What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Betaine
Humectant
Isodecyl Neopentanoate
EmollientNiacinamide
Smoothing
Salix Alba Bark Extract
Astringent
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Emulsion StabilisingSqualane
Emollient
Cyclodextrin
AbsorbentGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Sorbitol
Humectant
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningWater, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Betaine, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Niacinamide, Salix Alba Bark Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Benzyl Alcohol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Caprylyl Glycol, Glycerin, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Squalane, Cyclodextrin, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Sorbitol, Sodium Gluconate
Water
Skin ConditioningCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate
UV Absorber
Hamamelis Virginiana Extract
Antiseborrhoeic
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Glycerin
Humectant
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane
UV Absorber
Polyethylene
Abrasive
Glycol Stearate
Emollient
Betaine
Humectant
Propanediol
Solvent
Squalane
Emollient
Avena Sativa Bran Extract
Abrasive
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Methylpropanediol
SolventBenzophenone-3
UV Absorber
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Triethanolamine
BufferingOlea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Olea Europaea Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Olea Europaea Fruit Extract
BleachingPhospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningCentella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Glyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingSodium Benzoate
Masking
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Cholesterol
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingWater, Cetyl Alcohol, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Hamamelis Virginiana Extract, Phenoxyethanol, Glycerin, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Carbomer, Glyceryl Stearate, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Polyethylene, Glycol Stearate, Betaine, Propanediol, Squalane, Avena Sativa Bran Extract, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Methylpropanediol, Benzophenone-3, Stearyl Alcohol, Triethanolamine, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Olea Europaea Leaf Extract, Olea Europaea Fruit Extract, Phospholipids, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Gluconate, Centella Asiatica Extract, Glyceryl Glucoside, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Sodium Benzoate, Phytosphingosine, Cholesterol, 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.
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 BetaineGlycerin (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 GlycerinGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearateThis is the synthetic salt of gluconic acid, a form of PHA and mild exfoliant.
It is mainly used to stabilize oil and butter formulations from going bad. Sodium gluconate is a humectant, pH regulator, and chelating agent.
Chelating agents help neutralize unwanted metals from affecting the formulation.
Sodium gluconate is water-soluble.
Learn more about Sodium GluconateSqualane is the hydrogenated and shelf-stable form of squalene (a lipid that naturally occurs in human sebum).
It is an emollient and skin conditioning agent that is able to integrate seamlessly into the skin's lipid barrier without clogging pores.
This is due to how structurally similar it is to what your skin already produces.
Though it is mostly an emollient that helps soften and hydrate skin, it also has some humectant and occlusive action. Humectants help the skin retain moisture while occlusives seal it in, making squalane a triple-threat moisturizer.
Research shows it has antioxidant capabilities that help protect against stressors like UV exposure, specifically UVA induced oxidative stress. This study also found that it supports collagen biosynthesis in human dermal fibroblasts.
No clinical study has reported significant adverse effects and irritation reactions are very rare from this ingredient (even at 100% concentration).
Overall, it's a fantastic ingredient for hydration and is suitable for all skin types.
This depends on the source. Squalane can be derived from both plants and animals. Most squalane used in skincare comes from plants.
Please note: the source of squalane is only known if disclosed by the brand. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have any questions about their squalane.
Read more about squalene with an "e".
Though squalane is often called an oil, it’s technically not one. It is a hydrocarbon, meaning it is only made of carbon and hydrogen. True oils are triglycerides and made of fatty acids and glycerol.
The term “oil-free” isn’t regulated so companies can define it however they want. Some exclude all oils, while others just avoid mineral oil or comedogenic oils.
Squalane has a comedogenic rating of 1 from the original 1972 study that tested raw ingredients under occlusion on rabbit ears. This system is not standardized or peer-reviewed, and using the raw ingredients is very different from how diluted cosmetic formulations are used on human skin.
A comedogenic rating of 1 means it is "unlikely to clog pores" according to the original rating system.
The overall formula of a product matters more than the individual ingredients on whether or not it will cause clogged pores.
Learn more about SqualaneWater. 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
