Alpha Beta Extra Strength Daily Peel
Ingredients
Step 1: Water/Aqua/Eau, Alcohol Denat. (SD Alcohol 40-B), Glycolic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Water, Salicylic Acid, Polysorbate 20, Lactic Acid, Mandelic Acid, Malic Acid, Citric Acid, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Menthone Glycerin Acetal, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Achillea Millefolium Extract, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract, Soy Isoflavones, Copper PCA, Zinc PCA, Lecithin, Disodium EDTA, Alcohol, Polysorbate 80, Fragrance (Parfum), Linalool, Benzyl Salicylate, Benzoic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Benzoate. Step 2: water, sodium bicarbonate, resveratrol, retinol, ascorbic acid, ubiquinone, ascorbyl palmitate, phospholipids, retinyl palmitate, tocopheryl acetate, soy isoflavones, achillea millefolium extract, camellia sinensis leaf extract, leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate, copper pca, sodium pca, zinc pca, dimethicone, lecithin, polysorbate 20, polysorbate 80, alcohol, bht, peg-30 stearate, octoxynol-9, tetrasodium edta, sorbic acid, sodium benzoate, phenoxyethanol
This peel doesn’t mess around. It promises maximum performance in minimum time, and it’s kind of true — if your skin can handle it.
Step 1 is a cocktail of seven acids (AHAs and BHAs), including glycolic, lactic, salicylic, and mandelic. It's fast-acting, aggressive, and immediately tingly — borderline stingy. My skin feels raw after using it. This is not for beginners or the barrier-compromised; it’s a treatment for skin that’s desensitized and used to heavy-duty actives. I wouldn't use it daily — every other day for a week is my personal sweet spot — but when I do, it works. Especially on closed comedones, this thing is ruthless in the best way - and my skin looks visibly brighter and smoother with just one use.
A big downside for me is the presence of a lot of alcohol in the first pad. My guess is it’s included as a penetration enhancer, since alcohol can temporarily disrupt the skin barrier and supposedly enhance absorption of actives like acids. That said, I don't think there’s any upside to using that much alcohol here. It adds dryness and barrier stress, and it’s what drags the algorithm’s score for Step 1 (alone) down to 6.8: great performance, but unnecessarily harsh delivery.
Step 2 is the antidote. It calms everything down almost instantly with a blend of resveratrol, retinol, vitamin C derivatives, tocopherol, and fermented and botanical extracts. This pad feels soothing and reparative — and it better be, after what step 1 just did. It’s the reason I keep coming back to this peel instead of writing it off as too harsh. The score of pad 2 (alone) is 9.2.
This is not for beginners. If you’re new to acids or still babying your skin barrier, this will eat your face. But if you're a seasoned skincare user with a high tolerance for actives and a face full of stubborn texture or closed comedones, this hits hard — and gets results.
Handle with care. And follow with ceramides.