What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Sorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Dimethicone
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Ethylhexyl Stearate
Emollient
Polyacrylamide
C13-14 Isoparaffin
Emollient
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Dimethiconol
Emollient
Parfum
Masking
Tribehenin
Emollient
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantSucrose Cocoate
Emulsifying
Methylparaben
Preservative
Laureth-7
EmulsifyingCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Ethylparaben
Preservative
Hydrolyzed Rice Protein
Skin ConditioningPropylene Glycol
Humectant
Ascorbyl Glucoside
Antioxidant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTetrasodium EDTA
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingPropanediol
Solvent
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Morus Alba Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningLindera Strychnifolia Root Extract
Skin ConditioningEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPalmitoyl Tetrapeptide-94
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-95
Water, Glycerin, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Sorbitan Stearate, Dimethicone, Cetearyl Alcohol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Niacinamide, Ethylhexyl Stearate, Polyacrylamide, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Tocopheryl Acetate, Panthenol, Phenoxyethanol, Dimethiconol, Parfum, Tribehenin, Dipropylene Glycol, Sucrose Cocoate, Methylparaben, Laureth-7, Carbomer, Sodium Hyaluronate, Ethylparaben, Hydrolyzed Rice Protein, Propylene Glycol, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Xanthan Gum, Tetrasodium EDTA, Potassium Hydroxide, Propanediol, Pentylene Glycol, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Benzoate, Morus Alba Leaf Extract, Lindera Strychnifolia Root Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-94, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-95
Water
Skin ConditioningParaffinum Liquidum
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Surfactant
Dimethicone
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Methylparaben
Preservative
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingEthylparaben
Preservative
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingRetinyl Palmitate
Skin Conditioning
Tetrasodium EDTA
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Carbomer is a high-molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid. It is used to form gels and thicken formulas.
Due to its large molecular size, carbomer has minimal skin penetration and is considered an inert ingredient.
A high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Don't worry, most products contain 1% or less of carbomer.
Learn more about CarbomerCetearyl alcohol is a waxy mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is an emollient and emulsifier.
Despite having "alcohol" in its name, it has nothing to do with drying solvent alcohols; the FDA also allows "alcohol-free" products to contain fatty alcohols like this ingredient.
It plays several roles in a formula:
Typical use levels for this ingredient sit around 1-10% and the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has affirmed safety at concentrations up to 25% in leave-on products.
Multiple assessments have found it to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing to most people.
However, there have been some cases of allergic contact dermatitis in patients with chronically compromised skin barriers.
Cetearyl alcohol has a comedogenic rating of 2 and irritancy rating of 1. Both of these numbers come from the 1989 study that used rabbit ears; a "2" means mildly comedogenic and a "1" means low irritancy.
Here's the catch: rabbit skin is more sensitive than human skin and throws a lot of false positives. A 1996 reappraisal found that ingredients rated 1-2 in the rabbit ear tests are generally safe for humans.
Remember comedogenic ratings are unable to assess the entire formula of a product or how it will react on your skin. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure about certain ingredients.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol with chain lengths that fall within the range that Malassezia can metabolize.
A 2019 study has also observed Malassezia growth in the presence of this ingredient, confirming it to be not-fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Cetearyl AlcoholDimethicone is a type of synthetic silicone created from natural materials such as quartz. It is also known as polydimethylsiloxane.
What it does:
Dimethicone comes in different viscosities:
Depending on the viscosity, dimethicone has different properties.
Ingredients lists don't always show which type is used, so we recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the viscosity.
This ingredient is unlikely to cause irritation because it does not get absorbed into skin. However, people with silicone allergies should be careful about using this ingredient.
Note: Dimethicone may contribute to pilling. This is because it is not oil or water soluble, so pilling may occur when layered with products. When mixed with heavy oils in a formula, the outcome is also quite greasy.
Learn more about DimethiconeEthylparaben is a preservative, is a paraben, and is not reef safe.
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 GlycerinMethylparaben is a synthetic preservative and one of the most widely used in the world. It has a simple, but important job: prevent your products from going bad by stopping bacteria, yeast, and mold from growing.
Typical use levels are low, often 0.1-0.3%.
This is also one of the most heavily studied preservatives out there and major regulatory bodies have repeatedly given it the green light.
In 2023, the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) confirmed that this ingredient is safe up to 0.4% on its own, of up to 0.8% when mixed with other paraben esters.
Here's the science behind the noise behind parabens/hormones as well:
Methylparaben shows very weak estrogen-like activity in vitro tests (more than 1,000x weaker than your body's own estradiol). In vivo (live-organism) studies don't support a meaningful endocrine-disrupting effect either.
You get a stronger estrogenic effect from eating tofu, actually.
It's also a low sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon; they usually happen on damage or broken skin.
There is a caveat: France has proposed to formally re-examine its endocrine classification in 2025 so the regulatory conversation isn't fully closed as of yet.
But as it stands today, this ingredient is considered safe at permitted levels.
Learn more about MethylparabenPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Potassium hydroxide is commonly known as caustic potash. It is used to fix the pH of a product or as a cleaning agent in soap. In cleansers, it is used for the saponification of oils.
Sapnification is the process of creating fatty acid metal salts from triglycerides and a strong base. During this process, Potassium Hydroxide is used up and is not present in the final product.
Using high concentrations of Potassium Hydroxide have shown to irritate the skin.
Learn more about Potassium HydroxideTetrasodium EDTA is the salt formed from neutralizing ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid with sodium hydroxide. It is a chelating agent and used to prevent metal ions from binding to other ingredients. This helps keep the product and ingredients stable.
Tetrasodium EDTA comes as a white solid and is soluble in water.
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 AcetateWater. 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
