What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningEthylhexyl Palmitate
Emollient
Isocetyl Stearate
Emollient
Dicaprylyl Ether
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Maltodextrin
Absorbent
Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate
Antioxidant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Dimethicone
Emollient
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
Steareth-2
EmulsifyingSteareth-21
CleansingLactic Acid
Buffering
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingSucrose Dilaurate
Emollient
Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer
Vp/Va Copolymer
Glycyrrhetinic Acid
Skin Conditioning
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingGlyceryl Behenate
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100
HumectantPEG-100 Stearate
Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingDimethiconol
Emollient
Pisum Sativum Extract
Skin ConditioningO-Cymen-5-Ol
Antimicrobial
Salicylic Acid
Masking
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax
Emollient
Polyglycerin-3
Humectant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Water, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Isocetyl Stearate, Dicaprylyl Ether, Glycerin, Maltodextrin, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate, Butylene Glycol, Dimethicone, Glycolic Acid, Steareth-2, Steareth-21, Lactic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Sucrose Dilaurate, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Vp/Va Copolymer, Glycyrrhetinic Acid, Jojoba Esters, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Glyceryl Behenate, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100, PEG-100 Stearate, Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Xanthan Gum, Dimethiconol, Pisum Sativum Extract, O-Cymen-5-Ol, Salicylic Acid, Tocopheryl Acetate, Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax, Polyglycerin-3, Tocopherol
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer is a synthetically created polymer. It's used as a film-forming agent and used to thicken the consistency of products.
Think of it as a supportive ingredient that helps your gel-creams feel silky, "cloud cream-like", and spread evenly without being greasy.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Expert Panel evaluated it (along with 22 other acryloyldimethyltaurate polymers) and concluded it's:
Due to its large molecular size, it sits on the surface of skin rather than penetrating it.
Learn more about Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp CopolymerGlycerin (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
