What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningOlea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Olus Oil
Emollient
Elaeis Guineensis Oil
Emollient
Hydrogenated Lecithin
Emulsifying
Squalane
Emollient
Betaine
Humectant
Palmitamide Mea
Sarcosine
Skin Conditioning
Acetamide Mea
HumectantHydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Coco-Caprylate/Caprate
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Glyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Carica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningBetaine
Humectant
Lecithin
Emollient
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Pentaerythrityl Distearate
Emulsifying
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Acrylates Copolymer
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Iron Oxides
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Parfum
Masking
Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Glycerin, Glyceryl Glucoside, Glyceryl Stearate, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Betaine, Lecithin, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Pentaerythrityl Distearate, Behenyl Alcohol, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Pentylene Glycol, Carbomer, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Iron Oxides, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Betaine is a humectant. Like hyaluronic acid, it helps attract and retain moisture in the skin. It’s known for being gentle and for helping the skin maintain balanced hydration.
Betaine is mainly used to improve hydration and support calmer skin. It helps skin cells regulate water balance because it functions as an osmolyte.
Some studies suggest betaine may support making skin tone more even.
Fun fact: Betaine naturally exists in the skin and the body. In cosmetic products, it can be either plant-derived (most commonly from sugar beets) or synthetically produced for consistency and stability.
Betaine is also known as trimethylglycine.
Learn more about BetaineCarbomer is a synthetic thickening and gelling agent. It's basically the ingredient that gives a lot of serums, gels, creams, and sunscreens their smooth, non-sticky texture.
Although legally permitted at very high levels, carbomers are normally used at concentrations below 1%.
It also needs to be neutralized to actually thicken, and because it is a large molecule, it doesn't really penetrate the skin barrier.
Allergy-wise, the risk is very low. Clinical studies show carbomers have low potential for skin irritation/sensitization even at concentrations up to 100%.
A 2024 UK study patch-tested 1,302 patients and found true allergy to the parent group of carbomer to be rare with no confirmed relevant reactions.
Learn more about CarbomerGlycerin (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 GlycerinPentylene 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 GlycolWater. 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
