What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Zinc Oxide 22%
Cosmetic Colorant
Dimethicone
Emollient
Water
Skin ConditioningC12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialDicaprylyl Carbonate
EmollientCetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone
Emulsifying
Silica
Abrasive
Glycerin
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil
Emollient
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Polysorbate 20
Emulsifying
Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Emulsion Stabilising
Ethyl Ferulate
Antioxidant
Triethoxycaprylylsilane
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Polymethyl Methacrylate
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Chlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Sodium Chloride
MaskingHelianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Sodium Citrate
BufferingMelanin
Skin ProtectingPentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Ascorbic Acid
Antioxidant
Retinyl Palmitate
Skin Conditioning
Beta-Glucan
Skin Conditioning
Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
AntimicrobialTocopherol
Antioxidant
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningIron Oxides
Zinc Oxide 22%, Dimethicone, Water, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Silica, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate, Polysorbate 20, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Ethyl Ferulate, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Bisabolol, Phenoxyethanol, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Caprylyl Glycol, Chlorphenesin, Sodium Chloride, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Sodium Citrate, Melanin, Pentylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Ascorbic Acid, Retinyl Palmitate, Beta-Glucan, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Tocopherol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Iron Oxides
Water
Skin ConditioningBis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine
Skin Conditioning
Alcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Ethylhexyl Triazone
UV Absorber
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane
UV Absorber
Isopropyl Palmitate
Emollient
Diisopropyl Adipate
EmollientDicaprylyl Ether
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Propanediol
Solvent
Isopropyl Myristate
Emollient
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
AntimicrobialDiisopropyl Sebacate
EmollientC12-22 Alkyl Acrylate/Hydroxyethylacrylate Copolymer
StabilisingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Methoxypropylamino Cyclohexenylidene Ethoxyethylcyanoacetate
Stabilising
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate
UV Filter
Drometrizole Trisiloxane
UV Absorber
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonic Acid
UV Absorber
Sodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Triethanolamine
BufferingTrisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Water, Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Alcohol Denat., Ethylhexyl Triazone, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Isopropyl Palmitate, Diisopropyl Adipate, Dicaprylyl Ether, Glycerin, Propanediol, Isopropyl Myristate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Diisopropyl Sebacate, C12-22 Alkyl Acrylate/Hydroxyethylacrylate Copolymer, Tocopherol, Methoxypropylamino Cyclohexenylidene Ethoxyethylcyanoacetate, Pentylene Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Citric Acid, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Drometrizole Trisiloxane, Hydroxyacetophenone, Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonic Acid, Sodium Polyacrylate, Triethanolamine, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is a lightweight emollient made by combinig benzoic acid with fatty alcohols that are 12-15 carbons long.
In cosmetics, it plays several roles:
The Cosmetic Review Expert Panel has concluded the alkyl benzoate group to be safe as used in cosmetics; it wasn't found to be a skin irritant and unlikely to be absorbed due to its low water solubility.
This report recorded almost 1000 reported uses with concentrations up to 59% in leave-on products but your cosmetics will typically use 0.5-15% depending on the product.
It's often called a "SPF booster": this is because it keeps UV filters properly dissolved and evenly distributed to support a sunscreen's performance. It doesn't actually raise SPF on its own.
Overall, this ingredient is well tolerated.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because it is an ester of benzoic acid.
Think of this ingredient as two parts stuck together: an oily part and an acid part. Malassezia only gets a meal when it can snip off a fatty acid to eat. With C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, the acid part is benzoic acid, which isn't a fatty acid and which the yeast can't use as food.
Benzoic acid is actually used as a preservative to stop yeast from growing.
The oily part is a blend of C12-15 fatty alcohols but fatty alcohols in this size range can support only a little Malassezia growth (mostly for one species of Malassezia as well).
In the ingredient, those alcohols stay locked inside the molecule. The yeast can only reach them by snipping the benzoate bond, and that type of bond is harder for it to cut than a normal fatty bond.
So not much gets released. And whatever does get snipped comes packaged with benzoic acid, which discourages yeast growth.
Learn more about C12-15 Alkyl BenzoateCaprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.
Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.
Because it is not a free-fatty acid, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinPentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:
Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.
On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.
Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolTocopherol 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 TocopherolWater. 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
