What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCoco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Citrus Grandis Peel Oil
Masking
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Chamomilla Recutita Extract
Skin Conditioning
Citrus Grandis Seed Extract
Astringent
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Linum Usitatissimum Seed Extract
Perfuming
Citrus Medica Peel Oil
Citrus Medica Limonum Peel Extract
EmollientPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Citric Acid
Buffering
Water, Coco-Glucoside, Glycerin, Decyl Glucoside, Citrus Grandis Peel Oil, Xanthan Gum, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Extract, Citrus Grandis Seed Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Linum Usitatissimum Seed Extract, Citrus Medica Peel Oil, Citrus Medica Limonum Peel Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Citric Acid
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf
Abrasive
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Algae
Skin Conditioning
Camellia Sinensis Callus
Antimicrobial
Cera Alba
Emollient
Panax Ginseng Root Extract
Emollient
Zingiber Officinale Water
MaskingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Vitis Vinifera
MaskingSymphytum Officinale Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningChamomilla Recutita Meristem Cell Culture
Skin ConditioningSymphytum Officinale Callus Culture Lysate
Skin ConditioningCucumis Sativus Oil
Emollient
Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningSaccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingAcer Saccharum Sap
HumectantCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Cera
EmollientCitrus Medica Limonum Peel
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
Buffering
Water, Glycerin, Decyl Glucoside, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Niacinamide, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf, Allantoin, Algae, Camellia Sinensis Callus, Cera Alba, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Zingiber Officinale Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Vitis Vinifera, Symphytum Officinale Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Meristem Cell Culture, Symphytum Officinale Callus Culture Lysate, Cucumis Sativus Oil, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Acer Saccharum Sap, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Cera, Citrus Medica Limonum Peel, Citric Acid
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract is an extract of the leaves of the aloe, Aloe barbadensis, Liliaceae.
Aloe is one of the most well-known natural soothing ingredients, and for good reason. It’s full of water and has a cooling, calming effect on the skin, especially when it’s sunburned, itchy, or irritated. Aloe also helps your skin stay hydrated and smooth by mimicking what healthy skin naturally produces. On top of that, it contains vitamins and nutrients that support skin recovery.Â
It doesn’t protect you from the sun, but it can help your skin bounce back after too much time in it.
Let’s get into the details:
Aloe contains antioxidant Vitamins A, C, and E, which help fight off free radicals (unstable molecules from things like pollution that can damage your skin).
It’s also rich in polysaccharides, which are natural sugars that help hydrate the skin by acting like the skin’s own moisturizing agents. These, along with other sugars like monosaccharides, help form a protective barrier that locks in moisture.
Aloe works as both a humectant and an emollient. That means it draws water into the skin (humectant) and helps trap it there (emollient), making it an effective natural moisturizer.
You’ll also find a mix of other skin-supporting ingredients in aloe, including folic acid, choline, calcium, amino acids, fatty acids, and even Vitamin B12.
Out of the 420+ species of aloe, Aloe barbadensis is the most widely used in skincare products thanks to its gentle yet effective properties.
There are over 420 species of aloe but Aloe Barbadensis is the most commonly used for topical products.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf ExtractCitric 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 AcidDecyl Glucoside is a plant-derived surfactant and emulsion stabilizer. It is created by reacting glucose with the fatty acids from plants.
Like all surfactants, it works by lowering the surface tension between water and oil. This makes it so that dirt, sebum, and makeup can be lifted off your skin and rinsed away. It also produces a dense and creamy foam.
Because it has a neutral charge, it is compatible with a wide range of ingredients and stays stable across a broad pH range/water hardiness conditions.
Patch testing has shown it to have the lowest irritation potential among common cleansing surfactants (like SLS).
Typical use levels range from 5-20% in rinse-off cleansers.
One thing worth knowing: The American Contact Dermatitis Society named the parent family, alkyl glucosides, "Allergen of the Year" in 2017. The prevalence of allergy is pretty low but be sure to patch test if you've reacted to "gentle" or sulfate-free cleansers before.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because the fatty alcohol portion of this ingredient is not within the C11-24 chain length that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Decyl GlucosideGlycerin (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
