What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingLinoleic Acid
Cleansing
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Sphingolipids
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Centella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Phenylpropanol
Masking
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Propanediol
Solvent
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Oleic Acid
Emollient
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Polysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Sorbitan Isostearate
Emulsifying
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Linolenic Acid
Cleansing
Polylysine
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Water, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Linoleic Acid, Phospholipids, Sphingolipids, Tocopherol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Centella Asiatica Extract, Allantoin, Phenylpropanol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Propanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Oleic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Polysorbate 60, Sorbitan Isostearate, Stearic Acid, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Linolenic Acid, Polylysine, Pentylene Glycol
Zinc Oxide 17%
Cosmetic Colorant
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Butyloctyl Salicylate
Skin Conditioning
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialCaffeine
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingPhenethyl Alcohol
MaskingPolyglyceryl-4 Laurate/Succinate
Polyhydroxystearic Acid
Emulsifying
Polymethylsilsesquioxane
Polysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingSorbitan Isostearate
Emulsifying
Sorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Tapioca Starch
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Triethoxycaprylylsilane
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingZinc Oxide 17%, Bisabolol, Butyloctyl Salicylate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Caffeine, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Phenethyl Alcohol, Polyglyceryl-4 Laurate/Succinate, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Polysorbate 60, Water, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hydroxide, Sorbitan Isostearate, Sorbitan Stearate, Tapioca Starch, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Xanthan Gum
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
Caprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.
Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.
Because it is not a free-fatty acid or alcohol, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolGlycerin (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 antioxidant with skin conditioning and soothing properties. It also boosts the efficiency of preservatives.
Though naturally occuring in Norwegian spruce needles, this ingredient is usually synthetically created.
This ingredient is not irritating or sensitizing. Recent research also suggests it may have skin-brightening effects through tyrosinase inhibition.
Learn more about HydroxyacetophenoneThis is a synthetic polymer. It helps improve the texture of products by adding thickness and gel-like feel.
It is also an emulsifer, meaning it prevents ingredients such as oil and water from separating. It also helps evenly disperse other ingredients.
Polysorbate 60 is used to help stabilize products. It is a surfactant and emulsifier. These properties help keep ingredients together in a product. Surfactants help reduce surface tension between ingredients with different states, such as liquids and solids. Emulsifiers help prevent oils and waters from separating.
Polysorbate 60 is sorbitol-based and created from the ethoxylation of sorbitan. Ethoxylation is a chemical reaction used to add ethylene oxide. Sorbitan is a the dehydrated version of sorbitol, a sugar found in fruits.
In this case, the 60 comes from reacting 60 units of ethylene oxide with sorbitan.
Polysorbates are commonly used in medicine and foods.
Learn more about Polysorbate 60Sodium 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 HyaluronateSorbitan Isostearate is an emulsifer. It is created from isostearic acid and sorbitol.
As an emulsifier, it keeps the water and oil ingredients from separating. This keeps formulas stable and smooth.
In a 24 hour occlusive patch test on 56 subjects, 10% sorbitan isostearate was completely non-irritating. Most formulas use less than 10%.
Because it's a fatty acid ester, it may not be fungal acne safe since the Malassezia yeast can utilize it as a nutrient source.
Learn more about Sorbitan IsostearateTetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate is a chelating agent. Chelating agents help prevent metal ions from binding to other ingredients. This helps prevent unwanted effects and reactions from a product. These metal ions may come from water and are found in miniscule amounts.
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate can also help other preservatives be more effective.
Water. 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
