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A luxury Vitamin C serum that costs 160 € and promises overnight glow? The BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum looks the part — but does it deliver results worthy of the price tag?
The brand is German, which makes me even more interestes in what they have to offer. Let’s take a closer look at the ingredients, the science, and who this serum might actually be for.
What the BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum claims
Wake up with the most radiant skin ever: featuring a maximally high concentration of tetraisopalmitate – the most stable and potent form of vitamin C – this über-effective serum radically refines your complexion while you sleep.
Facts about the BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum
Prize and size
The serum comes in an absolutely gorgeous black and gold dropper bottle containing 30 ml. It is available for 160 € on the website here. There is also a 10 ml version if you want to see how it works for your skin first, which is 60 €.
Texture and smell
The product itself is slightly off white, has a very faint herbal scent and the texture of a light lotion that spreads with ease, but leaves behind some tackiness that will linger for the next few minutes.
How to use the BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum
You are supposed to use a pipettes length of product for your whole face, which isn’t as easy as it sounds. The dropper sometimes had difficulties picking up product even as the bottle was still full, with me having to go back in a few times to get enough to cover my whole face.
According to the brand the Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate they use works best at night, hence putting it in your night time routine directly after cleansing is recommended. I don’t know why this particular Vitamin C derivative should work better at night than during the day and can reassure you that the formula contains nothing that would make it unsuitable for day time use if putting it in your morning routine works better for you. The only thing I can imagine is that they argue that when used during the day, the ingredient is mainly used for its antioxidant purposes, as there are more free radicals due to sun exposure, so that when used at night it can be utilised better for supporting collagen production and brightening dark spots. I am not saying that is wrong, it is just that I don’t think it makes that huge of a difference, which is why I used it mainly in the mornings. (More info: The ten best ingredients to fight hyperpigmentation)
You might have heard that you shouldn’t use Vitamin C in conjunction with other potentially irritating ingredients like acids, and while it is always a good idea to keep your actives separate, that isn’t as much of a problem when you use a Vitamin C derivative as they are much less irritating and much more stable than Ascorbic Acid is. (More info: What can you mix with what in skincare?)
Vitamin C derivatives are also more stable than Ascorbic Acid, meaning you don’t have to worry about it losing its efficacy as quickly, the product should be good for 6 montsh after opening.
Ingredients of the BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum
sii|h 0 0, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate aox, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil 
emo 0 0, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate surf|emu, Dehydroxanthan Gum vc, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract aox|so|amic, Tocopheryl Acetate aox 0 0, Tocopherol aox 0–3 0–3, Sodium Hyaluronate sii|h 0 0, Xanthan Gum vc, Dehydroacetic Acid pres, Ethyl Ferulate aox, Polyglyceryl-5 Trioleate emo|emu, Sodium Hydroxide buff, Ethylhexylglycerin pres, Benzoic Acid pres, Citric Acid buff, Disodium Uridine Phosphate , Phenoxyethanol presHover the mouse over an ingredient for short explanation. Read more on INCIDecoder.
When looking at the ingredient list, Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate is the fourth ingredient after Glycerin. They claim to have used it in a maximally high concentration without actually giving you the concentration, so I have to give you an educated guess here: It is recommended to use Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate in a concentration between 0,1 and 5% in cosmetics. You might have seen products with a much higher concentration like The Ordinary’s Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate 20% in Vitamin F, but here they take a 20% solution to make the formula, so the concentration in the finished product is actually lower than what you read on the label. As it comes directly after Glycerin in the ingredient list, I would assume it is used at 2% or lower – probably not maximally high, but then again I don’t have much experience with this Vitamin C derivative. It is oil soluble, which could result in better absorption into the skin. (More info: The benefits of Vitamin C in skincare explained)
Other than that you have Glycerin and Hyaluronic Acid for hydration and then an interesting complex made up from Sunflower Seed Oil, Ethyl Ferulate, Rosemary Leaf Extract, Uridine Monophosphate and Tocopherol. (More info: The benefits of Hyaluronic Acid in skincare explained) This complex is called CELLIGENT 2020 and, according to the manufacturer, supports the cells in repairing their DNA, especially after UV exposure.
Again, nothing I have frequently heard of or that is backed by independent studies beyond the manufacturer’s own claims, which is something I always look out for to gauge how reliable and broadly applicable a product’s effects might be.
Other than that there is nothing remarkable about the formula.
More info: How to read the ingredient list in your skincare products
Does it live up to its claims?
Well.
I already touched on the concentrationof Acetyl Tetraisopalmitate – I can’t say if it is the maximum as they don’t disclose actual percentage on their website, and I don’t think it helps that the claims are quite exaggerated. I am sure it is a good Vitamin C serum that will improve the look of your skin if you haven’t used a Vitamin C in your routine before. But my skin surely wasn’t radically refined over night.
How does it compare to…
Geek and Gorgeous C-Glow Serum
This is the Vitamin C serum I have been using for years now and the one I keep coming back to, no matter how many high priced alternatives I have tried. It is different in a few aspects: Price, obviously, but also texture (it is watery) and Vitamin C used. Geek and Gorgeous contains 15% Ascorbic Acid, the best studied, but also potentially irritating form of Vitamin C in skincare. I don’t have any issues with Ascorbic Acid and the low pH it needs to be effective, but I understand that some people need an alternative. For those Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate is a valid alternative.
You can read my full review of the Geek and Gorgeous C-Glow Serum here.
Would I repurchase and which skin types do I recommend the BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum to?
The BYNACHT Illuminating Super C Serum is one of these products that look absolutely luxurious out on your bathroom counter. Black glass, golden writing – I love that. On the downside I don’t think the dropper works reliably and the texture, which is nice and lightweight, does leave the skin tacky for a few minutes after application. As I personally prefer Ascorbic Acid as my Vitamin C of choice, I will surely not repurchase at 160 € a bottle. The Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate used here might be a good alternative for those that can’t tolerate Ascorbic Acid due to its irritation potential though. But even then there are more affordable products out there, you definitely pay for packaging and branding here. Which isn’t a bad thing, just something you need to be aware of when deciding what to buy.
It should work for all skin types and can in theory be used for all ages – if you are still young though, save your money for other things and stick to a more affordable version.
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