What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Propanediol
Solvent
3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Corn Gluten Amino Acids
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Rubus Chamaemorus Seed Extract
Skin ConditioningYeast Ferment Extract
Skin ConditioningPolygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract
Antioxidant
Centella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Bleaching
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialScutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract
Astringent
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Sclerotium Gum
HumectantXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Arginine
Masking
Hexylene Glycol
EmulsifyingSodium Citrate
BufferingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingHydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Propanediol, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Corn Gluten Amino Acids, Butylene Glycol, Niacinamide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Rubus Chamaemorus Seed Extract, Yeast Ferment Extract, Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Saccharide Isomerate, Hydrolyzed Sclerotium Gum, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Arginine, Hexylene Glycol, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Hydroxide, Hydroxyacetophenone, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol 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 PhenoxyethanolWater. 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
