Chlorella Vulgaris Extract
Chlorella Vulgaris · INCI Chlorella Vulgaris Extract
Chlorella is a single-celled green microalga. The version in our formulas is an active built from compounds in the algal cell wall, made in Barcelona from algae grown in sealed tanks. There is very little of it in the bottle.
We use it at one percent, the top of the range its maker tested.
What it is
The chlorella is grown in closed photobioreactors, sealed vessels rather than open ponds, then the cell walls are opened in water and the useful compounds are separated out and purified. What results is a concentrate, a standardised set of active molecules held at a fixed strength.
That concentrate is only a small fraction of the liquid it is supplied in, and we use that liquid at one percent. Do the arithmetic and the chlorella extract in your bottle works out at roughly eight thousandths of one percent. Written down, that sounds like nothing.
The maker tested the material at between a third of a percent and one percent. We use it at one percent, the top of the range its maker tested, so the chlorella in our bottle is at the same concentration as in the strongest of those tests.
What it does in our formulas
Both of its effects come from its maker's laboratory work.
It leans on the microbiome, selectively
In its maker's laboratory tests, this active left S. epidermidis, the skin's main beneficial resident, untouched while holding back some less welcome species.
Emerging evidenceA laboratory hint of soothing
Also in its maker's laboratory work, skin cells provoked into an inflammatory response produced far less of the signal that drives it when this active was present. That is a result in cell culture, not on skin.
Emerging evidenceWhat the research does not show
Here we part company a little with the people who make this ingredient.
Marketed as A prebiotic that feeds your good bacteria
Marketed as Clinically proven to clear skin and reduce oil
Marketed as It outperforms human growth factor
On the label and in the range
Chlorella appears in every one of our formulations, near the end of the ingredient list. It arrives inside a one percent active, and the rest of that active is water, propanediol to carry it and a trace of lactic acid to hold it at the right acidity. All of them are on the label, which is why propanediol sits higher up the list than the chlorella it brought with it. Each has its own page here.
Is it suitable for me?
Its maker patch tested it on fifty volunteers at one percent, the strength we use, and found it neither irritating nor sensitising. It is certified vegan by the Vegan Society, approved under the COSMOS and NATRUE organic standards, and free of nuts, gluten and other common allergens. The algae are grown in sealed tanks rather than gathered, so nothing is taken from the wild. It is a freshwater microalga with no connection to our coast.
Its maker patch tested this active on fifty volunteers at the strength we use it, and found it neither irritating nor sensitising. As with anything new, if your skin reacts easily it is still worth patch testing first.
The research behind this page
We review the published literature. We do not conduct the studies below.
- ALGAKTIV S.L. (Barcelona). ALGAKTIV BioSKN Product Information Dossier, v2024.0, and technical efficacy dossier. Manufacturer data, unpublished. Sponsor-generated. Laboratory tests covered S. epidermidis, Cutibacterium acnes (formerly P. acnes), Malassezia furfur and S. aureus. →
- Yu J, et al. The Skin Microbiome Revolution: The Science and Challenges of Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Postbiotics in Skincare. Cosmetics 2026;13(1):43. →
- Morone J, Alfeus A, Vasconcelos V, Martins R. Revealing the potential of cyanobacteria and microalgae in cosmetics and cosmeceuticals. Algal Res 2019;41:101541. →