What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Caprylyl Methicone
Skin Conditioning
Dimethicone
Emollient
Isododecane
EmollientPropylene Glycol
Humectant
Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer
Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Magnesium Sulfate
Phenyl Trimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Silica Dimethyl Silylate
EmollientPEG-10 Dimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate
Absorbent
Disteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingBis-Isobutyl PEG/PPG-10/7/Dimethicone Copolymer
Emulsifying
Trimethylsiloxysilicate
Emollient
Dimethiconol
Emollient
Propylene Carbonate
SolventTriethoxycaprylylsilane
Alumina
Abrasive
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Titanium Dioxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Iron Oxides
CI 77163
Cosmetic Colorant
CI 77288
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77007
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Cyclopentasiloxane, Glycerin, Caprylyl Methicone, Dimethicone, Isododecane, Propylene Glycol, Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Magnesium Sulfate, Phenyl Trimethicone, Silica Dimethyl Silylate, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Bis-Isobutyl PEG/PPG-10/7/Dimethicone Copolymer, Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Dimethiconol, Propylene Carbonate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Alumina, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Tocopherol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides, CI 77163, CI 77288, CI 77007
Water
Skin ConditioningC13-14 Alkane
SolventHydrogenated Polydecene
EmollientGlycerin
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate
Emulsifying
Propanediol
Solvent
Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer
Disteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingLecithin
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantLauroyl Lysine
Skin Conditioning
Parfum
Masking
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningAstrocaryum Murumuru Seed Butter
Emollient
Astrocaryum Tucuma Seed Butter
Emollient
Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Citral
Perfuming
Iron Oxides
CI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantWater, C13-14 Alkane, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Glycerin, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Propanediol, Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Lecithin, Phenoxyethanol, Mica, Lauroyl Lysine, Parfum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Astrocaryum Murumuru Seed Butter, Astrocaryum Tucuma Seed Butter, Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter, Tocopherol, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Glyceryl Stearate, Glyceryl Oleate, Citric Acid, Citral, Iron Oxides, CI 77891
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Disteardimonium Hectorite comes from the clay mineral named hectorite. It is used to add thickness to a product.
It can also help stabilize a product by helping to disperse other ingredients.
Hectorite is a rare, white clay mineral.
Learn more about Disteardimonium HectoriteEthylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol 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.
Tocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about TocopherolWater. 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 WaterThis ingredient is a combination of red, black, and yellow iron oxide pigments. This combination of colors is usually found in foundation, because it results in a "skin" color.
The EU typically uses CI numbers for colorants when applicable, such as CI 77489. In the US, iron oxides are regulated as color additives and "iron oxides" is the most commonly used name in US cosmetic practice.
A 2021 paper looked at skincare formulations containing iron oxides and found that they reduced transmission of blue light when measured optically. In simple terms, the pigment particles helped block or scatter part of the visible light spectrum in lab testing and the authors suggest this could translate into better protection against blue-light-related skin effects.
There is also clinical and experimental research showing that tinted products containing iron oxides can reduce visible light-induced pigmentation:
Please note, whether a product reduces visible or blue light depends on things like:
In the EU's CosIng database, iron oxides are only listed as a colorant. CosIng groups ingredients by their main cosmetic role, such as colorant, preservative, or UV filter.
Though studies say iron oxides can "attenuate blue light", they're describing an optical property and not an officially recognized cosmetic function.
So CosIng isn’t contradicting the research. It’s just classifying iron oxides by what they officially are: pigments that add color.
Learn more about Iron Oxides
