What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
Dimethicone
Emollient
Polysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Disodium EDTA
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningLactic Acid
Buffering
Serine
Masking
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Sorbitol
Humectant
Urea
Buffering
Sodium Chloride
MaskingWater, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Polysorbate 60, Cetyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Phenoxyethanol, Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Allantoin, Sodium Hydroxide, Pentylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Ethylhexylglycerin, Lactic Acid, Serine, Sodium Lactate, Sorbitol, Urea, Sodium Chloride
Water
Skin ConditioningAluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate
Absorbent
Glycerin
Humectant
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Propanediol
Solvent
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Sorbitan Stearate
Emulsifying
Dimethicone
Emollient
Isohexadecane
EmollientSodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Betaine
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPEG-100 Stearate
Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate
EmulsifyingSodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Disodium EDTA
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Arginine
Masking
Aspartic Acid
Masking
PCA
Humectant
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Glycine
Buffering
Alanine
Masking
Cholesterol
Emollient
Ceramide AP
Skin Conditioning
Phytosphingosine
Skin Conditioning
Serine
Masking
Valine
MaskingCarbomer
Emulsion StabilisingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningIsoleucine
Skin ConditioningProline
Skin Conditioning
Threonine
Histidine
Humectant
Phenylalanine
Masking
Ceramide EOP
Skin Conditioning
Water, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Glycerin, Propylene Glycol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Propanediol, Glyceryl Stearate, Butylene Glycol, Sorbitan Stearate, Dimethicone, Isohexadecane, Sodium Polyacrylate, Phenoxyethanol, Betaine, Caprylyl Glycol, Xanthan Gum, PEG-100 Stearate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Sodium PCA, Sodium Lactate, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, PCA, Ceramide NP, Glycine, Alanine, Cholesterol, Ceramide AP, Phytosphingosine, Serine, Valine, Carbomer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Isoleucine, Proline, Threonine, Histidine, Phenylalanine, Ceramide EOP
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Carbomer is a high-molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid. It is used to form gels and thicken formulas.
Due to its large molecular size, carbomer has minimal skin penetration and is considered an inert ingredient.
A high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Don't worry, most products contain 1% or less of carbomer.
Learn more about CarbomerDimethicone is a type of synthetic silicone created from natural materials such as quartz. It is also known as polydimethylsiloxane.
What it does:
Dimethicone comes in different viscosities:
Depending on the viscosity, dimethicone has different properties.
Ingredients lists don't always show which type is used, so we recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the viscosity.
This ingredient is unlikely to cause irritation because it does not get absorbed into skin. However, people with silicone allergies should be careful about using this ingredient.
Note: Dimethicone may contribute to pilling. This is because it is not oil or water soluble, so pilling may occur when layered with products. When mixed with heavy oils in a formula, the outcome is also quite greasy.
Learn more about DimethiconeDisodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
Learn more about Disodium EDTAEthylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearatePeg-100 Stearate is an emollient and emulsifier. As an emollient, it helps keep skin soft by trapping moisture in. On the other hand, emulsifiers help prevent oil and water from separating in a product.
PEGS are a hydrophilic polyether compound . There are 100 ethylene oxide monomers in Peg-100 Stearate. Peg-100 Stearate is polyethylene glycol ester of stearic acid.
Phenoxyethanol 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.
Serine is a non-essential amino acid (your body makes it on its own!). It is a major player in your skin's natural moisturizing factor (NMF), or the water-loving molecules in your outermost layer of skin (stratum corneum) that keeps everything hydrated and happy.
Serine is one of your NMF's most abundant components that works as a skin-identical humectant. Its hydroxyl group grabs onto water molecules to boost hydration without any heaviness or occlusion.
Research on a hydrogel with serine confirmed this serine got delivered to your stratum corneum and demonstrated enhanced skin moisturization.
Interestingly serine also helps your skin produce filaggrin, a protein that keeps your skin barrier strong and used to create collagen.
Learn more about SerineSodium Lactate is the sodium salt of lactic acid, an AHA. It is a humectant and sometimes used to adjust the pH of a product.
This ingredient is part of our skin's NMF, or natural moisturizing factor. Our NMF is essential for the hydration of our top skin layers and plasticity of skin. NMF also influences our skin's natural acid mantle and pH, which protects our skin from harmful bacteria.
High percentages of Sodium Lactate can have an exfoliating effect.
Fun fact: Sodium Lactate is produced from fermented sugar.
Learn more about Sodium LactateWater. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
