What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Shorea Stenoptera Seed Butter
Emollient
C9-12 Alkane
SolventPropanediol
Solvent
Linoleic Acid
Cleansing
Sodium Acrylates Copolymer
Passiflora Edulis Seed Oil
Emollient
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
Humectant
Nelumbo Nucifera Germ Extract
Skin ConditioningCollagen
Moisturising
Butyl Avocadate
Skin Conditioning
Trehalose
Humectant
Serine
Masking
Vitis Vinifera Flower Cell Extract
MaskingLinolenic Acid
Cleansing
Urea
Buffering
Caprylhydroxamic Acid
Algin
Masking
Polyglutamic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Oleic Acid
Emollient
Pullulan
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Glyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
Coco-Caprylate/Caprate
Emollient
Lecithin
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Benzoic Acid
Masking
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Glyceryl Polyacrylate
Potassium Phosphate
BufferingBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Disodium Phosphate
BufferingSodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Shorea Stenoptera Seed Butter, C9-12 Alkane, Propanediol, Linoleic Acid, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Passiflora Edulis Seed Oil, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Nelumbo Nucifera Germ Extract, Collagen, Butyl Avocadate, Trehalose, Serine, Vitis Vinifera Flower Cell Extract, Linolenic Acid, Urea, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Algin, Polyglutamic Acid, Tocopherol, Oleic Acid, Pullulan, Palmitic Acid, Glyceryl Glucoside, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Lecithin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Pentylene Glycol, Stearic Acid, Benzoic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Polysorbate 20, Dehydroacetic Acid, Glyceryl Polyacrylate, Potassium Phosphate, Benzyl Alcohol, Disodium Phosphate, Sodium Benzoate
Water
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
Solvent
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Squalane
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer
Skin ConditioningTripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7
Skin Conditioning
Beta-Glucan
Skin Conditioning
Polyglutamic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Ethylhexyl Olivate
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6
Emulsion StabilisingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningSodium Acrylates Copolymer
Sorbitan Laurate
Emulsifying
Sodium Phytate
Polyglyceryl-4 Oleate
Emulsifying
Citric Acid
Buffering
Hydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingDextran
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Water, Propanediol, Butylene Glycol, Squalane, Glycerin, Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Beta-Glucan, Polyglutamic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Ethylhexyl Olivate, Sodium Lactate, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Phenoxyethanol, Pentylene Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Sorbitan Laurate, Sodium Phytate, Polyglyceryl-4 Oleate, Citric Acid, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Dextran, Carbomer, Caprylyl Glycol, Coco-Glucoside
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Caprylyl 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 GlycerinPentylene glycol is typically used within a product to thicken it. It also adds a smooth, soft, and moisturizing feel to the product. It is naturally found in plants such as sugar beets.
The hydrophilic trait of Pentylene Glycol makes it a humectant. As a humectant, Pentylene Glycol helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
This property also makes Pentylene Glycol a great texture enhancer. It can also help thicken or stabilize a product.
Pentylene Glycol also acts as a mild preservative and helps to keep a product microbe-free.
Some people may experience mild eye and skin irritation from Pentylene Glycol. We always recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient in your routine.
Pentylene Glycol has a low molecular weight and is part of the 1,2-glycol family.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolPolyglutamic Acid is made up many glutamic acids chained together. It is created from bacterial fermentation.
This ingredient is an effective skin hydrator and may help speed up wound healing. As a humectant, it draws and holds water to the skin. This ingredient is often compared to hyaluronic acid or glycerin. Similarly to hyaluronic acid, it can vary in molecular weights. This means polyglutamic acid is capable of bringing hydration to lower levels of the skin.
Fun fact: Polyglutamic Acid is found in the Japanese food, natto. It is also being used in cancer treatment studies.
Learn more about Polyglutamic AcidPropanediol is an all-star ingredient. It softens, hydrates, and smooths the skin.Â
It’s often used to:
Propanediol is not likely to cause sensitivity and considered safe to use. It is derived from corn or petroleum with a clear color and no scent.
Learn more about PropanediolThis ingredient is a synthetic, salt form polymer built from acrylic acid, ethacrylic acid, or their simple esters. It works as a binder, film former, and viscosity increasing agent.
Typical concentrations start at around 0.5% but can go up to 25% for film-forming or binding.
The CIR Expert Panel assessed the safety of 126 acrylates copolymers and concluded they are safe in cosmetics at current use levels when formulated to be non-irritating. They also noted the levels present in finished cosmetic products are not considered a safety risk and Genotoxicity testing (Ames tests, chromosomal aberration assays) has come back negative across the board.
Though the raw building blocks (like acrylic acid) can be irritating on their own, cosmetic-grade versions go through purification to keep levels extremely low.
Sodium Acrylates Copolymer is a large molecule that doesn't penetrate skin barrier in any meaningful way.
Learn more about Sodium Acrylates CopolymerSodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateWater. 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
