Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide On your shelf ✓
Our read, in one look
Niacinamide is the reason to consider this serum, with Centella Asiatica Extract behind it.
The case for it
- Niacinamide, strong evidence for the barrier
- Centella Asiatica Extract, strong evidence for the barrier
- No fragrance, alcohol, silicones or parabens
Mind this
- Sunscreen the next day, acids leave skin more sun-sensitive
- Add it on its own for a week or two, so you know what your skin is answering to
Maya's readBeauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide is a serum built around Glycerin, Niacinamide and Hyaluronic acid. It leans strongest on hydration, barrier repair, brightening / tone. Best suited to dry, dehydrated and oily skin. Go slow: the active is potent enough to irritate if overused.
Skip it if your barrier is already sensitised or compromised: the acids can sting broken or over-exfoliated skin.
The formula, drawn
Every ingredient in label order, coloured by the job it does here.
23 of the 30 sit above the 1% line. The other 7, hatched, are each under 1%. Widths show the ORDER on the label and nothing else: the label never discloses amounts, so we never draw them.
- Actives & signals
- Hydrators
- Texture & base
- Preservation
- Not in our library yet
- No fragrance anywhere on the label
What it delivers
How it feels A light, fast-absorbing texture that layers cleanly under the rest of your routine, with no greasy film. (estimated from the formula)
What's in it that matters
Classic humectant with strong evidence for improving skin hydration and supporting barrier when combined with emollients.
Multitasking vitamin that improves barrier, reduces redness, regulates oil, helps with pores and pigmentation with strong clinical support.
Water-binding molecule that increases hydration; works best under occlusive/emollient layers to reduce evaporation.
Plant extract rich in triterpenes that promotes wound healing reduces redness and supports barrier repair in irritated or scar prone skin.
Fat-soluble antioxidant that protects oils from oxidation and can support photoprotection; may be comedogenic or irritating for some.
Bee derived resinous extract that offers antioxidant antimicrobial and anti inflammatory effects useful for irritated or acne prone skin but carries allergy risk especially in atopic individuals.
How to use it
In the evening, and not every night: 2–3 times a week is plenty. Follow with a moisturiser, and wear sunscreen the next day.
Keep it away from
- Retinoids (retinol, tretinoin)
- Benzoyl peroxide
- Other exfoliating acids the same night
Where it acts
The same cross-section as our 500 dalton page, with this formula's actives on the layer each one works on. Depth is the anatomy's, never an ingredient's.
Skin surface
The stratum corneum
- Betaine Salicylatederived from what it is
- Glycerinderived from what it is
- Hyaluronic acidderived from what it is
- Vitamin Ederived from what it is
The living epidermis
- Niacinamideestablished, sourced
5 of this product's actives have a layer we can defend. 2 did not, so they are not on the diagram: no source and no honest derivation means no dot.
Sources for the sourced ones: Boo 2021: mechanistic basis for topical nicotinamide; Ebanks et al. 2009: mechanisms regulating skin pigmentation.
Against the average serum
It scores higher than the median serum on oil control.
On hydration, brightening and anti-aging it is level with the median, so that is not what sets it apart.
A median, not an average: one unusual formula should not move the middle. The numbers are the same 0 to 10 reads the comparison pages use.
The full ingredients list, decoded
Every ingredient on the label, in the order it appears (highest amount first). We link the 17 our library knows, name what each one does, and flag anything that can irritate or clog. The rest we leave plain, nothing is hidden.
All 30 ingredients, decoded
- Propolis ExtractSoothingmild irritant
- Dipropylene GlycolSolvent
- GlycerinHumectant
- Butylene GlycolHumectant
- WaterSolvent (base)
- NiacinamideVitaminmild irritant
- 1,2-HexanediolPreservative booster
- Melia Azadirachta Flower ExtractBotanical extract
- Melia Azadirachta Leaf ExtractBotanical extract
- Sodium HyaluronateHumectant
- Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root ExtractBotanical extract
- Ocimum Sanctum Leaf ExtractBotanical extract
- Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed ExtractBotanical extract
- Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) ExtractBotanical extract
- Centella Asiatica ExtractSoothing
- Corallina Officinalis ExtractBotanical extract
- Lotus Corniculatus Seed ExtractBotanical extract
- Calophyllum Inophyllum Seed OilPlant oil / butter (emollient)
- Betaine SalicylateExfoliantmild irritant
- Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
- TromethaminePh adjuster
- Polyglyceryl-10 LaurateEmulsifier
- Caprylyl GlycolPreservative booster
- roughly the 1% lineThe rules only require descending order above 1%. From Ethylhexylglycerin down, these 7 can be listed in any order the brand likes, so position stops telling you anything.
- EthylhexylglycerinPreservative booster
- Dextrin
- Pentylene GlycolHumectant
- Octanediol
- TocopherolAntioxidantmild irritant
- Xanthan GumThickener
- CarbomerThickener
Copy the raw INCI list
Propolis Extract, Dipropylene Glycol, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Water, Niacinamide, 1,2-Hexanediol, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract, Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Extract, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Corallina Officinalis Extract, Lotus Corniculatus Seed Extract, Calophyllum Inophyllum Seed Oil, Betaine Salicylate, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Tromethamine, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Dextrin, Pentylene Glycol, Octanediol, Tocopherol, Xanthan Gum, Carbomer
Worried about clogged pores specifically? The pore-clogging checker reads this same list against the published comedogenic ratings.
Read enough? Find it on amazon.com →
We don't make or sell skincare of our own. So there's nothing here we're trying to push, just an honest read of whether this formula suits your skin.
Against your shelf
Read from your own shelf, in your browser. We never see it.
Compare it with…
All 15 comparisons
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 (Original Formulation)
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 (with Ceramides)
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs CeraVe Resurfacing Retinol Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Azelaic Acid Suspension 10%
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Suractivated Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs Eucerin Anti-Pigment Dual Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG Eye Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs The Ordinary Multi-Peptide + HA Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs Medik8 Crystal Retinal 6
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs Celimax The Vita A Retinal Shot Tightening Booster
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs Vichy Minéral 89 Hyaluronic Acid Booster
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs CeraVe Skin Renewing Retinol Serum
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs Differin Adapalene Gel 0.1%
- Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide vs SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule
Common questions
Is Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide good for dry skin?
By our read of the formula, it suits dry, dehydrated, oily skin. Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide is a serum built around Glycerin, Niacinamide and Hyaluronic acid. It leans strongest on hydration, barrier repair, brightening / tone. Best suited to dry, dehydrated and oily skin. Go slow: the active is potent enough to irritate if overused.
How do you use Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide?
In the evening, and not every night: 2–3 times a week is plenty. Follow with a moisturiser, and wear sunscreen the next day.
What are the key ingredients in Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide?
The actives that do the work are Glycerin, Niacinamide, Hyaluronic acid, Centella Asiatica Extract, Vitamin E, Propolis Extract. The rest of the list is texture, preservatives and emulsifiers that hold the formula together.
Does Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide contain fragrance?
No. By our reading of the ingredient list it is fragrance-free, which is a plus for sensitive or reactive skin.
What the 3D scene shows
The scene shows Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum: Propolis + Niacinamide beside a cross-section of skin, with 3 of its ingredients drawn at the layer each one acts on and at one shared molecular scale: Glycerin and Vitamin E in the stratum corneum, the dead outer layer where most skincare works; Niacinamide in the living epidermis, among the cells that are still dividing. Depths come from the same sourced layer data as the rest of this site, and any ingredient whose layer is not established is left out rather than guessed.
