What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Cocoglycerides
Emollient
Methylpropanediol
SolventGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Distarch Phosphate
AbsorbentTapioca Starch
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cetyl Palmitate
Emollient
Squalane
Emollient
Isobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol
Bleaching
Glycine Soja Germ Extract
EmollientSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTrisodium EDTA
Sodium Chloride
MaskingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Parfum
Masking
Water, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cocoglycerides, Methylpropanediol, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Distarch Phosphate, Tapioca Starch, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cetyl Palmitate, Squalane, Isobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol, Glycine Soja Germ Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Xanthan Gum, Trisodium EDTA, Sodium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Isopropyl Palmitate
Emollient
Methylpropanediol
SolventDiisopropyl Adipate
EmollientSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Tapioca Starch
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingDehydroxanthan Gum
Emulsion StabilisingIsobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol
Bleaching
Citric Acid
Buffering
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Piroctone Olamine
Preservative
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Sulfate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinIsobutylamido Thiazolyl Resorcinol (aka Thiamidol, made by Beiersdorf and used in Eucerin products) is a brightening ingredient that targets uneven skin tone, dark spots, and hyperpigmentation.
It works by blocking tyrosinase, the enzyme responsible for melanin production, so less pigment is deposited into your skin.
What makes it stand out is how specific it is to human tyrosinase: it was discovered by screening more than 50,000 compounds against recombinant human tyrosinase rather than the mushroom version most older ingredients were tested on.
Thiamidol turned out to be superior to frequently used inhibitors of hyperpigmentation (kojic acid, arbutin, and even hydroquinone) in lab testing.
The clinical evidence is solid as well for a cosmetic ingredient; it matched or beat a 2% hyroquinone for mild-to-moderate melasma in a double-blind study, reduced visible age spots at concentrations as low as 0.1% within 4 weeks, and separate trials show it helps with post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (the marks left behind after acne).
This ingredient is generally well-tolerated since it doesn't rely on the quinone-forming mechanism that can irritate skin. Studies also report minimal and self-limiting side effects.
Typical usage concentration in finished products is 0.2% (the same amount most of the clinical trials used) and it shows activity as low as 0.1%.
Overall, this is a better-researched brightening active and is a great option if pigmentation is your concern.
Be sure to also check out Rucinol, another "hydroquinone alternative".
Learn more about Isobutylamido Thiazolyl ResorcinolMethylpropanediol is a synthetic solvent and humectant.
As a solvent, it helps dissolve other ingredients, helping to evenly distribute ingredients throughout the product. This ingredient has also been shown to have antimicrobial properties which makes it a preservative booster.
Methylpropanediol is able to add a bit of moisture to the skin. It also helps other ingredients be better absorbed into the skin, such as salicylic acid.
Learn more about MethylpropanediolPhenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).
It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.
On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.
Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).
You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.
Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.
Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.
Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.
Learn more about PhenoxyethanolChances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideSodium 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 HyaluronateTapioca starch is a thickening agent and is made from the cassava root, also known as yucca.
According to a manufacturer, it is an excellent talc replacement.
It is gluten-free.
Learn more about Tapioca StarchWater. 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
