The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser Versus Clean & Clear Essentials Foaming Oil-Free Facial Cleanser

The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser Versus Clean & Clear Essentials Foaming Oil-Free Facial Cleanser

This salicylic acid gel cleanser is formulated around Salicylic Acid to clear breakouts and unclog pores.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Propanediol

Glycerin

Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate

Cocamidopropyl Betaine

PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate

Salicylic Acid

PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate

PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides

Betaine

Zinc PCA

Phenoxyethanol

Sodium Chloride

Allantoin

Sodium Hydroxide

Coco-Glucoside

Glyceryl Oleate

Benzyl Alcohol

Coconut Acid

Ethylhexylglycerin

Sodium Benzoate

Citric Acid

Dehydroacetic Acid

Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate

Tocopherol

Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate

Water, Propanediol, Glycerin, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Salicylic Acid, PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate, PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Betaine, Zinc PCA, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Chloride, Allantoin, Sodium Hydroxide, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Benzyl Alcohol, Coconut Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Tocopherol, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate

Triethanolamine

Myristic Acid

C9-15 Alkyl Phosphate

Lauric Acid

Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose

Parfum

Methylparaben

BHT

Propylparaben

Ethylparaben

CI 14700

Solvent Yellow 33

Water, Triethanolamine, Myristic Acid, C9-15 Alkyl Phosphate, Lauric Acid, Glycerin, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum, Methylparaben, BHT, Propylparaben, Ethylparaben, CI 14700, Solvent Yellow 33

Reviews

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Cocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.

This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.

Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.

While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.

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.

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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