SK-II Pitera Essence
All Seven Ingredients, Read

Updated July 2026 · Beauty Dupe editorial

Most ingredient lists open with water. This essence opens with galactomyces ferment filtrate and water sits fourth. The whole list runs seven lines. Here is what each of them does.

Related ingredient guides: Galactomyces

The basics

A signature that ends in seven lines

The build here is simple. Galactomyces ferment filtrate leads the list, butylene glycol and pentylene glycol follow, and water comes fourth. Lists are written from the largest amount down, so on the label alone the ferment filtrate outweighs the water. SK-II calls this filtrate Pitera.

The remaining three are preservatives: sodium benzoate, methylparaben and sorbic acid. They keep the product from spoiling. There are no oils or butters to add richness and nothing to thicken the texture, so the light watery feel shows up right on the ingredient list.

The core: the ferment filtrate called Pitera

The core is a single ingredient, galactomyces ferment filtrate. Galactomyces is a type of yeast, and the filtrate is the liquid strained from its culture. Skincare uses it to hydrate and smooth skin texture, and it is known as the ingredient that set off the ferment-essence wave in K-beauty.

One line worth drawing: the research on what it does when applied to skin is still limited, and it is not a brightening or anti-wrinkle active notified by Korea's MFDS. The brand says the filtrate makes up over 90% of the formula. The exact amount is not disclosed, so what the label confirms is only that it is the most abundant ingredient by order.

Butylene glycol and pentylene glycol appear in a wide range of products. Both hold on to water and work as solvents that help other ingredients blend. Pentylene glycol is also known to make the formula harder for microbes to grow in, lending a hand with preservation.

Where the ingredients cluster, and where they don't

Sorted by what they target, the ingredients here sit on hydration alone. The ferment filtrate and the glycols carry it, and no ingredient backs any other benefit.

There is no notified brightening or anti-wrinkle active, and no retinoid or acid either. The name says treatment, but on its ingredients this essence reads as a hydrating step rather than one aimed at a specific concern.

The 1% rule, which reads amounts from the order of the list, is unusually clear here. The preservatives that products typically use at around 1% hold the last three spots (fifth through seventh), so the four names above them make up most of what is in the bottle. The filtrate sitting ahead of water means the most abundant ingredient is Pitera rather than water. Below the 1% line the order stops tracking amounts closely, so exact ratios cannot be pinned down.

If you want the rule behind reading a list, the 1% rule on ingredient lists covers it.

What to note

The free-from list is long for this one. There is no fragrance, no silicone and no mineral oil. There is a paraben preservative, methylparaben. If you screen labels for parabens, check this line before you buy. Products within labeled limits are generally fine, but if your skin is reactive, start with a small amount.

Whose skin it suits

With no oil at all, this watery essence layers easily into oily-skin routines or multi-step routines. Dry skin will not get full hydration from it alone and needs a cream afterward to seal in oil.

It is fragrance-free, so scent-sensitive skin can give it a try. If parabens or ferment ingredients have bothered your skin before, check the label and start small.

How to read this blend

So Pitera Essence is seven ingredients built around one ferment filtrate. Instead of a complex stack of actives, it commits to hydration and smoother texture, which makes it one of the easiest luxury labels to read. If you want to check what is in the essence you already use, the button below runs the AI breakdown.

Frequently asked questions

This analysis is for general information. Check the product packaging for the actual ingredient list.
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