What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Rosmarinus Officinalis Water
MaskingPotassium Oleate
EmulsifyingPotassium Cocoate
Emulsifying
Glycerin
Humectant
Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract
HumectantSapindus Mukorossi Fruit Oil
Skin Protecting
Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningMelia Azadirachta Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningAcacia Concinna Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningMentha Arvensis Leaf Oil
Masking
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Potassium Citrate
BufferingCitric Acid
Buffering
Rosmarinus Officinalis Water, Potassium Oleate, Potassium Cocoate, Glycerin, Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract, Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Oil, Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Acacia Concinna Fruit Extract, Mentha Arvensis Leaf Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Citrate, Citric Acid
Water
Skin ConditioningPotassium Oleate
EmulsifyingPotassium Cocoate
Emulsifying
Glycerin
Humectant
Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract
HumectantSapindus Mukorossi Fruit Oil
Skin Protecting
Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningMelia Azadirachta Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningAcacia Concinna Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningMentha Arvensis Callus Lysate
Antioxidant
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Potassium Citrate
BufferingCitric Acid
Buffering
Water, Potassium Oleate, Potassium Cocoate, Glycerin, Phyllanthus Emblica Fruit Extract, Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Oil, Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Acacia Concinna Fruit Extract, Mentha Arvensis Callus Lysate, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Citrate, Citric Acid
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
We don't have a description for Acacia Concinna Fruit Extract yet.
Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidGlycerin (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 GlycerinThis ingredient is also known as neem leaf extract. It contains natural compounds like nimbidin, quercetin, and other polyphenols that give it antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory activity.
Lab studies have shown neem leaf extract can inhibit acne-related bacteria and help calm skin. Animal studies on wound gels using 1-3% neem leaf extract found it sped up healing without causing irritation.
A wound-healing study testing gels with the extract at 1%, 2%, and 3% concentrations and found none of them irritated the skin.
Most commercial products also use it in a similar low range (typically under 5%).
Allergy-wise, there are some case reports on neem oil causing allergic contact dermatitis so people with plant/botanical sensitivities may want to patch test first.
Learn more about Melia Azadirachta Leaf ExtractPhenoxyethanol 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 PhenoxyethanolThis ingredient is also known as Indian Gooseberry or Amla Berry. It is skin hydrating and antioxidant rich.
Indian gooseberry is rich in antioxidants such as polyphenols, tannins, and vitamin C compounds.
We don't have a description for Potassium Citrate yet.
Potassium Cocoate is basically a liquid coconut soap that's made by cooking coconut oil with potassium hydroxide.
It's a cleanser, foaming, and emulsifying agent that mostly shows up in soaps and "natural" cleansers.
Rinse-off concentrations typically range from 2-25%.
The finished product sits at a fairly high pH (~9-11) because it's a true soap. This just means it can feel drying or slightly stripping if a formula isn't balance with emollients.
Allergy and irritation risk is low as this ingredient was found to be an irritant in less than 1% of subjects (2 of these subjects had active psoriasis and 3 had active eczema).
Fungal acne: The Malassezia yeast feeds on fatty acids in the ~C12-24 range, and Potassium Cocoate is made of exactly those (Lauric C12, Myristic C14, Palmitic C16, Oleic C18:1). Lab studies have shown the yeast can take up Lauric Acid and grows readily on Palmitic Acid. Therefore, this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Potassium CocoateWe don't have a description for Potassium Oleate yet.
Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Oil is an oil.
We don't have a description for Trigonella Foenum-Graecum Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride yet.
