Rating: Good
Categories: Suspending-Dispersing-Agent, Texture-Enhancer, Polymer
A synthetic polymer whose versatility gives it many aesthetically pleasing uses in cosmetics while helping create and maintain stable, effective formulas.

Rating: Good
Categories: Emollient, Texture-Enhancer
Non-irritating waxy substance used as a thickening agent and emollient in cosmetics. May also be used as part of an emulsifying blend to help create a cohesive texture.

Rating: Best
Categories:
Formerly known as C13-16 isoparaffin, this versatile ingredient improves the texture, finish, and spread of cosmetic formulas without feeling heavy or oily.

Rating: Good
Categories: Texture-Enhancer, Emollient
Beneficial skin softening ingredient for skin (completely different from damaging/drying forms of alcohol). Also influences the foaming effects of a cleanser.

Rating: Good
Categories: Humectant, Texture-Enhancer
Humectant (hydration booster), texture/penetration enhancer, and formulary solvent. May also help decrease rough surface skin and stabilize the formula.

Rating: Best
Categories: Antioxidant
Stable, oil-soluble form of vitamin C that works as an antioxidant and helps stabilize skin care formulas.

Rating: Good
Categories: Texture-Enhancer, Ph-Adjuster-Stabilizer
This fatty, non-drying alcohol enhances a product’s texture and helps its moisturizing capabilities. It’s been deemed safe as used in skin care.

Rating: Good
Categories: Emulsifier, Texture-Enhancer
Cetearyl olivate is an ester of cetearyl alcohol and fatty acids from olive oil.

Rating: Best
Categories: Emollient, Emulsifier, Suspending-Dispersing-Agent
Plays many different roles including dispersing agent, skin-conditioning emollient, and emulsifying agent. Enhances the penetration of other ingredients for greater efficacy.

Rating: Good
Categories: Solvent, Texture-Enhancer
Improves ingredient absorption while adding moisturizing properties for skin. Can also be used to support the stability of a formula.

Rating: Good
Categories: Ph-Adjuster-Stabilizer, Chelating-Agent, Antioxidant, Preservative
This workhorse ingredient helps control the pH of skin care products, making it valuable in exfoliants, cleansers, and toners. It also has antioxidant, chelating and preservative properties, and is used in both food and medical applications.

Rating: Good
Categories: Cleansing-Agent, Emulsifier
Sorbitan olivate is a mixture of the fatty acids from olive oil plus a sugar known as sorbitol.

Rating: Good
Categories: Preservative
Safe preservative known to be well-tolerated by skin; offers wide spectrum protection against unwanted microbials in a formula.

Rating: Best
Categories: Antioxidant, Plant-Extracts, Emollient
Also known as shea butter, this a plant lipid used as an emollient in cosmetics. It also provides antioxidant benefits.

Rating: Good
Categories: Texture-Enhancer, Emollient, Emulsifier
This moisturizing ingredient can be either naturally or synthetically derived. It’s one of the longest-known fatty alcohols.

Rating: Good
Categories: Cleansing-Agent, Emulsifier
Emulsifying agent that can be used to enhance formulary texture.

Rating: Best
Categories: Antioxidant
One of four forms of vitamin E. It can be naturally or synthetically derived. Regardless of its origin, tocopherol has potent oil-soluble antioxidant properties and can help defend skin from pollution and environmental stressors.

Rating: Good
Categories: Preservative, Plant-Extracts
Conditions skin and hair and is a moisturizing ingredient in many skin care products. Because of its antibacterial action, it also is an effective cosmetics preservative.

Rating: Average
Categories: Preservative, Antioxidant, Irritant
Plays a multitasking role as a preservative, stabilizer, and antioxidant.

Rating: Good
Categories: Preservative, Humectant
Skin-softening agent with hydration boosting properties. Also plays an important preservative role to help keep cosmetic formulas stable.

Rating: Good
Categories: Solvent, Texture-Enhancer
Solvent that is well-known for producing smooth spreadability and more pleasing textures in skin care formulas. Also used to enhance the efficacy of cosmetic preservative phenoxyethanol so it works better in lower amounts.

Rating: Best
Categories: Antioxidant
A form of vitamin E frequently used in cosmetics for its antioxidant benefit.

Rating: Good
Categories: Chelating-Agent
Synthetic salt form of the antioxidant phytic acid. Acts as a stabilizer and chelating agent to keep metals such as iron and copper from binding to water in the formula.

Rating: Good
Categories: Cleansing-Agent, Emulsifier
A very mild cleansing agent that also helps stabilize skin care formulas and keep oil- and water-based ingredients from separating.

Rating: Best
Categories: Humectant, Antioxidant, Texture-Enhancer
Component of skin that is used in skin care products as a good restorative ingredient.

Rating: Best
Categories: Peptides
This bio-identical single chain peptide plays a role in helping to shore up skin’s underlying support, smoothing wrinkles and improving resilience, among other benefits.

Rating: Good
Categories: Ph-Adjuster-Stabilizer, Chelating-Agent
Ingredient used in skin care products to adjust a formula's pH. In the right concentration/formula, it can also exfoliate skin.

Rating: Best
Categories: Humectant, Peptides, Prebiotic-Probiotic-Postbiotic
A fermented peptide that offers various benefits for skin and hair, depending on the strain used to create the resulting ingredient. In general, it soothes and supports skin’s microbiome.

Rating: Best
Categories: Antioxidant, Plant-Extracts
Specially extracted component of ginger stems shown to reduce the major types of dark circles and offer potent antioxidant benefits.

Rating: Best
Categories: Peptides, Humectant
One of several peptides used in skin care products, this ingredient has skin-restoring and water-binding properties, helping it improve both the look and feel of skin.