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Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free ingredients: is it worth it?
A genuinely competent hydrating barrier moisturizer with one glaring pore-clogging liability: Isopropyl Palmitate is the formula’s biggest flaw.
A genuinely competent hydrating barrier moisturizer with one glaring pore-clogging liability: Isopropyl Palmitate is the formula’s biggest flaw.
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The efficacy score is 4.3/5.0 because glycerin is high in the formula and the product combines sodium hyaluronate, urea, sodium PCA, amino acids, fatty acids, cholesterol-derived lipids, ceramide NP, and dimethicone for credible hydration and barrier support. The score stops short of the top range because the formula does not disclose active concentrations, its ceramide and sodium hyaluronate appear after several emollients, and Isopropyl Palmitate may be problematic for acne-prone users. The fragrance-free formula and absence of denatured alcohol support the 4.2/5.0 safety score, but the high-comedogenicity emollient warrants caution.
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DemythSkin rates Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free 4.3/5 for efficacy and 4.5/5 for safety.
ACTIVE INGREDIENTS BY TIER
Gold Standards
High clinical proof | Skin-transformativeReliable
Proven resultsPotent
Developing evidenceOverhyped | Marketing
Hype | Limited dataDocumented Irritants
Evidence-backed flagFORMULATION BASE (17)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Water, Glycerin, Isopropyl Palmitate, Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, C10-30 Cholesterol/Lanosterol Esters, Ceramide Np, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Serine, Glycine, Alanine, Threonine, Arginine, Proline, Lysine Hci, Glutamic Acid, Sodium Pca, Pca, Sodium Lactate, Urea, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid, Betaine, Allantoin, Fructose, Maltose, Trehalose, Glucose, Pentylene Glycol, Dimethicone, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Ethylhexylglycerin, Caprylyl Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Tropolone, Sodium Hydroxide
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (24)⌄
- Water
- Formula solvent
- Glycerin
- Humectant water binder
- Isopropyl Palmitate
- Emollient texture enhancer
- Cetyl Alcohol
- Fatty alcohol emollient
- Cetearyl Olivate
- Olive-derived emulsifier
- Sorbitan Olivate
- Emulsion stabilizer
- C10-30 Cholesterol/Lanosterol Esters
- Lipid replenishing emollient
- Ceramide NP
- Barrier lipid support
- Stearic Acid
- Fatty acid emollient
- Palmitic Acid
- Fatty acid emollient
- Sodium Hyaluronate
- Humectant water binder
- Serine
- Amino acid humectant
- Glycine
- Amino acid humectant
- Alanine
- Amino acid humectant
- Threonine
- Amino acid humectant
- Arginine
- Amino acid conditioning agent
- Proline
- Amino acid humectant
- Lysine HCl
- Amino acid conditioning agent
- Glutamic Acid
- Amino acid conditioning agent
- Sodium PCA
- Natural moisturizing factor
- PCA
- Humectant skin conditioner
- Sodium Lactate
- Humectant pH buffer
- Urea
- Humectant skin conditioner
- Sodium Chloride
- Viscosity control agent
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Ceramide NP: Ceramide-dominant formulations have clinical support for improving hydration and reducing transepidermal water loss.
Sodium Hyaluronate: Hyaluronate functions as a humectant that binds water in the outer skin layers.
Glycerin: Glycerin is a well-established humectant used to increase stratum-corneum hydration.
DISCLAIMER: THIS ANALYSIS IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. AI-GENERATED DATA BASED ON PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INGREDIENT LISTS. VERIFY WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
A cheaper moisturizer with a close formula
61% formula match, by ingredient list. Labels don't state amounts, so strengths may differ.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free: common questions
Is Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free worth it?
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free scores 4.3 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Effective) and 4.5 out of 5.0 for safety (Very Gentle) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. A genuinely competent hydrating barrier moisturizer with one glaring pore-clogging liability: Isopropyl Palmitate is the formula’s biggest flaw.
What are the key active ingredients in Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free?
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free contains no gold-standard actives. Its formula is built on supporting and base ingredients rather than clinically transformative actives.
Does Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin's analysis found no flagged irritants in Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free. It scores 4.5 out of 5.0 for safety.
How is Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Cream Fragrance Free scored?
DemythSkin grades every product on two independent scores: efficacy (whether the ingredients have clinical evidence of working) and safety (irritation and sensitisation risk). Ingredients are graded S through D against a database of over 3,000 compounds. Brand and price are not part of the score, and no brand pays for one.
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