingCI 16255
Cosmetic ColorantAluminum Hydroxide
EmollientBisabolol
Antioxidant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Silica
Abrasive
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningOlea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Caffeine
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Titanium Dioxide, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Diisostearyl Malate, Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer, Dimethicone, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Polyethylene, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2, Tridecyl Trimellitate, Disodium Stearoyl Glutamate, CI 16255, Aluminum Hydroxide, Bisabolol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Silica, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Caffeine, Tocopherol
Ricinus Communis Seed Oil
Masking
Polybutene
Rhus Succedanea Fruit Wax
Kaolin
Abrasive
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialCI 77120
Cosmetic ColorantTocopherol
Antioxidant
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Antioxidant
Squalane
Emollient
Zinc Chloride
AntimicrobialAluminum Hydroxide
EmollientTrihydroxystearin
Skin Conditioning
Hydrogenated Polycyclopentadiene
Isopropyl Titanium Triisostearate
Emollient
Sodium Lauroyl Aspartate
CleansingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Hexylene Glycol
EmulsifyingMica
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantIron Oxides
Ricinus Communis Seed Oil, Polybutene, Rhus Succedanea Fruit Wax, Kaolin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, CI 77120, Tocopherol, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Squalane, Zinc Chloride, Aluminum Hydroxide, Trihydroxystearin, Hydrogenated Polycyclopentadiene, Isopropyl Titanium Triisostearate, Sodium Lauroyl Aspartate, Caprylyl Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Hexylene Glycol, Mica, CI 77891, Iron Oxides
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Aluminum Hydroxide is a form of aluminum. It can be naturally found in nature as the mineral gibbsite. In cosmetics, Aluminum Hydroxide is used as a colorant, pH adjuster, and absorbent.
As a colorant, Aluminum Hydroxide may add opacity, or reduce the transparency. Aluminum hydroxide is contains both basic and acidic properties.
According to manufacturers, this ingredient is an emollient and humectant. This means it helps hydrate the skin.
In medicine, this ingredient is used to help relieve heartburn and help heal ulcers.
There is currently no credible scientific evidence linking aluminum hydroxide in cosmetics to increased cancer risk.
Major health organizations allow the use of aluminum hydroxide in personal care products and have not flagged it as a carcinogenic risk at typical usage levels.
Learn more about Aluminum HydroxideC12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is a lightweight emollient made by combinig benzoic acid with fatty alcohols that are 12-15 carbons long.
In cosmetics, it plays several roles:
The Cosmetic Review Expert Panel has concluded the alkyl benzoate group to be safe as used in cosmetics; it wasn't found to be a skin irritant and unlikely to be absorbed due to its low water solubility.
This report recorded almost 1000 reported uses with concentrations up to 59% in leave-on products but your cosmetics will typically use 0.5-15% depending on the product.
It's often called a "SPF booster": this is because it keeps UV filters properly dissolved and evenly distributed to support a sunscreen's performance. It doesn't actually raise SPF on its own.
Overall, this ingredient is well tolerated.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because it is an ester of benzoic acid.
Think of this ingredient as two parts stuck together: an oily part and an acid part. Malassezia only gets a meal when it can snip off a fatty acid to eat. With C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, the acid part is benzoic acid, which isn't a fatty acid and which the yeast can't use as food.
Benzoic acid is actually used as a preservative to stop yeast from growing.
The oily part is a blend of C12-15 fatty alcohols but fatty alcohols in this size range can support only a little Malassezia growth (mostly for one species of Malassezia as well).
In the ingredient, those alcohols stay locked inside the molecule. The yeast can only reach them by snipping the benzoate bond, and that type of bond is harder for it to cut than a normal fatty bond.
So not much gets released. And whatever does get snipped comes packaged with benzoic acid, which discourages yeast growth.
Learn more about C12-15 Alkyl BenzoateCaprylyl 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, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolTocopherol 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 TocopherolTocopheryl Acetate is a stable, shelf-friendly form of vitamin E.
Formulators love it because plain vitamin E oxidizes quickly once it hits air. This acetate version stays stable and resists going off, helping to extend a product's shelf life.
It's actually inactive on its own and works like a slow-release "storage" form; the enzymes in your skin called esterases gradually convert it into active vitamin E over time.
One in vivo study showed 5% of the acetate in the living layer of the epidermis converted to vitamin E after 5 days of application. This study also found the skin gained protection against UV damage even though the conversion was slow and small.
Once converted, vitamin E acts as a skin's main fat-soluble antioxidant that fights free radicals to protect skin from damage.
Topical vitamin E generally boosts the skin's photoprotection, and it reduced UV-damage in animal models.
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.
Overall, it has a pretty solid safety profile and has been found to be non-irritating and non-comedogenic. Allergic reactions may happen but stay rare due to how widely the ingredient gets used.
The concentration will vary depending on the formula; industry data shows 0.1% in baby lotions, 3% in lipsticks, and 5% in foot powders. You can also find this ingredient at 100% in a pure vitamin E oil.
Most leave-on skincare keeps it at the lower end, often between 0.5-1%.
Learn more about Tocopheryl Acetate
