What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate
CleansingPolyacrylate-33
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside
CleansingSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningXylitol
Humectant
Glucose
Humectant
Anhydroxylitol
Humectant
Nopalea Cochenillifera Extract
Skin ConditioningGlyceryl Glucoside
Humectant
Betaine
Humectant
Benzophenone-4
UV Absorber
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Cicada Extract
Antioxidant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Xylitylglucoside
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine
Emulsifying
Carthamus Tinctorius Seed Oil
Masking
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Polysorbate 80
Emulsifying
Water, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Polyacrylate-33, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Niacinamide, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Xylitol, Glucose, Anhydroxylitol, Nopalea Cochenillifera Extract, Glyceryl Glucoside, Betaine, Benzophenone-4, Sodium Benzoate, Cicada Extract, Panthenol, Allantoin, Xylitylglucoside, Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Carthamus Tinctorius Seed Oil, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Polysorbate 80
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingSodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Sodium Metabisulfite
Antioxidant
Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract
Emollient
Curcuma Longa Root Extract
Masking
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Citrus Limon Peel Oil
Masking
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Decyl Glucoside, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Sodium Metabisulfite, Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract, Curcuma Longa Root Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Citrus Limon Peel Oil, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Cocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.
This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.
Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.
While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.
Learn more about Cocamidopropyl BetaineDisodium 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.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinThis ingredient is also known as olive oil. It has been used in skincare for centuries and science largely backs up its reputation as a nourishing emollient.
The main components of olive oil are oleic acid (55-83%), linoleic acid (3.5-20%), and palmitic acid (7-20%). Oleic acid promotes skin regeneration and helps regulate inflammatory responses.
Squalene is also naturally present in olive oil and exhibits moisturizing and antioxidant properties.
The polyphenols in olive oil also show anti-aging promise; one clinical study found a measurable improvement in skin appearance after 30 days of topical serum use.
Just be aware that applying olive oil directly to skin can weaken the barrier and cause redness. One study with volunteers found even people without sensitive skin experienced a significant reduction in stratum corneum integrity and induced mild erythema.
It's best to use this ingredient as part of a carefully crafted formula (instead of putting it on skin directly from the bottle).
Because it has a 2-3 on the comedogenic scale, it is a moderate risk for acne-prone skin. However, the overall formulation of a product matters more than a few ingredients with comedogenic ratings.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe because of the oleic and palmitic acid content. These fall within the C11-24 fatty acid range that the Malassezia yeast can metabolize to grow.
Overall, olive oil is a well-studied and nourishing skincare ingredient.
Learn more about Olea Europaea Fruit OilThis gentle cleansing and foaming ingredient is known for leaving a smooth feeling in skin and hair. It is made using coconut oil.
According to the manufacturer, it is soluble in water and has resistance to hard water, acid, and alkali.
Due to its coconut base, it may not be Malassezia folliculitis safe.
Learn more about Sodium Methyl Cocoyl TaurateWater. 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
