COSRX
COSRX Triple Hyaluronic Moisturizing Cleanser 150ml
Glycerin second, in a soap that does not strip.
Saponified stearic, myristic and lauric acids, cushioned by glycerin high on the list.
Dense lather, soft finish.
What this cleanser does
A 150 ml saponified cream cleanser built on six fatty acids, softened with three mild surfactants and a deposit polymer.
Being straight about the name
Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid and Sodium Hyaluronate are all present. They are also at the very bottom of the list, in a product you rinse off after forty seconds, and none of the three is a form that clings to skin.
Humectants work by holding water against the surface. That requires staying on the surface. These three are water-soluble and go where the water goes, which is down the drain.
So the triple hyaluronic is a name, not a mechanism. We would rather tell you than have you buy this expecting a hydrating treatment.
What actually keeps this from stripping
Polyquaternium-7 at position twelve. It carries a positive charge, skin carries a negative one, and it deposits during the rinse rather than washing away — the same principle hair conditioner uses.
That one ingredient, sitting twelve places above the hyaluronates, is doing more for how your skin feels afterwards than all three of them combined. Glyceryl Stearate at ten and Glycerin at two help too.
It is a genuinely comfortable soap. It is just comfortable for a different reason than the box implies.
Six fatty acids, which is unusual
Most soap cleansers use three. This uses six: Stearic (3), Myristic (4), Lauric (5), Palmitic (7), Arachidic (15) and Oleic (18), all neutralised by Potassium Hydroxide at six.
Each chain length behaves differently. Lauric (C12) foams fast and thin. Myristic (C14) gives the dense creamy lather. Stearic (C18) and palmitic (C16) give body and a slower, milder wash. Arachidic (C20) is very hard and rare in cleansers. Oleic is unsaturated, and it is the one that keeps a six-acid soap from feeling brittle.
That is a formulator tuning lather across the whole chain-length range rather than reaching for the standard three. It is the actual craft in this product.
Key ingredients
Ingredient · What it is, and what it is used for
- Polyquaternium-7
- Cationic polymer. Deposits on rinse instead of washing away — the reason skin does not squeak.
- Potassium Hydroxide
- Alkali. Sets the pH — what turns six fatty acids into soap.
- Myristic Acid
- C14 saturated fatty acid. Does the cleansing — the source of the dense, creamy lather.
- Lauric Acid
- C12 saturated fatty acid. Does the cleansing — the fastest-foaming of the six.
- Palmitic Acid
- C16 saturated fatty acid. A material skin already contains, so it reads as its own; gives body.
- Arachidic Acid
- C20 saturated fatty acid. Very hard, and rare in a cleanser.
- Oleic Acid
- C18 unsaturated fatty acid. Softens what a fully saturated soap would otherwise feel like.
- Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate
- Amino-acid surfactant from coconut. Cleans at skin's own pH rather than raising it the way soap does.
- Coco-Glucoside
- Sugar-based non-ionic surfactant of coconut origin. Does the cleansing.
- Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
- Isethionate surfactant of coconut origin. Does the cleansing.
- Quillaja Saponaria Bark Extract
- Soapbark extract, a natural saponin. Does the cleansing — it foams on its own.
- Panthenol
- Provitamin B5. Used to calm irritation, and pulls water into the surface and holds it there.
How the formula works together
Six fatty acids and potassium hydroxide make the soap. Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate, Coco-Glucoside and Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate are three mild synthetic surfactants added to take the edge off it, with soapbark extract adding natural foam. Glyceryl Stearate and an acrylates crosspolymer give it cream body.
One note on the preservative, since we make a point of it elsewhere: a soap sits at a high pH, where microbes struggle anyway. So the preservative choices in a saponified cleanser do not tell you anything about pH the way they do in an acidic formula.
Fragrance is at position eleven, which is high.
Who it is for
Worth checking before you buy: The three hyaluronic acids are the last three entries of twenty-seven — the name promises more than the positions support.
Labelled for moisturising. In practice: skin that likes a thorough foaming wash and tolerates soap and fragrance well. A well-made soap cleanser — but if your skin tightens after soap, no amount of hyaluronic acid at position 27 will change that.
How to use it
- Work a small amount into a lather in wet hands first.
- Massage the foam over wet skin.
- Rinse thoroughly with warm water.
- Apply your toner while skin is still damp — that is where the hydration actually comes from.
Details
- Size
- 150 ml
- Made in
- Korea
- Cleansing system
- Soap-based (saponified) — six fatty acids, softened with three mild surfactants
- Contains
- Fragrance at position 11
- Ingredients
- 27, published in full below
Full ingredient list
Water, Glycerin, Stearic Acid, Myristic Acid, Lauric Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Palmitic Acid, Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Stearate, Fragrance (Parfum), Polyquaternium-7, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Arachidic Acid, Disodium EDTA, 1,2-Hexanediol, Oleic Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Quillaja Saponaria Bark Extract, Citric Acid, Butylene Glycol, Panthenol, Hyaluronic Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate
In label order, unedited.
Ships from Korea.
