What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Propanediol
Solvent
Dicaprylyl Carbonate
EmollientRetinyl Acetate
Skin Conditioning
Dimethicone
Emollient
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Squalane
Emollient
Glycine Soja Oil
Emollient
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingPolysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Glycolipids
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Phytate
Sorbitan Isostearate
Emulsifying
Glycine Soja Sterols
Emollient
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Antioxidant
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Propanediol, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Retinyl Acetate, Dimethicone, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Phospholipids, Squalane, Glycine Soja Oil, Carbomer, Polysorbate 60, Tocopheryl Acetate, Glycolipids, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Phytate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Glycine Soja Sterols, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Lactate, Tocopherol, Polysorbate 20, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
Aloe Barbadensis Sprout
HumectantHelianthus Annuus Flower
Skin ConditioningIsopropyl Palmitate
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Retinol
Skin Conditioning
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Potassium Phosphate
BufferingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide
Skin ConditioningGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Camellia Sinensis Callus
Antimicrobial
Propolis Wax
EmollientButyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
Aloe Barbadensis Sprout, Helianthus Annuus Flower, Isopropyl Palmitate, Pentylene Glycol, Phospholipids, Retinol, Polysorbate 20, Potassium Phosphate, Tocopherol, Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Camellia Sinensis Callus, Propolis Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Panthenol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Xanthan Gum, 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.
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 GlycerinPhenoxyethanol 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.
Phospholipids are a family of skin-identical lipids that makeup the structural backbone of every cell membrane in your body.
In cosmetics, they function as skin conditioning agents with emulsifier and surfactant properties. They're typically sourced from soybean or sunflower lecithin (or sometimes egg yolk or marine sources).
Because they mirror the lipids naturally found in the deeper layers of your skin, topical phospholipids help reinforce the lipid matrix, reduce transepidermal water loss, and leave skin feeling conditioned.
They're also used to form liposomes, or tiny self-assembling vesible used to stabilize actives like vitamin c or retinol. This helps these ingredients integrate into the upper layers of skin more easily.
Phospholipids are compatible with everything and the CIR Expert Panel has concluded them to be safe at current use levels.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe since phospholipids contain fatty acid chains in the C11-24 range that the malassezia yeast likes to feed on.
Some types of phospholipids include:
Learn more about PhospholipidsPolysorbate 20 is a gentle, water-soluble emulsifier and mild surfactant. It stops oil and water from separating to keep your formulas blended and stable.
It also acts as a mild penetration enhancer by helping active ingredients absorb slightly better.
The common safety discussion around this ingredient involves a manufacturing byproduct called 1,4-dioxane.
Trace amounts can form during production but the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety has concluded that levels at/below 10 ppm in finished products are safe (commercial products consistently fall within acceptable margins).
True allergic reactions are uncommon and the CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be safe as used in cosmetics.
Because it is derived from lauric acid, it may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Polysorbate 20Tocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about Tocopherol
