The INKEY List Oil & Water Double Cleanser Versus Dermatica Caring Squalane Cream Cleanser

The INKEY List Oil & Water Double Cleanser Versus Dermatica Caring Squalane Cream Cleanser

This mild micellar cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry.

This mild cream cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

No key ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil

Isopropyl Palmitate

Isododecane

Hydrogenated Tetradecenyl/Methylpentadecene

Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil

Panthenol

Disodium Phosphate

Phenoxyethanol

Sodium Chloride

Glycerin

Gluconolactone

Sodium Benzoate

Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate

Citric Acid

Avena Strigosa Seed Extract

Lecithin

Calcium Gluconate

Potassium Sorbate

Water, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Isopropyl Palmitate, Isododecane, Hydrogenated Tetradecenyl/Methylpentadecene, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil, Panthenol, Disodium Phosphate, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Chloride, Glycerin, Gluconolactone, Sodium Benzoate, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Citric Acid, Avena Strigosa Seed Extract, Lecithin, Calcium Gluconate, Potassium Sorbate

Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil

Cetyl Ethylhexanoate

Oryza Sativa Bran Oil

Squalane

PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides

PEG-60 Almond Glycerides

Cetearyl Alcohol

Ethylhexylglycerin

Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil, Water, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Oryza Sativa Bran Oil, Squalane, PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Glycerin, PEG-60 Almond Glycerides, Cetearyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Citric Acid

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Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.

Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.

However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.

Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.

In skincare formulas, citric acid can:

While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.

Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.

Rosacea skin has a lower threshold for acids generally, with 62.5% of rosacea subjects in one study reacting to lactic acid in a sting test. This is why we mark citric acid as a potential rosacea trigger.

However, this ingredient shows up as a pH adjuster or chelator at roughly 0.1-1% in many products. These low levels are unlikely to be an issue for rosacea skin and becomes a potential trigger at exfoliating concentrations (20%). Because everybody's skin is unique, we recommend a patch test if you are unsure.

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.

Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate is used to help stabilize a product.

It is a chelating agent, meaning it helps prevent metal ions from binding to other ingredients. This prevents unwanted reactions in products. Metal ions can come into a product via the water ingredient. They are found in trace amounts and are not known to be harmful.

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!

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