What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCamellia Sinensis Leaf Water 10%
MaskingDisodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingSodium Cocoyl Alaninate
SurfactantSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
CleansingAcrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Chloride
MaskingGlycerin
HumectantMethylpropanediol
SolventDisodium 2-Sulfolaurate
CleansingCamellia Sinensis Leaf Extract 0.1%
AntimicrobialLactobacillus/Rye Flour Ferment
Skin ConditioningLactobacillus/Soymilk Ferment Filtrate
Skin ConditioningBacillus/Soybean Ferment Extract
Skin ConditioningCarica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCitrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil
MaskingLavandula Angustifolia Oil
MaskingQuillaja Saponaria Bark Extract
CleansingLauryl Hydroxysultaine
Cleansing1,2-Hexanediol
Skin ConditioningCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientCoco-Glucoside
CleansingTromethamine
BufferingSodium Cocoyl Isethionate
CleansingSodium Citrate
BufferingStyrene/Acrylates Copolymer
Hexylene Glycol
EmulsifyingSodium Myristoyl Glutamate
CleansingCitric Acid
BufferingButylene Glycol
HumectantCeramide NP
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
SolventNiacinamide
SmoothingFolic Acid
Skin ConditioningPantothenic Acid
Skin ConditioningPyridoxine
Skin ConditioningThiamine Hcl
MaskingCyanocobalamin
Skin ConditioningRiboflavin
Cosmetic ColorantXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingLimonene
PerfumingLinalool
PerfumingWater, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Water 10%, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Sodium Cocoyl Alaninate, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Sodium Chloride, Glycerin, Methylpropanediol, Disodium 2-Sulfolaurate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract 0.1%, Lactobacillus/Rye Flour Ferment, Lactobacillus/Soymilk Ferment Filtrate, Bacillus/Soybean Ferment Extract, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Quillaja Saponaria Bark Extract, Lauryl Hydroxysultaine, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Coco-Glucoside, Tromethamine, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Sodium Citrate, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Hexylene Glycol, Sodium Myristoyl Glutamate, Citric Acid, Butylene Glycol, Ceramide NP, Propanediol, Niacinamide, Folic Acid, Pantothenic Acid, Pyridoxine, Thiamine Hcl, Cyanocobalamin, Riboflavin, Xanthan Gum, Limonene, Linalool
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidDisodium Cocoamphodiacetate is a surfactant and helps cleanse skin. It is created from the fatty acids of coconut oil.
Surfactants help rinse oil, dirt, and other pollutants easily from skin. It has a faint fruit-like scent.
Hexylene Glycol is a multitasker ingredient that works as a solvent, humectant, emulsifier, viscosity reducer, and preservative booster.
It is able to dissolve both water and oil-soluble ingredients to stabilize tricky actives and make products spread more easily.
As a humectant, it pulls water into the skin. But it's a pretty minor moisturizing ingredient compared to other humectants, like glycerin.
Interestingly, it can act as a mild penetration enhancer. One in vitro study on human skin found a 12% concentration upped the absorption of mometasone furoate (a medicinal ingredient used to treat inflammatory skin conditions) up to 7%.
This ingredient is typically used at levels of 0.1-10% depending on the role it's playing.
A patch test study on eczema patients didn't find a significant increase in irritation versus the control group, but the potential for irritation rises at higher concentrations.
Learn more about Hexylene 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