The Ordinary "Buffet" Versus Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence

See how these products line up with your preferences

Here's our complete breakdown comparing the ingredients, attributes, and more of The Ordinary "Buffet" versus Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence .

Last updated on July 18, 2023. Published on August 27, 2022

Overview

What they are

These products are both reef safe . They have a total of 10 ingredients in common

Cool Features

They both contain hyaluronic acid

Suited For

They're both likely to be good for dry skin, brightening skin, sensitive skin, scar healing and better texture

Free From

They both do not contain any harsh alcohols, common allergens, fragrances, parabens, silicones or sulfates

We independently verify ingredients, and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Spot a product that need an update? Let us know.

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The Ordinary "Buffet"

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence

Serum Canadian Brand Canada

Essence South Korean Brand

Serum

Serums are highly concentrated with ingredients to provide skin with benefits. They should be used after cleansing and before moisturizing.

Essences are used to prep skin for further treatment and may provide extra skin benefits. They are usually used before serum and moisturizers. Essences are thought to have originated in either Japan or Korea and is an essential step in K-Beauty.

Price

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Starts at $17.50

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Ingredient Info

Click any item below to learn more and view relevant ingredients.

The Ordinary "Buffet" 51 ingredients

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence 30 ingredients

alcohol-free

silicon-free

fragrance-free

sulfate-free

paraben-free

oil-free

fungal-acne safe

reef-safe

eu-allergen-free

vegan

cruelty-free

alcohol-free

silicon-free

fragrance-free

sulfate-free

paraben-free

oil-free

fungal-acne safe

reef-safe

eu-allergen-free

vegan

cruelty-free

At a glance

Click on any of the items below to learn more

The Ordinary "Buffet" 51 ingredients

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence 30 ingredients

Benefits

Hydrating (2)

Redness Reducing

Reduces Irritation

Skin Texture

Scar Healing

Brightening

Concerns

Drying

Acne Trigger

Rosacea (2)

Eczema

Notable Ingredients

Niacinamide

Hyaluronic Acid (3)

Benefits

Hydrating (2)

Good For Oily Skin

Redness Reducing (2)

Reduces Irritation (2)

Skin Texture

Reduces Large Pores

Anti-Aging (2)

Dark Spots

Scar Healing (2)

Acne Fighting

Brightening (3)

Concerns

Irritating

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Ingredients Compared

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

The Ordinary "Buffet" 51 ingredients

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence 30 ingredients

Water • Glycerin • Lactococcus Ferment Lysate • Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 • Pentapeptide-18 • Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 • Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 • Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38 • Dipeptide Diaminobutyroyl Benzylamide Diacetate • Acetylarginyltryptophyl Diphenylglycine • Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer • Sodium Hyaluronate • Allantoin • Glycine • Alanine • Serine • Valine • Isoleucine • Proline • Threonine • Histidine • Phenylalanine • Arginine • Aspartic Acid • Trehalose • Fructose • Glucose • Maltose • Urea • Sodium PCA • PCA • Sodium Lactate • Citric Acid • Hydroxypropyl Cyclodextrin • Sodium Chloride • Sodium Hydroxide • Butylene Glycol • Pentylene Glycol • Acacia Senegal Gum • Xanthan Gum • Carbomer • Polysorbate 20 • Ppg-26-Buteth-26 • Peg-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil • Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate • Ethoxydiglycol • Sodium Benzoate • Caprylyl Glycol • Ethylhexylglycerin • Phenoxyethanol • Chlorphenesin

Water • Glycerin • Streptococcus Thermophilus Ferment • Glycereth-26 • Propanediol • 1,2-Hexanediol • Dipropylene Glycol • Niacinamide • Butylene Glycol • Betaine • Dna • Xanthan Gum • Panthenol • Ethylhexylglycerin • Adenosine • Sodium Citrate • Disodium EDTA • Citric Acid • Glycine • Proline • Glyceryl Glucoside • Sodium Hyaluronate • Leucine • Saccharide Isomerate • Hyaluronic Acid • Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid • Xylitylglucoside • Anhydroxylitol • Xylitol • Glucose

Ingredients Side-by-side

Ingredients that are highlighted in purple are present in both products.

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Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Water

What it does: Skin Conditioning, Solvent

Community Rating: Loved

Water. 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. Talk about multi-purpose! If you see this, drink a glass of water. Stay hydrated!

Learn more about Water

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 1.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 1.

Glycerin

What it does: Humectant, Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Solvent

Community Rating: Loved

Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin. It helps moisturize and protect your skin.

A study from 2016 found glycerin to be more effective as a humectant than AHAs and hyaluronic acid.

As a humectant, it helps the skin stay hydrated by pulling moisture to your skin. The low molecular weight of glycerin allows it to pull moisture into the deeper layers of your skin.

Hydrated skin improves your skin barrier; Your skin barrier helps protect against irritants and bacteria.

Glycerin has also been found to have antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Due to these properties, glycerin is often used in wound and burn treatments.

In cosmetics, glycerin is usually derived from plants such as soybean or palm. However, it can also be sourced from animals, such as tallow or animal fat.

This ingredient is organic, colorless, odorless, and non-toxic.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Learn more about Glycerin

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 2.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 2.

Sodium Hyaluronate

What it does: Humectant, Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Loved

Sodium Hyaluronate is hyaluronic acid's salt form. It is commonly derived from the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid.

Like hyaluronic acid, it is great at holding water and acts as a humectant. This makes it a great skin hydrating ingredient.

Sodium Hyaluronate is naturally occurring in our bodies and is mostly found in eye fluid and joints.

These are some other common types of Hyaluronic Acid:

Learn more about Sodium Hyaluronate

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 12.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 22.

Glycine

What it does: Buffering, Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Liked

Glycine is an amino acid that helps build proteins. It is already present in our skin as our bodies produce them naturally.

Glycine helps keep skin hydrated and reduce signs of aging. Amino acids help transport moisture throughout our skin; glycine already plays a role in helping keep our skin moisturized.

As collagen is made up of glycine and other amino acids, it is believed Glycine may help our skin produce more collagen. Collagen helps keep skin plump and firm.

Learn more about Glycine

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 14.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 19.

Proline

What it does: Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Loved

Proline is an amino-acid. It helps moisturize the skin and plays an important role in creating proteins.

Proline is one of the building blocks for producing collagen. As we age, our bodies produce less collagen. Collagen helps the skin look plump and firm.

In medicine, proline is used as an osmoprotectant. This means it helps prevent oxidative degradation in other drugs.

Our bodies are able to produce proline naturally, but certain conditions may inhibit this production. In that case, proline can be obtained from eating egg whites, soy protein, dairy products, asparagus, mushrooms, and seaweed.

Learn more about Proline

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 19.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 20.

Glucose

What it does: Humectant

Community Rating: Loved

Glucose is a simple sugar and is the most important source of energy in all organisms. In skincare, glucose is used to hydrate the skin. It also acts as a prebiotic for our natural biome.

As a humectant, glucose draws moisture from the air and from deeper levels in the skin. This helps hydrate skin.

Our skin's natural microbiome contains many saccharides that act as prebiotics. These prebiotics help strengthen our skin's microbiome. Having a healthy microbiome helps protect our skin from harmful bacteria and other contaminants.

Studies show glucose may help with fading discoloration and pigmentation. This is because our skin metabolizes glucose into lactic acid. Lactic acid is an AHA that helps exfoliate the top layer of skin.

Plants and algae make glucose during the process of photosynthesis. It is then used to make cellulose, the building blocks of cell walls.

Learn more about Glucose

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 27.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 30.

Citric Acid

What it does: Buffering, Masking

Community Rating: Disliked

Citric Acid is an AHA derived from citrus fruits (think oranges, lemons, and limes!).

If you spot Citric Acid near the end of an ingredient list, it's likely there as a pH adjuster rather than an active ingredient.

As an AHA, Citric Acid removes the top layer of skin cells from the newer layer of skin underneath. This helps skin to remove dark spots and look more even.

Read more about some other popular AHA's here:

Learn more about Citric Acid

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 33.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 18.

Butylene Glycol

What it does: Humectant, Masking, Skin Conditioning, Solvent

Community Rating: Mixed

Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:

It is a solvent, meaning that it helps to dissolve other ingredients. This also enhances the absorption of the product into one's skin.
It is a humectant, which means that it helps attract moisture into the skin.
It helps improve product application.

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient. It is unlikely to irritate skin, and works well with pretty much all other ingredients.

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 37.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 9.

Xanthan Gum

What it does: Emulsifying, Emulsion Stabilising, Gel Forming, Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Disliked

Xanthan 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

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 40.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 12.

Ethylhexylglycerin

What it does: Skin Conditioning

Community Rating: Mixed

Ethylhexylglycerin (we can't pronounce this either) is commonly used as a preservative and skin softener. It is derived from glyceryl.

You might see Ethylhexylglycerin often paired with other preservatives such as phenoxyethanol. Ethylhexylglycerin has been found to increase the effectiveness of these other preservatives.

The Ordinary "Buffet" contains this as ingredient number 49.

Dr. Jart+ Vital Hydra Solution Biome Essence contains this as ingredient number 14.

Here's what our community thinks of the ingredients in these two products.