Sweet Chef Kale Vitamin B Serum Shot Versus Tarte SEA Deep Sea Collagen Super Serum

Sweet Chef Kale Vitamin B Serum Shot Versus Tarte SEA Deep Sea Collagen Super Serum

This hydrating serum is formulated around Ceramide AP and Panthenol to hydrate skin and strengthen the skin barrier.

This hydrating serum is formulated around Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil and Laminaria Digitata Extract to hydrate skin.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Glycerin

Butylene Glycol

Ceramide AP

1,2-Hexanediol

Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin)

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

Trehalose

Lactobacillus/Brassica Oleracea Acephala Leaf Ferment Filtrate

Sodium Hyaluronate

Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract

Curcuma Longa Root Extract

Solanum Melongena Fruit Extract

Corallina Officinalis Extract

Panthenol

Theobroma Cacao Seed Extract

Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract

Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract

Chondrus Crispus Extract

Saccharum Officinarum Extract

Polysorbate 60

Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer

Caprylyl Glycol

Carbomer

Sorbitan Sesquioleate

Tromethamine

Ethylhexylglycerin

Xanthan Gum

Sorbitan Isostearate

Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract

Disodium EDTA

Dextrin

Lavandula Angustifolia Oil

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Ceramide AP, 1,2-Hexanediol, Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Trehalose, Lactobacillus/Brassica Oleracea Acephala Leaf Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract, Curcuma Longa Root Extract, Solanum Melongena Fruit Extract, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Panthenol, Theobroma Cacao Seed Extract, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract, Chondrus Crispus Extract, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Polysorbate 60, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Carbomer, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Tromethamine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Xanthan Gum, Sorbitan Isostearate, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Disodium EDTA, Dextrin, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil

Ethylhexyl Palmitate

Coconut Alkanes

Isopropyl Myristate

Shea Butter Ethyl Esters

Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate

Isododecane

Persea Gratissima Oil

Cocos Nucifera Oil

Camellia Japonica Seed Oil

Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil

Pentylene Glycol

Coco-Caprylate/Caprate

Passiflora Edulis Seed Oil

Phenoxyethanol

Kappaphycus Alvarezii Extract

Laminaria Digitata Extract

Sea Water Extract

Spirulina Maxima Extract

Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate

Hydroxyacetophenone

Collagen Amino Acids

Algae Extract

Citrus Sinensis Peel Oil Expressed

Aphanizomenon Flos-Aquae Extract

Limonene

Gardenia Taitensis Flower Extract

Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract

Linalool

Gluconolactone

Sodium Benzoate

Arginine

Potassium Sorbate

Tocopherol

Populus Tremuloides Bark Extract

Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil

Ocimum Basilicum Flower/Leaf Extract

Citric Acid

Water, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Coconut Alkanes, Isopropyl Myristate, Shea Butter Ethyl Esters, Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate, Glycerin, Isododecane, Persea Gratissima Oil, Cocos Nucifera Oil, Camellia Japonica Seed Oil, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Passiflora Edulis Seed Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Kappaphycus Alvarezii Extract, Laminaria Digitata Extract, Sea Water Extract, Spirulina Maxima Extract, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Chondrus Crispus Extract, Hydroxyacetophenone, Collagen Amino Acids, Algae Extract, Citrus Sinensis Peel Oil Expressed, Aphanizomenon Flos-Aquae Extract, Limonene, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Gardenia Taitensis Flower Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Linalool, Gluconolactone, Sodium Benzoate, Arginine, Potassium Sorbate, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Tocopherol, Populus Tremuloides Bark Extract, Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Solanum Melongena Fruit Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Curcuma Longa Root Extract, Ocimum Basilicum Flower/Leaf Extract, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Citric Acid

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Aloe Barbadensis Flower Extract is the extract from the flowers of the aloe vera plant. In cosmetics, it functions as a skin conditioning agent.

Here's the honest part: most of the famous "aloe" research is on the leaf and this flower extract is much less studied. It shouldn't be assumed to do everything the gel is known for.

However, there is a small body of flower-specific research that is interesting to take a look at.

The flowers of Aloe vera contain volatile compounds and ascorbic acid. And when researchers looked closer, they found the flower is rich in antioxidants called phenolics that lined up with the extract's strong antioxidant activity.

This extract also showed some ability to fight off a common bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) in lab tests.

In lab and mouse studies, those phenolic compounds behaved like solid antioxidants though human skin trials on the flower extract are still needed.

Safety-wise, this ingredient is pretty assuring. The CIR Expert Panel deems this ingredient safe in current practices of use and only rare cases of acute eczema, contact urticaria, and dermatitis have been reported.

Chondrus Crispus Extract comes from a red algae native to the northern Atlantic coasts of Europe and North America. It helps hydrate the skin and is rich in antioxidants.

The antioxidants in chondrus crispus include lutein and zeaxanthin. Lutein has the ability to filter blue light from screens.

Other contents of chondrus crispus include polysaccharides, peptides, and amino acids. These help hydrate the skin.

What's the difference between algae and seaweed? Algae is a broad term that includes seaweed. Not all algae is seaweed.

Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract is also known as Ivy Gourd Fruit Extract. It has skin conditioning properties.

The fruit is rich in flavonoids, phenolic acids, terpenoids, and sterols that show antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect in vitro. This is because the fruit contains a thick mucilage that forms a protective and soothing layer on the skin's surface.

The extract itself has demonstrated antioxidant, soothing, and potential anti-allergy properties.

Most of this research is done in vitro and dedicated clinical studies on topical application are still limited.

Corallina Officinalis Extract comes from the small red seaweed that grows on rocky coastlines that feels stiff to the touch because it builds calcium carbonate right into its cell walls.

That mineral content is basically its whole selling point: the extract brings calcium, magnesium, and trace minerals along with sugars (polysaccharides) and proteins. This is why formulators use it as a skin-conditioning and hydrating ingredient.

Lab testing does back up decent antioxidant activity for this species. A study comparing twelve red seaweeds found Corallina Officinalis stood out for its free-radical scavenging capacity. And a separate study found meaningful radical scavenging plus antibacterial activity from the raw biomass.

It's worth being clear that most of this is test-tube work on raw-algae and not a clinical trial on a finished cream.

On concentration, a 2020 industry survey found it's used at up to 2% in makeup and skincare. Safety-wise, it's as boring as it gets: the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel concluded this ingredient (along with the powder, Thallus Extract, and Hydrolyzed versions) to be safe as used in cosmetics and cited negative sensitization data.

There's no meaningful record of it causing allergic contact dermatitis, but be sure to patch test if you are unsure.

You'll see algae/seaweed listed as a 5/5 on a lot of pore-clogging charts and that number doesn't come from anywhere; it's not in the original rabbit-ear studies that most comedogenic ratings trace back to.

The reasoning behind the reputation is that seaweed is high in iodine and iodine can trigger acne-like breakouts when eaten. This traces back to a 1976 letter in Archives of Dermatology describing two women whose breakouts cleared after they stopped taking high-dose kelp supplements orally.

And the reaction of these two women wasn't clogged pores at all: it was an iodine-triggered pustular rash. Later research found normal dietary iodine doesn't meaningfully affect acne either and nobody has shown topical seaweed delivers enough iodine to matter.

What we do have is dozens of brown and red algae ingredients found to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing, and a handful of studies that found algae compounds may actually help acne.

However, plenty of people do report breaking out from algae-containing products. Skin is individual and it's worth avoiding if yours has reacted to algae before.

Curcuma Longa Root Extract comes from the rhizome (underground stem) of the turmeric plant.

While the official EU Cosing Database lists this ingredient as a fragrance, it actually does more than give products a scent.

This ingredient contains a group of yellow pigments called curcuminoids (mostly curcumin) that give it genuine antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity in skin.

Reviews of topical clinical studies have found turmeric/curcumin to be generally well-tolerated and useful across conditions like eczema and mild inflammation.

One thing working in its favor is that curcumin barely penetrates; in lab skin-permeation testing, the curcuminoids mostly stayed in the outermost layer of skin. This is a good thing because its soothing and antioxidant activity is a surface-level job anyway.

At this time, industry data shows there's no single "correct" cosmetic percentage. It's used across a wide range depending on the product and varies from tiny fractions of a percent up to a few percent.

Allergy-wise, curcumin is a documented (but uncommon) contact allergen. It can also cross react with related plants, so anyone with a turmeric/ginger/cinnamon allergy or reactive skin should patch test first.

Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:

The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.

Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.

Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.

Topically, glycerin does several things at once:

Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.

Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.

This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.

Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Lavandula Angustifolia Oil is more commonly known as lavender essential oil. It is considered a fragrancing ingredient.

Lavender imparts a famous scent. While the smell is lovely, this ingredient and may sensitize skin in topical products. This is because about 85% of the oil is made up of linalool and linalyl acetate.

When exposed to air, these two compounds become strong allergens. This ingredient exhibits cytotoxicity at low concentrations; amounts of 0.25% have been shown to damage skin cells.

A study from Japan found this ingredient caused lavender sensitivity after widespread exposure.

Lavender essential oil has some antimicrobial, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the cons of this ingredient may outweight the pros.

More research is needed to confirm lavender essential oil's effects when used in aromatherapy.

Lavandula Angustifolia is known as the English Lavender and famous for creating purple fields in Provence, France.

This ingredient is also known as neem leaf extract. It contains natural compounds like nimbidin, quercetin, and other polyphenols that give it antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory activity.

Lab studies have shown neem leaf extract can inhibit acne-related bacteria and help calm skin. Animal studies on wound gels using 1-3% neem leaf extract found it sped up healing without causing irritation.

A wound-healing study testing gels with the extract at 1%, 2%, and 3% concentrations and found none of them irritated the skin.

Most commercial products also use it in a similar low range (typically under 5%).

Allergy-wise, there are some case reports on neem oil causing allergic contact dermatitis so people with plant/botanical sensitivities may want to patch test first.

Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract comes from the Holy Basil plant. Holy Basil is native to India.

Holy Basil is rich in antioxidants due to its high romarinic acid, ferulic acid, and rutin content. This gives it skin brightening and soothing properties.

While Holy Basil has many claims to help fight acne, more research is needed.

One thing to note is the presence of tannins; tannins are naturally found in nature. However, this compound may be skin-sensitizing.

Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.

In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.

Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:

Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.

Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.

You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.

This ingredient comes from eggplant (or aubergine). It has skin conditioning properties due to its abundance of antioxidants like Chlorogenic Acid, Caffeic Acid, and Nasunin.

Nasunin is the pigment concentrated in the purple peel and has demonstrated the abilityu to neutralize free radicals and bind excess iron in lab studies.

Lab studies have shown that eggplant extracts can lower oxidative stress and protect skin cell membranes from damage. A 2025 study found that specific compounds in eggplant (particularly a phenolamide called N-Trans-Feruloylputrescine) may support skin health by neutralizing 2-nonenal, a byproduct linked to aging skin.

Overall, this is a gentle, well-tolerated ingredient that adds a little extra antioxidant support to your routine.

Those with nighshade vegetable allergies (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes) should patch test as eggplant is part of the same family.

Water. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.

So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!

Similar Comparisons