How to Actually Read a K-Beauty Ingredient List
The first five ingredients tell you most of what you need to know. Here's how to decode the rest.
Ingredient lists are ordered by quantity, so the first five make up the bulk of what's in the bottle. If water is first, that's normal — almost every serum and moisturiser is water-based.
Look for the active ingredient in the top half. If niacinamide is listed ninth, there isn't much of it in there. Anything after the fragrance is usually present at under 1%.
Alcohol isn't always bad. Fatty alcohols like cetearyl alcohol are moisturising. It's denatured alcohol high in the list that can be drying on sensitive skin.