What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Persea Gratissima Oil
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Squalane
Emollient
Undecane
EmollientPropanediol
Solvent
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Citrus Limon Fiber
Emulsion StabilisingPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Oleyl Adapalenate
Glycolipids
Skin ConditioningXanthophylls
Skin ConditioningHectorite
AbsorbentOleic Acid
Emollient
Plankton Extract
Skin ConditioningTridecane
Perfuming
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Water
Skin ConditioningSimmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Dicaprylyl Ether
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil
Masking
Distarch Phosphate
AbsorbentTapioca Starch
C13-15 Alkane
SolventBrassica Campestris Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Olivate
Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil
Emollient
Diglycerin
Humectant
Sorbitan Olivate
Emulsifying
Polygonum Tinctorium Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningLactobacillus Ferment
Skin Conditioning
Squalane
Emollient
Solanum Lycopersicum Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingRosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialMaltodextrin
Absorbent
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Water, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Dicaprylyl Ether, Glycerin, Panthenol, Glyceryl Stearate, Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil, Distarch Phosphate, Tapioca Starch, C13-15 Alkane, Brassica Campestris Seed Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Cetearyl Olivate, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Diglycerin, Sorbitan Olivate, Polygonum Tinctorium Leaf Extract, Lactobacillus Ferment, Squalane, Solanum Lycopersicum Fruit Extract, Ceramide NP, Xanthan Gum, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Maltodextrin, Hydroxyacetophenone, Lactic Acid
Reviews
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 GlycerinHydroxyacetophenone is a small phenolic molecule that earns its place in a formulas as an antioxidant and preservative booster.
As a phenol, it is able to neutralize free radicals to protect both the product and the skin from oxidative stress.
Though it can't kill microbes on its own, it works as a good supporting agent when combined with other preservatives like Phenoxyethanol or 1,2-Hexanediol.
This ingredient naturally occurs as piceol in Norwegian spruce needles (~0.4-1.1% dry weight and in cloudberries). Though the cosmetic-grade material is synthesized for purity and consistency.
You'll usually see it used at low levels and suppliers recommend up to 1% added to a water phase.
Safety testing was done at concentrations like 0.05% in SPF products and 0.5% in a Human Repeated Insult Patch Test. The safety evidence is assuring; this ingredient is safe for cosmetics in current use and also holds safety status as a food flavoring as well.
An honest caveat: the "soothing" and "anti-inflammatory" claims come mostly from supplier marketing rather than published clinical trials. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review's own literature search found no useful efficacy studies on this ingredient.
So the antioxidant and preservative-boosting roles are the well supported ones while the calming benefit is plausible but thinly evidenced.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated, low-irritation multitasker that quietly helps a formula stay fresh and stable.
Learn more about HydroxyacetophenonePentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:
Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.
On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.
Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolSqualane is the hydrogenated and shelf-stable form of squalene (a lipid that naturally occurs in human sebum).
It is an emollient and skin conditioning agent that is able to integrate seamlessly into the skin's lipid barrier without clogging pores.
This is due to how structurally similar it is to what your skin already produces.
Though it is mostly an emollient that helps soften and hydrate skin, it also has some humectant and occlusive action. Humectants help the skin retain moisture while occlusives seal it in, making squalane a triple-threat moisturizer.
Research shows it has antioxidant capabilities that help protect against stressors like UV exposure, specifically UVA induced oxidative stress. This study also found that it supports collagen biosynthesis in human dermal fibroblasts.
No clinical study has reported significant adverse effects and irritation reactions are very rare from this ingredient (even at 100% concentration).
Overall, it's a fantastic ingredient for hydration and is suitable for all skin types.
This depends on the source. Squalane can be derived from both plants and animals. Most squalane used in skincare comes from plants.
Please note: the source of squalane is only known if disclosed by the brand. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have any questions about their squalane.
Read more about squalene with an "e".
Though squalane is often called an oil, it’s technically not one. It is a hydrocarbon, meaning it is only made of carbon and hydrogen. True oils are triglycerides and made of fatty acids and glycerol.
The term “oil-free” isn’t regulated so companies can define it however they want. Some exclude all oils, while others just avoid mineral oil or comedogenic oils.
Squalane has a comedogenic rating of 1 from the original 1972 study that tested raw ingredients under occlusion on rabbit ears. This system is not standardized or peer-reviewed, and using the raw ingredients is very different from how diluted cosmetic formulations are used on human skin.
A comedogenic rating of 1 means it is "unlikely to clog pores" according to the original rating system.
The overall formula of a product matters more than the individual ingredients on whether or not it will cause clogged pores.
Learn more about SqualaneWater. 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
