For many people, a dedicated and quality skincare regime is an important part of daily life. However, choosing which brand is right for you can be difficult when the market is saturated with brands that claim to sell the perfect skincare product. In this article, we compare two serums and moisturizers by SkinCeuticals and BioBare.
To help you decide which products might be right for you, we compare ingredients, product information, benefits, and compare each product to check it includes the important ingredients you need to look for in a serum or moisturiser.
Contents
Comparing Serums
Both BioBare’s Vitamin C, B, E ; Ferulic Serum and SkinCeuticals’ CE Ferulic Serum are designed to rejuvenate the skin by using lots of restorative ingredients. Let’s take a look at the comparison criteria to see what we should be looking for in a serum.
What to look for in a vitamin C serum
- A serum shouldn’t replace sleep. Sleep is when your collagen is replenished and your skin rejuvenates. Vitamin C serums won’t make up for lost sleep but will compliment a healthy sleep routine with natural skin repair.
- L Ascorbic acid is the form of vitamin c that has evidence showing it can penetrate and be effective on your skin so you should look for this when choosing a vitamin C serum.
- The Ph value of a vitamin C serum should be less than 3.5 to give it the best chance of it penetrating your skin. Any higher and it will also be more likely to irritate sensitive skin.
- A quality product should contain between 10 and 20 percent ascorbic acid (vitamin C).
BioBare’s Vitamin C, B, E ; Ferulic Serum has undergone clinical testing and it is hypoallergenic. It does not contain synthetic colors or parabens and it has been dermatologically tested. On February 11, 2022, SkinCeuticals’ CE Ferulic Serum was judged the ‘best overall’ vitamin-C serum by The Strategist magazine.
According to the judges, the serum has a light, non-greasy feel and, with pH levels higher than its competitors, it is less likely to provoke skin redness and sensitivity. Skinceuticals ferulic acid formula is also patented so can’t be copied and in my opinion this formula is the gold standard and most evidence based ferulic acid skin care formula you can find.
Key ingredients
As their names suggest, both BioBare’s Vitamin C, B, E ; Ferulic Serum and SkinCeuticals’ CE Ferulic Serum contain CE Ferulic. This form of Vitamin C serum contains 15% pure vitamin C, pure vitamin E and ferulic acid. It is claimed to reduce signs of ageing, repair damage from the sun, and minimise the appearance of lines and wrinkles and is used widely in skincare products.
Skinceuticals ferulic acid formula is patented and evidence show it works and offer the right ph value and percentage of vitamin C. Other brands can’t copy this formula exactly because of the patent but they attempt to formulate a vitamin c serum as close to Skinceuticals as possible.
Benefits and concerns
BioBare’s Vitamin C, B, E ; Ferulic Serum contains high concentrations of Vitamin C for collagen health and skin vitality, Vitamin E for healthy skin function, and Hyaluronic Acid for intense moisturization. SkinCeuticals’ CE Ferulic Serum is rapidly absorbed into the skin and remains effective for at least 72 hours after it is applied. It isn’t easy for vitamin C to penetrate your skin but this formula gives it the best chance as the ph value and percentage of vitamin c are balanced, and the formula is patented.
Some users have concerns about Hyaluronic acid because this ingredient is known to cause irritation for some users, particularly if you have dry skin as this acid dries out your skin even more. Be sure to use sun lotion after applying a vitamin c serum.
What are Skinceuticals & Biobare Moisturizers like
Let’s compare SkinCeuticals’ Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2 with BioBare’s Moisture RiseTM Moisturizing Facial Cream. Moisturizers are designed to hydrate your skin and both products from Skinceuticals and BioBare claim to offer a deep moisturization, the ability to diminish wrinkles, and improve the look and texture of your skin.
Moisturiser Comparison criteria
- Does the moisturiser contain a humectant.
- Is there an emollient.
- Is there an occlusive to create a protective barrier on your skin.
Any Moisturiser that’s going to be effective will contain a humectant, emollient and an occlusive. So, it’s important that we check whether these two products contain all 3 of these key ingredient types that make a moisturiser do what it’s supposed to for your skin. A humectant is an ingredient that attracts water from deeper in your skin or the air itself so that it can hydrate your skin. Emollients keep your skin soft and smooth and occlusives create a protective barrier to stop your skin losing moisture and drying out.
SkinCeuticals’ Triple Lipid Restore contains glycerin and hyaluronic acid as humectants. It doesn’t matter too much which humectant moisturisers contain, as long as they do, but these 2 ingredients are widely used. Dimethicone is the occlusive in this formula and uniquely sunflower seed oil is used as the emollient.
Ceramide and cholesterol are also added to this Skinceuticals formula to add protection to your skins barrier. There are also some scents added and a few natural oils and peppermint that offers a cooling sensation. To be clear this sensation feels nice but it is a sensation and not something that is helping your skin.
The triple lipid restore contains all the right ingredients a moisturiser should but the high price is you paying for the luxurious scent and cooling sensation, two factors that you might enjoy but that won’t benefit your skin. These expensive ingredients won’t change your skins biology, health or appearance but the experience does feel luxurious, so if you can afford it and like a high-end experience, it may be worth it for you.
On the other hand BioBare’s Moisture Rise TM Vitamin C Facial Cream contains a similar blend of ingredients with a few differences. Biobare also use Dimethicone as an occlusive
Quick comparison
Skinceuticals Triple Lipid Repair
- Contains humectant, occlusive and emollient ingredients.
- Contains fragrance ingredients and peppermint which makes your skin feel tingly and cool.
- The high price is for the experience rather than any added benefit from the ingredients.
Biobare moisture rise
- Uses dimethicone as an occlusive. This is a solid choice for protecting your skins natural barrier.
- Tocopheryl Linoleate and Tocopheryl Acetate have an occlusive effect.
- No artificial fragrance.
- Suitable for dry normal and sensitive skin types.
SkinCeuticals’ Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2 is designed to benefit dry, normal, oily, combination, and sensitive skin, while BioBare’s Moisture Rise TM Vitamin C, E ; A Moisturizing Facial Cream can be used on normal, slightly-dry, extremely-dry, combination, and mature skin. It is also free of colorants, artificial fragrances, mineral oils, and parabens.
SkinCeuticals’ Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2 contains an essential oil blend of lavender, rosemary, and peppermint. Essential oils can provoke an allergic response in some people through contact dermatitis but the concentration in this formula is quite low. Patch testing is always recommended if you have sensitive skin.
Final thoughts about Biobare and Skinceuticals
For most consumers, the key difference between Skinceuticals and BioBare is their price difference. SkinCeuticals’ product range is comparatively more expensive but they do have a larger range of products to choose from. Skinceuticals use essential oils in their moisturiser and include the important emollient, occlusive and humectant to absorb moisture and hold it in your skin. Biobare offer a different blend of ingredients in their moisturiser but contain all the key ingredients and the formula isn’t too heavy or greasy for a cream.
When it comes to Vitamin C serums, Skinceuticals offer the ultimate product with the patented formula that other skincare brands wish they could match. Instead other brands are left finding different ways to match this balance of ph levels and the right amount of ascorbic acid to give the vitamin C a chance to get past your skins natural barrier and get to work.
Skinceuticals offer a more luxurious experience with fragrances and some more expensive and luxury sounding ingredients whereas Biobare offer a slightly more natural approach to their formula creation.