What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningNiacinamide
SmoothingOryza Sativa Extract
AbsorbentPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningRosa Damascena Flower Water
MaskingRice Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningAvena Sativa Kernel Extract
AbrasiveMethyl Gluceth-20
HumectantSorbitol
HumectantCyclodextrin
AbsorbentHydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingBenzyl Alcohol
PerfumingHydroxyacetophenone
AntioxidantCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientXylitylglucoside
HumectantAnhydroxylitol
HumectantXylitol
HumectantPanthenol
Skin ConditioningSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
HumectantWater, Niacinamide, Oryza Sativa Extract, Pentylene Glycol, Rosa Damascena Flower Water, Rice Ferment Filtrate, Avena Sativa Kernel Extract, Methyl Gluceth-20, Sorbitol, Cyclodextrin, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Benzyl Alcohol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Caprylyl Glycol, Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Xylitol, Panthenol, Sodium Gluconate, Butylene Glycol
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
HumectantDipropylene Glycol
HumectantButylene Glycol
HumectantPropylene Glycol
HumectantHydroxyethyl Urea
HumectantGlyceryl Glucoside
HumectantPEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer
SolventHydroxyacetophenone
AntioxidantDiethoxyethyl Succinate
SolventDipotassium Glycyrrhizate
HumectantSclerotium Gum
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Hyaluronate
HumectantDisodium EDTA
PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
EmulsifyingTremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract
AntioxidantSodium Dilauramidoglutamide Lysine
HumectantPhenoxyethanol
PreservativeChlorphenesin
AntimicrobialCitrus Tangerina Peel Oil
MaskingLimonene
PerfumingWater, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Propylene Glycol, Hydroxyethyl Urea, Glyceryl Glucoside, PEG/PPG-17/6 Copolymer, Hydroxyacetophenone, Diethoxyethyl Succinate, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Sclerotium Gum, Sodium Hyaluronate, Disodium EDTA, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract, Sodium Dilauramidoglutamide Lysine, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Citrus Tangerina Peel Oil, Limonene
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolHydroxyacetophenone is a small phenolic molecule that earns its place in a formulas as an antioxidant and preservative booster.
As a phenol, it is able to neutralize free radicals to protect both the product and the skin from oxidative stress.
Though it can't kill microbes on its own, it works as a good supporting agent when combined with other preservatives like Phenoxyethanol or 1,2-Hexanediol.
This ingredient naturally occurs as piceol in Norwegian spruce needles (~0.4-1.1% dry weight and in cloudberries). Though the cosmetic-grade material is synthesized for purity and consistency.
You'll usually see it used at low levels and suppliers recommend up to 1% added to a water phase.
Safety testing was done at concentrations like 0.05% in SPF products and 0.5% in a Human Repeated Insult Patch Test. The safety evidence is assuring; this ingredient is safe for cosmetics in current use and also holds safety status as a food flavoring as well.
An honest caveat: the "soothing" and "anti-inflammatory" claims come mostly from supplier marketing rather than published clinical trials. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review's own literature search found no useful efficacy studies on this ingredient.
So the antioxidant and preservative-boosting roles are the well supported ones while the calming benefit is plausible but thinly evidenced.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated, low-irritation multitasker that quietly helps a formula stay fresh and stable.
Learn more about HydroxyacetophenoneWater. 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