What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningEthoxydiglycol
HumectantVaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningDimethyl Isosorbide
SolventSalicylic Acid
Masking
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Saccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingGlycerin
Humectant
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract
MaskingCitrus Limon Fruit Extract
Masking
Sodium Levulinate
Skin ConditioningAcer Saccharum Extract
Skin ConditioningDiutan Gum
Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf
Abrasive
Sodium Anisate
AntimicrobialMentha Australis Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Santalum Spicatum Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Leaf Oil
Astringent
Juniperus Mexicana Oil
Masking
Pelargonium Graveolens Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Amara Flower Oil
Masking
Eugenia Caryophyllus Leaf Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil
Masking
Citrus Grandis Peel Oil
Masking
Citrus Limon Peel Oil
Masking
Litsea Cubeba Fruit Oil
Masking
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Magnesium Aspartate
Skin ConditioningZinc Gluconate
Skin Conditioning
Citrus Australasica Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Citric Acid
Buffering
Copper Gluconate
Skin Conditioning
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Glycine
Buffering
Serine
Masking
Glutamic Acid
Humectant
Aspartic Acid
Masking
Leucine
Skin ConditioningAlanine
Masking
Lysine
Skin ConditioningArginine
Masking
Tyrosine
MaskingPhenylalanine
Masking
Proline
Skin Conditioning
Threonine
Valine
MaskingIsoleucine
Skin ConditioningHistidine
Humectant
Limonene
Perfuming
Citral
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Citronellol
Perfuming
Water, Ethoxydiglycol, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Salicylic Acid, Lactic Acid, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Glycerin, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Fruit Extract, Sodium Levulinate, Acer Saccharum Extract, Diutan Gum, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf, Sodium Anisate, Mentha Australis Leaf Extract, Butylene Glycol, Santalum Spicatum Seed Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Leaf Oil, Juniperus Mexicana Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Oil, Citrus Aurantium Amara Flower Oil, Eugenia Caryophyllus Leaf Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil, Citrus Grandis Peel Oil, Citrus Limon Peel Oil, Litsea Cubeba Fruit Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Magnesium Aspartate, Zinc Gluconate, Citrus Australasica Fruit Extract, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Copper Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate, Glycine, Serine, Glutamic Acid, Aspartic Acid, Leucine, Alanine, Lysine, Arginine, Tyrosine, Phenylalanine, Proline, Threonine, Valine, Isoleucine, Histidine, Limonene, Citral, Linalool, Citronellol
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ethoxydiglycol (aka Diethylene Glycol Monoethyl Ether) is one of the cosmetic world's quiet problem solvers.
In a formula, it is a solvent that dissolves tricky ingredients that don't want to mix in and helps spread ingredients evenly across your skin without leaving a greasy or sticky feeling
This makes it great for hard-to-dissolve actives like vitamin C, benzoyl peroxide, and self-tanner DHA.
It also has mild humectant and penetration enhancer abilities so it can help some actives absorb a little deeper.
The penetration boost is backed by lab research: studies using human skin samples found it improved how well an active dissolves into the upper layer of skin rather than tearing down your skin barrier. Reviews of its mechanism also describe it interacting gently with the lipids and water in your outermost layer of skin.
Just know this penetration-enhancing effect is not universal. It helps a lot in some formulas and did very little in others (so the benefit really depends on the specific product).
Safety-wise, the evidence is reassuring. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel reviewed it and concluded it's safe for use in cosmetics and recognized it as non-irritating, non-sensitizing, and non-comedogenic in skincare.
Typical leave-on skincare usage lands around 1-10%. The EU has sets caps of 2.6% in non-spray products, 10% in rinse-offs, 7% in oxidative hair dye, and 5% in non-oxidative hair dye.
Learn more about EthoxydiglycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinWater. 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
