Find the full ingredient list.

Look for “Ingredients” on the carton or the brand’s product page. To find peptides, scan for the word “peptide” inside a longer name. Online, your browser’s Find on Page can do that part for you. Read the whole entry between commas, including the word before “peptide” and any number at the end.

If you’re looking up a bottle you already own, match the complete product name and the country where you bought it. A brand can sell several serums with “multi-peptide” in the name. A photo of your carton makes a handy reference.

Three entries on The Ordinary’s copper serum label

Open the US page for The Ordinary’s Multi-Peptide + Copper Peptides 1% Serum. It has a short Key ingredients section and a longer list headed Ingredients. In the longer list, look for these three entries in the order they appear.

  • Copper Tripeptide-1 is the fourth entry. If you saw “copper peptides” on the front of the carton, this is the full ingredient name to look for.
  • Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 comes a few entries later. It shares the ending “Tripeptide-1” with the copper ingredient. Copying the first word as well lets you distinguish the two when you compare serums.
  • Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38 starts with the same two words as the previous example. The number after the hyphen is part of its name. Keep it when you search for this particular ingredient.

What can list order tell you?

On a US cosmetic label, ingredients generally appear from greatest amount to smallest. After ingredients present at more than 1%, the maker can put those present at 1% or less in any order. Color additives have a separate exception and can appear last regardless of amount.

Say two serums both list Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1. Finding it fifth on one label and tenth on the other tells you that both include it. To compare how much each serum contains, you’d need a percentage for that ingredient in each finished product.

Frequently asked questions

Which ingredient list should I use if the website and carton differ?

Use the carton for the product you have. The Ordinary notes that its formula can vary with when and where you bought it. If an entry is hard to read, share a photo and the lot number with the brand so it can identify your version.

How do I check whether Mora’s Daily Peptide Serum contains the same peptide?

Mora’s product page describes the serum as containing cosmetic peptides and directs you to the product label for the full list. To check for one of the ingredients in The Ordinary’s example, look for that exact name on Mora’s label.

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