bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Moisturizer SPF 30 Versus Tarte Amazonian Clay BB Tinted Moisturizer

bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Moisturizer SPF 30 Versus Tarte Amazonian Clay BB Tinted Moisturizer

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Titanium Dioxide 6.2%

Water

Coconut Alkanes

Propanediol

Squalane

Trehalose

Isostearic Acid

Glycerin

Silica

Agar

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

Globularia Cordifolia Callus Culture Extract

Salicornia Herbacea Extract

Melilotus Officinalis Extract

Coco-Caprylate/Caprate

Butylene Glycol

Lauroyl Lysine

Sodium Hyaluronate

Succinoglycan

Polysorbate 60

Cellulose Gum

Polyglyceryl-4 Laurate/Succinate

Sorbitan Sesquiisostearate

Magnesium Stearate

Magnesium Hydroxide

Magnesium Chloride

Potassium Chloride

Calcium Chloride

Potassium Sorbate

Phenoxyethanol

Iron Oxides

Titanium Dioxide 6.2%, Water, Coconut Alkanes, Propanediol, Squalane, Trehalose, Isostearic Acid, Glycerin, Silica, Agar, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Globularia Cordifolia Callus Culture Extract, Salicornia Herbacea Extract, Melilotus Officinalis Extract, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Butylene Glycol, Lauroyl Lysine, Sodium Hyaluronate, Succinoglycan, Polysorbate 60, Cellulose Gum, Polyglyceryl-4 Laurate/Succinate, Sorbitan Sesquiisostearate, Magnesium Stearate, Magnesium Hydroxide, Magnesium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Calcium Chloride, Potassium Sorbate, Phenoxyethanol, Iron Oxides

Cyclopentasiloxane

Octyldodecyl Neopentanoate

PEG/PPG-18/18 Dimethicone

Dimethicone

Aluminum Hydroxide

Stearic Acid

Triethoxycaprylylsilane

Saccharum Officinarum Extract

Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract

Citrus Limon Fruit Extract

Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Panax Ginseng Root Extract

Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract

Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract

Kaolin

Phytantriol

Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate

Retinyl Palmitate

Tocopheryl Acetate

Tocopherol

Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate

Methicone

Octyldodecanol

Boron Nitride

Palmitic Acid

Dextrin Palmitate

Sodium Chloride

Sodium Dehydroacetate

Hexylene Glycol

Caprylyl Glycol

Mica

Water, Cyclopentasiloxane, Octyldodecyl Neopentanoate, Glycerin, PEG/PPG-18/18 Dimethicone, Dimethicone, Aluminum Hydroxide, Stearic Acid, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Fruit Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Kaolin, Phytantriol, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Retinyl Palmitate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Tocopherol, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Butylene Glycol, Methicone, Octyldodecanol, Boron Nitride, Palmitic Acid, Dextrin Palmitate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Hexylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Mica, Iron Oxides

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

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

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.

Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.

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.

Phenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).

It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.

On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.

Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).

You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.

Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.

Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.

Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.

Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.

In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.

Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:

Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.

Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.

You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.

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. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!

This ingredient is a combination of red, black, and yellow iron oxide pigments. This combination of colors is usually found in foundation, because it results in a "skin" color.

The EU typically uses CI numbers for colorants when applicable, such as CI 77489. In the US, iron oxides are regulated as color additives and "iron oxides" is the most commonly used name in US cosmetic practice.

A 2021 paper looked at skincare formulations containing iron oxides and found that they reduced transmission of blue light when measured optically. In simple terms, the pigment particles helped block or scatter part of the visible light spectrum in lab testing and the authors suggest this could translate into better protection against blue-light-related skin effects.

There is also clinical and experimental research showing that tinted products containing iron oxides can reduce visible light-induced pigmentation:

Please note, whether a product reduces visible or blue light depends on things like:

In the EU's CosIng database, iron oxides are only listed as a colorant. CosIng groups ingredients by their main cosmetic role, such as colorant, preservative, or UV filter.

Though studies say iron oxides can "attenuate blue light", they're describing an optical property and not an officially recognized cosmetic function.

So CosIng isn’t contradicting the research. It’s just classifying iron oxides by what they officially are: pigments that add color.

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