What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningKaolin
Abrasive
Illite
Abrasive
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantMagnesium Aluminum Silicate
Absorbent
Hectorite
AbsorbentGlycerin
Humectant
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Montmorillonite
AbsorbentArtemisia Scoparia Extract
Skin ConditioningHydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate
Skin Conditioning
Polyglyceryl-10 Myristate
Skin Conditioning
Centella Asiatica Leaf/Stem Powder
Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Powder
Abrasive
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingDipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Humectant
Carica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCentella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Sodium Phytate
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Succinic Acid
BufferingWater, Kaolin, Illite, Dipropylene Glycol, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Hectorite, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Montmorillonite, Artemisia Scoparia Extract, Hydroxyacetophenone, Butylene Glycol, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Polyglyceryl-10 Myristate, Centella Asiatica Leaf/Stem Powder, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Powder, Xanthan Gum, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Sodium Phytate, Panthenol, Succinic Acid
Glycerin
Humectant
Diglycerin
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningPolyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate
Emulsifying
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Polyglyceryl-10 Behenate/Eicosadioate
EmulsifyingButylene Glycol
Humectant
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Coffea Arabica Seed Powder
Abrasive
Theobroma Cacao Seed Extract
Antioxidant
Coffea Arabica Seed Oil
Masking
Coffea Arabica Seed Extract
Masking
Caffeine
Skin Conditioning
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Carica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningVitis Vinifera Juice Extract
Antioxidant
Propanediol
Solvent
Glycereth-26
Humectant
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Parfum
Masking
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Dextrin
AbsorbentPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Emulsion StabilisingGlycerin, Diglycerin, Water, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Polyglyceryl-10 Behenate/Eicosadioate, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Coffea Arabica Seed Powder, Theobroma Cacao Seed Extract, Coffea Arabica Seed Oil, Coffea Arabica Seed Extract, Caffeine, Glycolic Acid, Salicylic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Vitis Vinifera Juice Extract, Propanediol, Glycereth-26, Hydroxyacetophenone, Parfum, Tocopheryl Acetate, Dextrin, Phenoxyethanol, Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
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 GlycolCarica Papaya Fruit Extract comes from the flesh of the papaya. It's a skin conditioning agent that carries a mix of bioactives like papain, beta-carotene, and vitamin C.
These bioactive compounds give it two main talking points:
1. Papain is a proteolytic enzyme that provides mild exfoliation, helping skin look smoother and more even.
2. The carotenoids and vitamin C provide some antioxidant activity.
It's pretty compatible with most ingredients, but just sure to space out enzyme products with strong acids/retinoids to avoid over-doing it.
Maximum reported concentration is around 0.1% and most leave-on products use just 0.05%. If you see higher figures like 5-10%, this is usually the pre-diluted material from raw extract suppliers.
This ingredient has an assuring safety record and there's a lack of clinical case reports of dermatitis from using it.
The only caveat is allergy: patch test if you have a papaya or latex-fruit allergy.
Learn more about Carica Papaya Fruit ExtractGlycerin (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 GlycerinHydroxyacetophenone 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
