1% Retinol Serum

Maritime Naturals

Where to buy Possibly in stock

About this product

The Maritime Naturals 1% Retinol Serum is a emulsion. Our analysis of its 22 ingredients (16 low-risk) rates it Excellent (93/100). Based on its ingredients, it looks well-suited to oily / acne-prone, dry, and sensitive skin.

Vegan-friendly Reef-safe

Summarised from our ingredient analysis — not brand marketing copy.

At a glance

Type
Emulsion
Ingredients
22
Low-risk
16
Fragrance
Fragrance-free
Origin
Canada

The evidence

Quick Product Notes

Paraben-Free Sulfate-Free Alcohol-Free Silicone-Free EU Allergen-Free Fungal Acne (Malassezia) Safe

Notable Effects & Ingredients

No Notable Effects & Ingredients

Ingredients Related to Skin Types

Good   Bad — tap a skin type to see which ingredients · estimated from ingredient functions
Dry Skin 5/4
Good for dry skin
Equisetum Arvense Extract Glycerin Jojoba Esters Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Caution for dry skin
Equisetum Arvense Extract Glycerin Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract Polysorbate 80
Oily/Acne-Prone Skin 3/0
Good for oily/acne-prone skin
Equisetum Arvense Extract Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract Retinol
Sensitive Skin 6/6
Good for sensitive skin
Equisetum Arvense Extract Glycerin Jojoba Esters Thioctic Acid Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Caution for sensitive skin
Glycerin Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract Sodium Benzoate Potassium Sorbate Phenoxyethanol Retinol

Ingredients list

22 total
Lower hazard (1) Higher hazard (9)
All22 Skin Conditioning15 Astringent4 Soothing4 Emollient4 Humectant4 Tonic4 Fragrance4 Hair Conditioning3
EWG CIR Ingredient Name & Cosmetic Functions Notes
Hamamelis Virginiana Water
(Astringent, Hair Conditioning, Skin Conditioning, Soothing)
1
3
B
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
(Emollient, Humectant, Oral Care Agent, Skin Conditioning)
Good for Sensitive Skin
Good for Sensitive Skin
1
A
Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide
(Skin Conditioning)
2
A
Glycerin
(Denaturant, Fragrance, Hair Conditioning, Humectant, Oral Care Agent, Oral Health Care Drug, Skin Protecting, Viscosity Decreasing Agent, Perfuming, Solvent)
Good for Dry Skin
Good for Dry Skin
Fungal Acne
Fungal Acne Trigger
Santalum Austrocaledonicum Wood Water
(Skin Conditioning)
1
A
Hydroxyethyl Ethylcellulose
(Adhesive, Binding Agent, Emulsion Stabilising, Film Forming, Viscosity Increasing Agent, Binding, Emulsifying, Viscosity Controlling)
1
A
Jojoba Esters
(Emollient, Moisturising, Skin Conditioning, Soothing)
2
Thioctic Acid
(Antioxidant)
1
A
Pentylene Glycol
(Skin Conditioning, Solvent)
3
B
Polysorbate 80
(Denaturant, Emulsifying, Surfactant)
Fungal Acne
Fungal Acne Trigger
3
A
Sodium Benzoate
(Fragrance, Preservative, Anticorrosive, Masking)
3
A
Potassium Sorbate
(Fragrance, Preservative)
salix alba bark extract
(Astringent, Hair Conditioning, Skin Conditioning, Soothing, Tonic)
1
Propolis Extract
(Skin Conditioning)
1
B
Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract
(Skin Conditioning)
4
A
Phenoxyethanol
(Fragrance, Preservative)
Paraben
Paraben
1
B
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
(Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Astringent, Emollient, Humectant, Masking, Oral Care Agent, Skin Conditioning, Skin Protecting, Tonic, Uv Absorber)
Good for Oily Skin
Good for Oily Skin
1
A
Ethylhexylglycerin
(Deodorant, Skin Conditioning)
1
Equisetum Arvense Extract
(Astringent, Emollient, Soothing, Tonic)
1
Geranium Maculatum Extract
(Tonic)
Taraxacum Officinale Extract
(Skin Conditioning)
9
A
Retinol
(Skin Conditioning)
Bad for Sensitive Skin
Bad for Sensitive Skin

My Ingredient Notes

No personal ingredient notes yet. Save ingredients to your profile to get good/bad alerts here.

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Key ingredients

Hamamelis Virginiana Water
Astringent, Skin Conditioning
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient, Humectant
Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant, Skin Protecting
Santalum Austrocaledonicum Wood Water
Skin Conditioning
Jojoba Esters
Emollient, Moisturising

Benefits

Good for dry skin
Good for oily/acne-prone skin

Concerns

Contains paraben
Not fungal acne (malassezia) safe
Retinol — higher EWG

EWG flags hazard, not real-world risk — ratings don't account for how much of an ingredient a product contains. Treat these as things to research, not verdicts. How we score →

Ingredients explained

Hamamelis Virginiana Water
Astringent, Hair conditioning
Limited public safety data.Read moreShow less
EWG N/A AstringentHair conditioningSkin conditioningSoothing
Cassia Angustifolia Seed Polysaccharide
Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Skin conditioning
Santalum Austrocaledonicum Wood Water
Skin conditioning
Limited public safety data.Read moreShow less
EWG N/A Skin conditioning
Hydroxyethyl Ethylcellulose
Adhesive, Binding agent
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A AdhesiveBinding agentEmulsion stabilisingFilm formingViscosity increasing agentBindingEmulsifyingViscosity controlling
Jojoba Esters
Emollient, Moisturising
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A EmollientMoisturisingSkin conditioningSoothing
Thioctic Acid
Antioxidant
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 2 Antioxidant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin conditioning, Solvent
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A Skin conditioningSolvent
Sodium Benzoate
Fragrance, Preservative
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR A FragrancePreservativeAnticorrosiveMasking
Potassium Sorbate
Fragrance, Preservative
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR A FragrancePreservative
salix alba bark extract
Astringent, Hair conditioning
Limited public safety data.Read moreShow less
EWG N/A AstringentHair conditioningSkin conditioningSoothingTonic
Propolis Extract
Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Skin conditioning
Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract
Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR B Skin conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Deodorant, Skin conditioning
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR A DeodorantSkin conditioning
Equisetum Arvense Extract
Astringent, Emollient
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 AstringentEmollientSoothingTonic
Geranium Maculatum Extract
Tonic
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 Tonic
+ 1 more — see the full ingredients list above
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient, Humectant
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 1–3 CIR B EmollientHumectantOral care agentSkin conditioning Good for Sensitive Skin
Glycerin
Denaturant, Fragrance
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 2 CIR A DenaturantFragranceHair conditioningHumectantOral care agentOral health care drugSkin protectingViscosity decreasing agentPerfumingSolvent Good for Dry SkinFungal-acne trigger
Polysorbate 80
Denaturant, Emulsifying
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 3 CIR B DenaturantEmulsifyingSurfactant Fungal-acne trigger
Phenoxyethanol
Fragrance, Preservative
Low-to-moderate hazard.Read moreShow less
EWG 4 CIR A FragrancePreservative Paraben
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial, Antioxidant
Low-hazard ingredient.Read moreShow less
EWG 1 CIR B AntimicrobialAntioxidantAstringentEmollientHumectantMaskingOral care agentSkin conditioningSkin protectingTonicUv absorber Good for Oily Skin
Retinol
Skin conditioning
Potentially a skin irritantRead moreShow less
EWG 9 CIR A Skin conditioning Bad for Sensitive Skin

How to use

How to use

  • 1 Morning only: Apply as the last step of your AM routine, after moisturiser, and reapply every ~2 hours of sun exposure.
  • 2 Wear SPF the next day: Acids and retinoids increase sun sensitivity — daily sunscreen is a must while using this.

General guidance from this product's category and active ingredients — always follow the directions on the package.

Trust & honesty

Pregnancy & breastfeeding

Contains ingredients some choose to avoid or double-check while pregnant or nursing.

Often avoided
Retinoids (Vitamin A) (Retinol)

Topical retinoids (retinol, retinaldehyde, retinyl esters) are widely advised against in pregnancy as a precaution. The strongest evidence is for ORAL retinoids; topical absorption is low, but most clinicians err on the side of caution.

This is general information, not medical advice. Pregnancy guidance varies and depends on concentration and your individual situation — always check with your doctor, midwife or pharmacist. How we flag this.

Effective levels — general guide

The concentrations these actives are typically effective at in research — not a measurement of this product.

Retinoids (Vitamin A) 0.01–1%

Most studied between 0.1% and 1%. Higher is not automatically better — irritation climbs with dose, so a well-formulated lower strength is often the sweet spot.

Retinol

INCI lists don't disclose amounts, and we don't claim to know this product's levels — these are the ranges these ingredients are usually effective at, so you can tell a real formula from "fairy-dusting" a marketed active. How we estimate this.

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