What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSesamum Indicum Seed Oil
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Glucoside
Emulsifying
Carrageenan
Glycerin
Humectant
Caprylhydroxamic Acid
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Squalene
Emollient
Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil
Emollient
Yeast Extract
Skin ConditioningGlucosamine Hcl
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Algae Extract
EmollientOrchid Extract
Skin ConditioningTitanium Dioxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Water, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cetearyl Glucoside, Carrageenan, Glycerin, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium PCA, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Squalene, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Yeast Extract, Glucosamine Hcl, Tocopherol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Algae Extract, Orchid Extract, Titanium Dioxide
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningSucrose Laurate
Emollient
Sucrose Stearate
EmollientDecyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Squalane
Emollient
Phenethyl Alcohol
MaskingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Rosa Centifolia Flower Extract
Astringent
Resveratrol
Antioxidant
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Euterpe Oleracea Fruit Extract
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Citrus Aurantifolia Peel
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Water, Sucrose Laurate, Sucrose Stearate, Decyl Glucoside, Squalane, Phenethyl Alcohol, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium PCA, Tocopherol, Rosa Centifolia Flower Extract, Resveratrol, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Euterpe Oleracea Fruit Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract, Citrus Aurantifolia Peel
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (tea extract) is one of the most well-researched plant extracts in skincare with an impressive resume.
Black tea, green tea, and oolong tea are all harvested from the Camellia Sinensis plant.
Studies show green tea extract and its catechins (like epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)) help your skin cells product energy more efficiently and reducing the number of free-radicals that can damage your skin from the inside.
In lab-grown skin models, this translated to younger, healthier, and stronger skin.
There's also good sun protection data; researchers saw less DNA damage and redness on human skin when green tea was applied before UVB exposure. And the more they applied, the better the protection.
Needless to say, this ingredient shouldn't replace your sunscreen. But it is a great supportive ingredient that you can already find in many sunscreens and antioxidant serums.
A 2009 study found a 2% green tea lotion was effective for mild-to-moderate acne thanks to its anti-inflammatory and mild antimicrobial activity.
The quality of the extract matters a lot here:
Good extracts contain 50-90% catechins while lower quality ones are mostly there for marketing. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the quality or source of their ingredients.
Human Repeated Insult Patch Testing showed no irritation or sensitization at use concentrations (0.86% in leave-on products and up to 30% as leaf water).
Learn more about Camellia Sinensis Leaf ExtractCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride (aka MCT Oil) is a lightweight emollient, solvent, and texture enhancer. It is considered a skin-softener by helping to prevent moisture loss.
Though it behaves like an oil, it is not technically one due to its chemical composition. One perk of this ingredient is that 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. Just 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.
This ingredient is treated as the gold standard fungal acne safe oil. Even though it is coconut derived, the problematic lauric acid is stripped out.
This leaves just caprylic (C8) and capric (C10) acid. These chain lengths actually trend antifungal; a 2020 study found caprylic acid was enough to disrupt Malassezia furfur cell membrane, with a caprylic acid derivative damaging membrane structures at concentrations as low as 0.2%.
Learn more about Caprylic/Capric TriglycerideCaprylyl 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 GlycolGlycerin (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 HyaluronateSodium PCA is the sodium salt of pyroglutamic acid. It is naturally occurring in our skin's natural moisturizing factors where it works to maintain hydration.
The PCA stands for pyrrolidone carboxylic acid, a natural amino acid derivative.
This ingredient has skin conditioning, anti-inflammatory, and humectant properties. Humectants help hydrate your skin by drawing moisture from the air. This helps keep your skin moisturized.
Learn more about Sodium PCATocopherol 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
