Korean Skincare Label Decoder
The brand name is in English. Everything that tells you what the product actually is — category, skin type, sunscreen filter, what it targets — is in Hangul. Here are 45 of those words.
Works in Hangul, in romanisation, or in English.
- 스킨seukinToner (older name)
Same shelf as 토너. Korean brands used 스킨 for decades and many still do — it does not mean an astringent.
- 토너toneoToner
A watery hydration layer, patted in rather than wiped off. Not the stripping kind sold in the West.
- 에센스esenseuEssence
Thinner than a serum, thicker than a toner. The category boundaries are brand-decided, not legal.
- 앰플aempeulAmpoule
The most concentrated of the three, usually in a small dropper bottle and sold as a short course.
- 세럼sereomSerum
- 로션rosyeonLotion (light moisturiser)
In Korea this means a thin moisturiser, not body lotion.
- 크림keurimCream
- 에멀전emeoljeonEmulsion
Another word for a light moisturiser. Sits between toner and cream.
- 클렌징 오일keullenjing oilCleansing oil
First step of double cleansing — removes sunscreen and makeup.
- 클렌징 폼keullenjing pomFoam cleanser
Second step. Used with water after the oil.
- 클렌징 워터keullenjing woteoMicellar water
- 마스크팩maseukeu paekSheet mask
- 미스트miseuteuFace mist
- 선크림seonkeurimSunscreen
- 쿠션kusyeonCushion (compact foundation)
Liquid base in a sponge compact, applied with a puff. A Korean invention and still mostly a Korean category.
- 무기자차mugi-jachaMineral sunscreen
Zinc oxide / titanium dioxide. Sits on top of skin and can leave a white cast.
- 유기자차yugi-jachaChemical sunscreen
No white cast and lighter to wear. This is the word most Korean sunscreens carry.
- 혼합자차honhap-jachaHybrid sunscreen
Both filter types in one formula.
- 백탁baektakWhite cast
The white film mineral filters can leave. 백탁 없음 on a label means the brand claims there is none.
- 자외선차단지수jaoeseon-chadan-jisuSPF
- 기능성화장품gineungseong-hwajangpumFunctional cosmetic
A regulated label in Korea. Only three claim categories qualify — the three below — and the product must be registered to carry it.
- 미백mibaekBrightening
One of the three registered categories. On a Korean label it is a regulatory designation, not a marketing adjective.
- 주름개선jureum-gaeseonWrinkle care
The second registered category.
- 자외선차단jaoeseon-chadanUV protection
The third. This is why sunscreens carry the 기능성화장품 mark.
- 지성jiseongOily skin
- 건성geonseongDry skin
- 복합성bokhapseongCombination skin
- 민감성mingamseongSensitive skin
- 중성jungseongNormal skin
- 수분subunHydration / water
The single most common word on Korean skincare. 수분 products add water; 보습 products hold it in.
- 보습boseupMoisturising
- 진정jinjeongSoothing
- 각질gakjilDead skin / exfoliation
- 모공mogongPores
- 탄력tallyeokFirmness / elasticity
- 트러블teureobeulBreakouts
Borrowed from English 'trouble'. On Korean packaging it means blemish-prone skin.
- 홍조hongjoRedness
- 무향muhyangFragrance-free
- 무알콜mu-alkolAlcohol-free
- 저자극jeo-jageukLow irritation
- 무착색muchakssaekNo added colourant
- 전성분jeon-seongbunFull ingredient list
The heading above the ingredients on the back. Useful if you are checking for something specific.
- 사용기한sayong-gihanUse by date
Korean products print this rather than a period-after-opening symbol.
- 제조번호jejo-beonhoBatch number
- 용량yongnyangVolume
Followed by ml or g. Worth checking — Korean sizes are often smaller than they look.
This explains what each word means, not what a product will do for your skin. Claims about results are regulated in Korea, and we would rather translate the label accurately than tell you something we are not in a position to promise.
Reading the ingredient list
The back of every Korean product carries 전성분 — the full ingredient list, in standardised Korean names, ordered by quantity. Here are the ones you will meet most often.
- 정제수Water (Aqua)
- 글리세린Glycerin
- 부틸렌글라이콜Butylene Glycol
- 나이아신아마이드Niacinamide기능성 · 미백
- 알부틴Arbutin기능성 · 미백
- 에틸아스코빌에텔Ethyl Ascorbyl Ether기능성 · 미백
- 아데노신Adenosine기능성 · 주름개선
- 레티놀Retinol기능성 · 주름개선
- 티타늄디옥사이드Titanium Dioxide기능성 · 자외선차단
- 징크옥사이드Zinc Oxide기능성 · 자외선차단
- 소듐하이알루로네이트Sodium Hyaluronate
- 하이알루로닉애씨드Hyaluronic Acid
- 센텔라아시아티카추출물Centella Asiatica Extract
- 마데카소사이드Madecassoside
- 아시아티코사이드Asiaticoside
- 달팽이점액여과물Snail Secretion Filtrate
- 판테놀Panthenol
- 알란토인Allantoin
- 스쿠알란Squalane
- 세라마이드엔피Ceramide NP
- 토코페롤Tocopherol (Vitamin E)
- 아스코빅애씨드Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C)
- 어성초추출물Houttuynia Cordata Extract
- 녹차추출물Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
- 티트리잎오일Tea Tree Leaf Oil
- 살리실릭애씨드Salicylic Acid
- 글라이콜릭애씨드Glycolic Acid
- 락틱애씨드Lactic Acid
- 다이메티콘Dimethicone
- 세틸알코올Cetyl Alcohol
- 페녹시에탄올Phenoxyethanol
- 향료Fragrance (Parfum)
We don't reproduce whole ingredient lists here, and that is deliberate: they differ by product and change whenever a formula is reworked, so a copy kept on this site would eventually be wrong about something you are putting on your face. The names themselves are standardised by the Korea Cosmetic Association, whose dictionary is linked above and is the source that stays current. Read the 전성분 on the product itself, then look up anything you need to check.
The three words worth learning first
수분 (subun) — water. The most common word on Korean skincare, and the organising idea behind most of it. A 수분 product adds water; a 보습 (moisturising) product holds it in. Korean routines tend to layer several thin 수분 steps rather than one heavy cream.
유기자차 (yugi-jacha) — chemical sunscreen. If you have tried a sunscreen that left you grey and given up, this is the word you were missing. Korean sunscreens are mostly chemical-filter and famously light; 무기자차 is the mineral kind that leaves a cast.
기능성화장품 — functional cosmetic. A registered designation, not a slogan. Only brightening, wrinkle care and UV protection qualify, so seeing it on a box tells you which of those three the product was filed under.
Reading a bottle in Olive Young
Front of the bottle: brand (English), product category (한글), and often the skin type it is aimed at. Back: 전성분 is the full ingredient list, 용량 is the size in ml or g, 사용기한 is the use-by date — Korean products print an actual date rather than the open-jar symbol used in Europe.
The shelf tags are worth reading too. Prices in Olive Young change constantly with promotions, so the tag under the product, not the sticker on it, is the price you pay.
Common questions
What's the difference between 토너, 에센스 and 앰플?
Thickness and concentration, in that order — toner is watery, essence is slightly richer, ampoule is the most concentrated and usually comes in a small dropper bottle. The boundaries are decided by each brand rather than by any standard, so two products labelled 에센스 can feel completely different.
What does 무기자차 mean on sunscreen?
Mineral filters — zinc oxide and titanium dioxide — which sit on the skin and can leave a white cast. 유기자차 means chemical filters, which absorb into the skin, feel lighter and leave no cast. 혼합자차 is both. Most Korean sunscreens are 유기자차, which is why they tend to feel lighter than Western ones.
What is 기능성화장품?
A regulated designation in Korea. Only three claim types qualify — brightening (미백), wrinkle care (주름개선) and UV protection (자외선차단) — and a product has to be registered to carry the mark. It tells you the claim was filed with the regulator, which is a different thing from a marketing line on the front of a box.
Why does the same product say 스킨 on one box and 토너 on another?
They are the same category. Korean brands used 스킨 for decades, and the industry has been shifting to 토너 to match international naming. Neither means an astringent — Korean toners are hydrating layers you pat in.
Next
Knowing what a product is comes before knowing which one to buy — and both come before working out whether the price is good.
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