Here's our breakdown of the notable ingredients, benefits, and concerns we determined from the ingredients in this product. Click any item to learn more.

Concerns

Irritating

Rosacea (2)

Eczema

Ingredient Info

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

alcohol-free

silicon-free

fragrance-free

sulfate-free

paraben-free

oil-free

fungal-acne safe

reef-safe

eu-allergen-free

vegan

cruelty-free

Ingredients Overview

Here's our quick-to-read summary of the ingredients in this product. Keep scrolling if you'd like to learn more about what each ingredient does!

Ingredient

Com. / Irr. Rating

Features

Skin Conditioning, Solvent

Emollient, Emulsifying, Emulsion Stabilising, Masking

2 / 2

Emollient

Humectant, Moisturising

Cleansing, Emulsifying

Emulsifying

2 / 2

Emulsifying

Masking, Refreshing

Emulsifying

Masking, Perfuming

Ingredients Explained

This product contains 12 ingredients. Click on any ingredient to learn more about it

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

Cetyl Alcohol

What it does: Emollient, Emulsifying, Emulsion Stabilising, Masking

Community Rating: Very Disliked

Cetyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol. Fatty Alcohols are most often used as an emollient or to thicken a product.

Cetyl Alcohol is not related to SD alcohol, denatured alcohol, or ethyl alcohol. The FDA allows products labeled "alcohol-free" to have fatty alcohols.

Its main roles are:

Learn more about Cetyl Alcohol

Ppg-15 Stearyl Ether

What it does: Emollient

Community Rating: Very Disliked

We don't have a description for Ppg-15 Stearyl Ether.

Methyl Gluceth-20

What it does: Humectant, Moisturising

Community Rating: Liked

Methyl Gluceth-20 is a humectant. Humectants help draw moisture from the air to your skin.

It is created by combining polyethylene glycol with glucose.

Steareth-21

What it does: Cleansing, Emulsifying

We don't have a description for Steareth-21.

Gelatin

What it does:

Community Rating: Very Disliked

We don't have a description for Gelatin.

Steareth-2

What it does: Emulsifying

Steareth-2 is a waxy compound used to emulsify ingredients. It is created from polyethylene glycol and stearyl alcohol.

The 2 stands for the number of ethylene oxide units used to create this ingredient.

Potassium Cetyl Phosphate

What it does: Emulsifying

Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is the potassium salt of a mixture. This mixture consists of the esters from phosphoricacid and cetyl alcohol.

Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is an emulsifier and cleansing agent. Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. It does this by preventing certain ingredients from separating.

As a cleansing agent, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate helps gather oils, dirts, and pollutants from your skin. This makes it easier to rinse them away with water.

Learn more about Potassium Cetyl Phosphate

Menthol

What it does: Masking, Refreshing

Community Rating: Very Disliked

Menthol is a compound found in mint plants, such as peppermint. In its pure form, it is a clear crystalline substance.

Menthol is known for its cooling sensation; however, the cooling is actually from your skin being sensitized. Menthol can worsen rosacea. We recommend speaking with a professional if you have concerns.

Menthol also has antimicrobial properties.

Learn more about Menthol

Polysorbate 60

What it does: Emulsifying

Community Rating: Very Disliked

Polysorbate 60 is used to help stabilize products. It is a surfactant and emulsifier. These properties help keep ingredients together in a product. Surfactants help reduce surface tension between ingredients with different states, such as liquids and solids. Emulsifiers help prevent oils and waters from separating.

Polysorbate 60 is sorbitol-based and created from the ethoxylation of sorbitan. Ethoxylation is a chemical reaction used to add ethylene oxide. Sorbitan is a the dehydrated version of sorbitol, a sugar found in fruits.

In this case, the 60 comes from reacting 60 units of ethylene oxide with sorbitan.

Polysorbates are commonly used in medicine and foods.

Learn more about Polysorbate 60

Disodium EDTA

What it does:

Community Rating: Disliked

Disodium EDTA plays a role in making products more stable by aiding other preservatives.

It is a chelating agent, meaning it neutralizes metal ions that may be found in a product.

Disodium EDTA is a salt of edetic acid and is found to be safe in cosmetic ingredients.

Learn more about Disodium EDTA

Parfum

What it does: Masking, Perfuming

Community Rating: Very Disliked

Parfum is a catch-all term for an ingredient or more that is used to give aroma to products. Parfum, or fragrance, can be a blend of hundreds of chemicals or plant oils. This means every product with "fragrance" or "Parfum" in the ingredients list is a different mixture.

In the US, the alternative name for parfum is 'fragrance'. The term 'fragrance' is not regulated in many countries. In many cases, it is up to the brand to define this term.

For instance, many brands choose to label themselves as "fragrance-free" because they are not using synthetic fragrances. However, their products may still contain ingredients such as essential oils that are considered a fragrance. One example is Calendula flower extract. Essential oil ingredients still impart a scent or 'fragrance'.

Depending on the blend, it can cause allergies and sensitivities on the skin. Some ingredients that are known EU allergens include linalool and citronellol.

Products use parfum often to give products a scent or cover up smells of different ingredients.

The bottom line is: not all fragrances/parfum/ingredients are created equally. If you are worried about fragrances, we recommend taking a closer look at an ingredient. And of course, we always recommend speaking with a professional.

Learn more about Parfum

Embed Ingredients

Here's what our community thinks of the 12 ingredients in this product ✨

17% are loved or liked

0% have mixed ratings

58% are disliked or very disliked

25% have no rating yet

When to use

We've created a guide with info on when you should use Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser. We've also included some recommended products to use it with, as well as some routine inspiration!

Read our guide on when to use Deep Clean Cream Cleanser ->

Verified by SkinSort

We're dedicated to providing you with the most up-to-date and science-backed ingredient info out there.

The data we've presented on this page has been verified by a member of the SkinSort Team.

Latest Reviews

Review by AlyssaC

Mar 1, 2024

May be good for someone but not for me. The cream cleanser is thick and spreads really nicely and it does have a tingly sensation afterwards that feels like clean and fresh. My skin overall is dry, however my face is oilier and more along the lines of normal to combination sensitive skin, like very sensitive. This product does contain Salicylic Acid but with no percentage listed. The tingly sensation most likely comes from the Menthol (which is a common ingredient in a LOT of skincare products), which while is Good for Oily Skin, it is can be BAD for sensitive skin, dry skin, and may worsen Rosacea as well as cause irritation. Just because it wasn't great for me, doesn't mean it won't be useful to someone else. 3 Stars.

Irritating

Light Scent

Like review