What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningDimethicone
Emollient
Vinyl Dimethicone/Lauryl Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Surfactant
PEG-10 Dimethicone
Skin Conditioning
Cyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Chloride
MaskingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingNicotinoyl Dipeptide-23
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingPropylene Glycol
Humectant
Hamamelis Virginiana Extract
Antiseborrhoeic
Zinc Oxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Water, Dimethicone, Vinyl Dimethicone/Lauryl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Niacinamide, Glycerin, Sodium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Nicotinoyl Dipeptide-23, Butylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Hydroxide, Propylene Glycol, Hamamelis Virginiana Extract, Zinc Oxide
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Chloride
MaskingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Glycerin
Humectant
DMDM Hydantoin
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acids
CleansingDisodium EDTA
Polyquaternium-7
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingButylene Glycol
Humectant
Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate
Preservative
Squalene
Emollient
Fomes Officinalis Extract
Skin ProtectingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningAvena Sativa Kernel Extract
Abrasive
Trehalose
Humectant
Urea
Buffering
Lecithin
Emollient
Salix Alba Bark Extract
Astringent
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Bleaching
Opuntia Ficus-Indica Stem Extract
Skin Conditioning
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Serine
Masking
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Algin
Masking
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Bakuchiol
Antimicrobial
Behenic Acid
Cleansing
Caprooyl Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Caprooyl Sphingosine
Skin ConditioningCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide Eos
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ceramide Ns
Skin Conditioning
Ceteareth-25
CleansingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Cholesterol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Disodium Phosphate
BufferingGlyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Glyceryl Polyacrylate
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Magnolia Grandiflora Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningPEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
Emulsifying
Potassium Phosphate
BufferingPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Pullulan
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Propylene Glycol, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Sodium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Glycerin, DMDM Hydantoin, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acids, Disodium EDTA, Polyquaternium-7, Potassium Hydroxide, Butylene Glycol, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Squalene, Fomes Officinalis Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Avena Sativa Kernel Extract, Trehalose, Urea, Lecithin, Salix Alba Bark Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Opuntia Ficus-Indica Stem Extract, Pentylene Glycol, Serine, Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Algin, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Bakuchiol, Behenic Acid, Caprooyl Phytosphingosine, Caprooyl Sphingosine, Caprylyl Glycol, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Ceramide Eos, Ceramide NP, Ceramide Ns, Ceteareth-25, Cetyl Alcohol, Cholesterol, Citric Acid, Disodium Phosphate, Glyceryl Oleate, Glyceryl Polyacrylate, Glyceryl Stearate, Magnolia Grandiflora Leaf Extract, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Potassium Phosphate, Potassium Sorbate, Pullulan, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopherol
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 GlycolCaprylyl 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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.
It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.
Propylene Glycol is a synthetic, colorless, odorless liquid that has been a staple in cosmetics for decades. It is a skin conditioning agent, humectant, and solvent.
As a humectant, it draw water to the skin to reduce flaking and restore suppleness. It's also a solvent that helps dissolve other actives and keeps formulas stable across temperature changes.
The CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be nontoxic and clinical studies show no sensitization at cosmetic use concentrations.
True allergic reactions are quite rare: a 15-year retrospective study of 6,751 patients found only 0.31% had a positive reaction (and less than half were considered clinically relevant).
It seemed that when sensitization does occur, it's most commonly linked to topical medication (like corticosteroids) and not cosmetics. Allergic contact dermatitis also appears largely limited to individuals with underlying skin conditions.
Overall, propylene glycol is a well-studied ingredient that most people can tolerate without issue.
Learn more about Propylene GlycolChances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideWater. 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
