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Product Comparison

Here's our complete breakdown comparing the ingredients, attributes, and more of Murad Acne Body Wash versus Murad Essential-C Cleanser .

Published on July 11, 2022

Overview

What they are

These products are both cruelty-free and reef safe . They have a total of 10 ingredients in common

Cool Features

They both contain retinoid, Vitamin C and Vitamin E

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for fighting acne, anti aging, dry skin, brightening skin, sensitive skin, oily skin, reducing pores, scar healing, dark spots and better texture

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, parabens, silicones or sulfates

What's Inside

They both contain common allergens and fragrances

We independently verify ingredients, and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Spot a product that need an update? Let us know.

Body Wash American Brand United States
Face Cleanser American Brand United States

Body Wash

Products for cleansing your body. These include soaps, gels, cleansing creams, cleansing oils, and body washes.

Face Cleanser

Face cleansers are used to remove makeup, dead skin cells, pollutants, oil, dirt, and/or clean out pores on the skin. Face cleansers may specialize in having one function (exa. just removing makeup) or may have multiple functions (exa. Removing makeup and cleaning pores).

Price

Shop

Buy Acne Body Wash

Starts at $48.00
Shop

Buy Essential-C Cleanser

Starts at $35.49

Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and view relevant ingredients.

Murad Acne Body Wash 42 ingredients

Murad Essential-C Cleanser 36 ingredients

alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free
alcohol-free
silicon-free
fragrance-free
sulfate-free
paraben-free
oil-free
fungal-acne safe
reef-safe
eu-allergen-free
vegan
cruelty-free

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

Murad Acne Body Wash 42 ingredients

Murad Essential-C Cleanser 36 ingredients

Notable Ingredients

AHA
BHA
Retinoid
Vitamin C
Vitamin E

Benefits

Hydrating (3)
Good For Oily Skin (3)
Redness Reducing (3)
Reduces Irritation (2)
Skin Texture (4)
Reduces Large Pores (3)
Anti-Aging (3)
Dark Spots (4)
Scar Healing (4)
Acne Fighting (2)
Brightening (5)

Concerns

Drying (3)
Irritating (5)
Rosacea (5)
Eczema (5)

Notable Ingredients

Retinoid
Vitamin C (2)
Vitamin E

Benefits

Hydrating
Good For Oily Skin
Redness Reducing (3)
Reduces Irritation (2)
Skin Texture (3)
Reduces Large Pores
Anti-Aging (3)
Dark Spots (3)
Scar Healing (4)
Acne Fighting
Brightening (4)

Concerns

Drying
Irritating (2)
Rosacea
Eczema (2)
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Ingredients Compared

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

Murad Acne Body Wash 42 ingredients

Murad Essential-C Cleanser 36 ingredients

Ingredients Side-by-side

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

Learn more about what what Com. / Irr. ratings are

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Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

1
What it does: Humectant, Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Solvent
Community Rating: Loved

Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin. It helps moisturize and protect your skin.

A study from 2016 found glycerin to be more effective as a humectant than AHAs and hyaluronic acid.

As a humectant, it helps the skin stay hydrated by pulling moisture to your skin. The low molecular weight of glycerin allows it to pull moisture into the deeper layers of your skin.

Hydrated skin improves your skin barrier; Your skin barrier helps protect against irritants and bacteria.

Glycerin has also been found to have antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Due to these properties, glycerin is often used in wound and burn treatments.

In cosmetics, glycerin is usually derived from plants such as soybean or palm. However, it can also be sourced from animals, such as tallow or animal fat.

This ingredient is organic, colorless, odorless, and non-toxic.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Learn more about Glycerin

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 4.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 4.

2
What it does: Cleansing
Community Rating: Disliked

Cocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine. Dimethylaminopropylamine is a diamine, an amine with two amino groups.

Cocamidopropyl Betaine is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.

Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.

While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.

Learn more about Cocamidopropyl Betaine

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 5.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 2.

3
What it does: Skin Conditioning
Community Rating: Mixed

Retinyl palmitate is a form of retinoid. It is created from palmitic acid and retinol.

This ingredient has antioxidant and exfoliating properties. Like other types of retinols, retinyl palmitate increases cell turnover. Removing dead skin cells and encouraging the growth of new ones improves skin tone and unclogs pores. This in turn promotes brighter looking skin and even skin texture.

As an antioxidant, retinyl palmitate helps neutralize free-radical molecules. These molecules have the potential to damage skin cells. Thus, antioxidants may help with anti-aging.

Retinyl palmitate can be good for be good for oily skin by helping to unclog pores. However, it may not be good for dry skin and fungal acne.

After using this product, you should follow up with sunscreen.

This ingredient is often added to low-fat milk to increase the levels of Vitamin A.

Learn more about Retinyl Palmitate

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 14.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 12.

4
What it does: Humectant, Masking, Skin Conditioning, Solvent
Community Rating: Mixed

Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:

  • It is a solvent, meaning that it helps to dissolve other ingredients. This also enhances the absorption of the product into one's skin.
  • It is a humectant, which means that it helps attract moisture into the skin.
  • It helps improve product application.

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient. It is unlikely to irritate skin, and works well with pretty much all other ingredients.

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 17.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 5.

5
What it does: Antioxidant, Skin Conditioning
Community Rating: Liked

Tocopheryl Acetate is AKA Vitamin E. It is an antioxidant and protects your skin from free radicals. Free radicals damage the skin by breaking down collagen.

One study found using Tocopheryl Acetate with Vitamin C decreased the number of sunburned cells.

Tocopheryl Acetate is commonly found in both skincare and dietary supplements.

Learn more about Tocopheryl Acetate

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 19.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 11.

6
What it does: Antioxidant, Buffering, Masking, Skin Conditioning
Community Rating: Loved

Ascorbic Acid is is pure Vitamin C. This form makes up the largest amount of vitamin C found naturally in our skin.

Not only is vitamin C great for your overall health and immune system, it also has plenty of benefits on your skin.

Vitamin C is best used for brightening skin. It improves dark spots, acne scars, and hyperpigmentation. This is because it blocks the process of skin darkening when exposed to UV.

Remember: Vitamin C should not replace sunscreen!

Your skin uses vitamin C to build collagen. Collagen is one key component in having a strong skin barrier and plump skin. Vitamin C also plays a role in regulating collagen, thus making it effective in improving wrinkles and fine lines.

Ascorbic acid shows potent antioxidant activity. As an antioxidant, it helps fight free-radicals. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells. These antioxidants also protect skin against UV damage.

The best formulations include Vitamin E and/or ferulic acid. These two ingredients help stabilize and provide a boost in the benefits of ascorbic acid. This is because ascorbic acid becomes unstable when exposed to UV and air. In fact, you can tell your ascorbic acid has oxidized when it turns an orange-yellow color.

Ascorbic acid is generally compatible with other ingredients. However, using ascorbic acid with other active ingredients might cause irritation. Two ingredients: copper ions and benzoyl peroxide, will inactivate ascorbic acid completely.

Read more about other types of Vitamin C:

Foods rich with vitamin C include oranges, strawberries, broccoli, bell peppers, and more. When consuming Vitamin C, your skin receives a portion of the nutrients.

Learn more about Ascorbic Acid

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 21.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 14.

7
What it does:

We don't have a description for Chitosan.

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 22.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 15.

8
What it does: Antioxidant, Perfuming
Community Rating: Disliked

Propyl Gallate is an antioxidant and is a fragrance.

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 23.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 23.

9
What it does:
Community Rating: Disliked

Disodium EDTA plays a role in making products more stable by aiding other preservatives.

It is a chelating agent, meaning it neutralizes metal ions that may be found in a product.

Disodium EDTA is a salt of edetic acid and is found to be safe in cosmetic ingredients.

Learn more about Disodium EDTA

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 31.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 24.

10
What it does: Masking, Perfuming
Community Rating: Very Disliked

Parfum is a catch-all term for an ingredient or more that is used to give aroma to products. Parfum, or fragrance, can be a blend of hundreds of chemicals or plant oils. This means every product with "fragrance" or "Parfum" in the ingredients list is a different mixture.

In the US, the alternative name for parfum is 'fragrance'. The term 'fragrance' is not regulated in many countries. In many cases, it is up to the brand to define this term.

For instance, many brands choose to label themselves as "fragrance-free" because they are not using synthetic fragrances. However, their products may still contain ingredients such as essential oils that are considered a fragrance. One example is Calendula flower extract. Essential oil ingredients still impart a scent or 'fragrance'.

Depending on the blend, it can cause allergies and sensitivities on the skin. Some ingredients that are known EU allergens include linalool and citronellol.

Products use parfum often to give products a scent or cover up smells of different ingredients.

The bottom line is: not all fragrances/parfum/ingredients are created equally. If you are worried about fragrances, we recommend taking a closer look at an ingredient. And of course, we always recommend speaking with a professional.

Learn more about Parfum

Murad Acne Body Wash contains this as ingredient number 40.

Murad Essential-C Cleanser contains this as ingredient number 35.

Here's what our community thinks of the ingredients in these two products.

Murad Acne Body Wash 42 ingredients

Murad Essential-C Cleanser 36 ingredients

33% are loved or liked
7% have mixed ratings
43% are disliked or very disliked
17% have no rating yet
33% are loved or liked
11% have mixed ratings
42% are disliked or very disliked
14% have no rating yet

Usage

Here's some more info on how this product is used by our community.

When to use

Murad Acne Body Wash 42 ingredients

Murad Essential-C Cleanser 36 ingredients

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Alternatives

Our Dupe Finder has found 1 potential alternatives that have similar ingredients to Murad Acne Body Wash.

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Our Dupe Finder has found 18 potential alternatives that have similar ingredients to Murad Essential-C Cleanser.

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