What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningEthylhexyl Methoxycinnamate
UV Absorber
Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate
UV Filter
Dimethicone
Emollient
Ethoxydiglycol
HumectantMethylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol
UV Filter
Diisopropyl Sebacate
EmollientPropylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate
EmollientC12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialDiisopropyl Adipate
EmollientCyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Polymethylsilsesquioxane
Vp/Eicosene Copolymer
Isododecane
EmollientPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Acrylates/Polytrimethylsiloxymethacrylate Copolymer
Skin ConditioningPotassium Cetyl Phosphate
EmulsifyingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingPolyacrylate Crosspolymer-6
Emulsion StabilisingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingCaprylyl Methicone
Skin Conditioning
Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Emulsion Stabilising
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
PEG-12 Dimethicone/PPG-20 Crosspolymer
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Dimethicone, Ethoxydiglycol, Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol, Diisopropyl Sebacate, Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Diisopropyl Adipate, Cyclopentasiloxane, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Vp/Eicosene Copolymer, Isododecane, Pentylene Glycol, Acrylates/Polytrimethylsiloxymethacrylate Copolymer, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Phenoxyethanol, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Carbomer, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Ethylhexylglycerin, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Hydroxide, Caprylyl Methicone, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Decyl Glucoside, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, PEG-12 Dimethicone/PPG-20 Crosspolymer, Propylene Glycol, Xanthan Gum
Cyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Emulsion Stabilising
Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate
UV Absorber
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialMethylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol
UV Filter
Water
Skin ConditioningDecyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPEG/PPG-18/18 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine
Skin Conditioning
Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate
UV Filter
PEG-15/PPG-70 Glyceryl Ether/Ipdi/Dmpa Crosspolymer
Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Skin Conditioning
Silica
Abrasive
Vitis Vinifera Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
Solvent
Ethylhexyl Triazone
UV Absorber
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Diethylhexyl Syringylidenemalonate
Skin ProtectingCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol, Water, Decyl Glucoside, Propylene Glycol, Xanthan Gum, PEG/PPG-18/18 Dimethicone, Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, PEG-15/PPG-70 Glyceryl Ether/Ipdi/Dmpa Crosspolymer, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Vitis Vinifera Leaf Extract, Propanediol, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Tocopheryl Acetate, Diethylhexyl Syringylidenemalonate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
C12-15 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 BenzoateCyclopentasiloxane (D5) is a lightweight silicone that mostly acts as an emollient and solvent in cosmetics. Its the reason your products feel silky, fast-spreading, and non-greasy.
Since D5 is volatile, it does its thing and then evaporates off the skin quickly.
The safety profile of this ingredient is reassuring; the US CIR Expert Panel concluded D5 is safe as used in cosmetics and Health Canada concluded that D5 is not harmful to human health or the environment as currently used in cosmetics
There's a study that people mention about D5 in a rat study showing tumors. This study is related to long-term inhalation of high D5 levels.
Regulatory bodies have judged this study to be not applicable in topical skincare since skin absorption of D5 is very low and we're not really inhaling huge amounts of D5.
The only restriction for this ingredient is environmental. The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) restricted D5 in wash-off cosmetics at or above 0.1% due to their persistence in water.
Learn more about CyclopentasiloxaneDecyl Glucoside is a plant-derived surfactant and emulsion stabilizer. It is created by reacting glucose with the fatty acids from plants.
Like all surfactants, it works by lowering the surface tension between water and oil. This makes it so that dirt, sebum, and makeup can be lifted off your skin and rinsed away. It also produces a dense and creamy foam.
Because it has a neutral charge, it is compatible with a wide range of ingredients and stays stable across a broad pH range/water hardiness conditions.
Patch testing has shown it to have the lowest irritation potential among common cleansing surfactants (like SLS).
Typical use levels range from 5-20% in rinse-off cleansers.
One thing worth knowing: The American Contact Dermatitis Society named the parent family, alkyl glucosides, "Allergen of the Year" in 2017. The prevalence of allergy is pretty low but be sure to patch test if you've reacted to "gentle" or sulfate-free cleansers before.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because the fatty alcohol portion of this ingredient is not within the C11-24 chain length that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Decyl GlucosideDiethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate (DHHB) is a chemical UV-A absorber. It is formulated for high UVA protection (320-400 nm).
DHHB is well-liked for:
DHHB has been approved by the EU, Japan, Taiwan, and South America for use up to 10%. Unfortunately, it has not been approved for use in the US or Canada due to slow regulatory processes.
This ingredient is soluble in oils, fats, and lipids.
Learn more about Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl BenzoateDimethicone Crosspolymer is a silicone created by modifying dimethicone with hydrocarbon side chains. Due to its large size, it does not penetrate skin. It is considered non-occlusive.
Dimethicone Crosspolymer is used to stabilize and thicken products. It also helps give products a silky feel.
This ingredient is also known as Octinoxate and is one of the oldest and most widely used chemical UV filters in skincare.
It has a simple job: soap up UVB radiation (290-320 nm), the wavelengths responsible for sunburn and a big chunk of long-term sun damage.
In formulas, it's always paired with a separate UVA filter because octinoxate solely protects skin from UVB.
Because it's an oil-soluble liquid, it's easy to blend into the oil phase of lotions/creams and gives a cosmetically elegant feel.
The one quirk about formulating this ingredient is photostability; the molecule slowly changes shape into a less effective version when sunlight hits it. So the longer you're in the sun, the weaker its protection gets. The drop can be more than 30% in some formulas.
It also doesn't play nice with Avobenzone (the common UVA filter) since avobenzone destabilizes octinoxate and the two degrade each other. But don't worry: brands have solved this issue by adding photostabilizers like Tinosorb S to prevent degradation and keep SPF stable under heavy UV exposure.
The maximum allowed level is 10% in the EU and Australia, 7.5% in the US and Canada, and 20% in Japan.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe in cosmetics up to 10%.
One last thing worth knowing for context:
Octinoxate has been the subject of ongoing review in Europe where the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety's (SCCS) 2025 final opinion is that this ingredient is an endocrine-active substance.
Lab and animal studies suggest it can act a bit like a hormone in the body (mildly mimicking estrogen and slightly blocking male hormones). It's important to know this hasn't really been shown to happen in everyday human use.
This ingredient is also banned in Hawaii over coral reef concerns.
Learn more about Ethylhexyl MethoxycinnamateMethylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol (Tinosorb M) is a hybrid and broad-spectrum UV ingredient. It is both a UV absorber and filter.
UV absorbers are an agent that absorbs UV rays. They protect your skin by using chemical reactions to convert UV rays into heat and energy. UV filters physically reduce the amount of UV rays from reaching your skin.
Tinosorb M covers a range of 280-400 nm and is photostable. This ingredient is neither oil or water soluble.
Tinosorb M is not available in the US. However, it is available in the EU and Asia.
It's sister, Tinosorb S, is set to be approved in the US by late 2025 (fingers crossed!).
Learn more about Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl TetramethylbutylphenolPropylene Glycol is a synthetic, colorless, odorless liquid that has been a staple in cosmetics for decades. It is a skin conditioning agent, humectant, and solvent.
As a humectant, it draw water to the skin to reduce flaking and restore suppleness. It's also a solvent that helps dissolve other actives and keeps formulas stable across temperature changes.
The CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be nontoxic and clinical studies show no sensitization at cosmetic use concentrations.
True allergic reactions are quite rare: a 15-year retrospective study of 6,751 patients found only 0.31% had a positive reaction (and less than half were considered clinically relevant).
It seemed that when sensitization does occur, it's most commonly linked to topical medication (like corticosteroids) and not cosmetics. Allergic contact dermatitis also appears largely limited to individuals with underlying skin conditions.
Overall, propylene glycol is a well-studied ingredient that most people can tolerate without issue.
Learn more about Propylene GlycolWater. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
