Index / Beauty of Joseon / Ginseng Essence Water
Beauty of Joseon

Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water.

Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water
Save to Pinterest
Mists & Essences
About this product

A lightweight, watery Mists and Essences product from Beauty of Joseon, built around ginseng and niacinamide and designed to hydrate skin when used as a toner or an essence.

Full ingredients

Panax Ginseng Root Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Propanediol, Niacinamide, 1,2-Hexanediol, Water, Hydroxyacetophenone, Glyceryl Glucoside, Xanthan Gum, Panthenol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Allantoin, Adenosine, Panax Ginseng Callus Culture Extract, Theobroma Cacao(Cocoa) Extract, Dextrin, Glucose, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Panax Ginseng Berry Extract, Lactobacillus/​Panax Ginseng Root Extract Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA

More from Beauty of Joseon 30 products · Guru Score 87% →

Guru Score

67%

Mixed

7 experts · Moderate agreement

What the gurus are saying

Scent is the detail these gurus keep returning to, since the ginseng smell is strong enough that some find it too much, especially straight after cleansing. Those who like it praise the light, non-sticky hydration, a plump glow, and niacinamide for supporting the skin barrier. Others doubt it does much for hyperpigmentation, and a few repurchased bottles smelled off.
Synthesized from 7 expert reviews · most recent take October 2026

What they liked

  • Lightweight, hydrating without stickiness
  • Fragrance-free formulation available
  • Works as toner or essence hybrid

What they flagged

  • Strong ginseng scent irritates some
  • Moisture doesn't last long on drier skin
  • Batch consistency issues reported

Type

Mists & EssencesLiquid

Formula notes

Fragrance-freeNo drying alcohol

Where to buy

Opens a store search. We may earn from these links.

Scan it in the shopFree iPhone app. Scores in the aisle.

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored
~Nay
"I repurchased the Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water and I open it up and I can instantly smell it was not as the original one was. It smelled very very off like it was stored in a hot storage container for a year and it was definitely gone bad."
All 5 takes from No BS Beauty
Why Are There So Many Beauty Brands- What's The Difference & Why Are Doctors Doing YouTube?!!
"If you look at two Brands like the Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water I think I got this last bottle for 12 bucks"
5 Herbs to Stimulate Collagen Production in Skin - Anti-Aging Skincare Ingredients
"The Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water is a really nice light toner essence you can use like a toner or an essence. It's got ginseng, niacinamide, cacao, and ginseng ferment in it. I've actually repurchased it now, I believe this is my second, maybe third bottle."
The Only Toners & Essences I've Repurchased - Fragrance Free & Affordable Favorites
"It's a watery, non-sticky toner. It's got ginseng, which is really great for anti-aging for your skin, several different types of ginseng actually, as well as panthenol, a soothing ingredient, allantoin, a soothing ingredient, and cocoa extract, which is really great for anti-aging and protecting your skin from oxidants. I wouldn't repurchase this one from TJ Maxx. I went to use it the first time and I'm like, something's off. It's like almost musty. I don't know what happened."
5 Products You Should Never Buy on Clearance or at TJMaxx & Marshalls - Shopper Secrets!
"I repurchased the Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water and I open it up and I can instantly smell it was not as the original one was. It smelled very very off like it was stored in a hot storage container for a year and it was definitely gone bad."
The Best 10/10 K-Beauty Toners & Essences 🙌 Favorite Toners & Essences That Work For All Skin Types
"It's great for soothing, hydrating. Ginseng is a great antioxidant, anti-aging ingredient for your skin. So really lovely product overall. Although I will say, I picked up one from TJ Maxx and it has a little bit of a different scent than the original one. The expiration date on it is not expired, [...] but the scent is off to this one, so I haven't dug into it more. Something's noticeably off with this one, so I'm going to repick this one up from YesStyle instead."
~Nay
"This is a watery toner with a ginseng scent. Why did they put the ginseng scent in it? I use it every single day. For somebody like me who doesn't like a strong scent, it's a bit irritating. I don't need it."
All 3 takes from CYoung
Are These Popular Viral Toners Actually Good? | Tier List
"This is a watery toner with a ginseng scent. Why did they put the ginseng scent in it? I use it every single day. For somebody like me who doesn't like a strong scent, it's a bit irritating. I don't need it."
Beauty of Joseon Top 16 products Rated Best to Worst (Not Sponsored)
"But the scent is just too strong for me. You're putting this on right after cleansing, almost on bare skin, so I think it's too much. I don't think this scent would be popular in Korea among people in their twenties and thirties, it feels more made for women in their fifties and sixties. It's just not for me."
I tried TikTok most viral Korean skincare products…an honest review (Not sponsored)
"This has way too much scent, Korean cosmetics took a lot of the scent out after three years of everyone wearing masks during covid, so this feels out of date. The texture is really lightweight and not even that long lasting when it comes to moisturizing, so if you're a teenager or have oily skin it's probably okay, but if not, I'd pass on it."
~Mixed
"I love Beauty of Joseon dearly, but their Ginseng Essence Water is too good an example for this conversation. I liked this product, don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, I thought it was a nice hydrating product, but I didn't think it did much for fighting hyperpigmentation."
~Yay
"Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Toner, they're very very good reviews in six weeks."
~Yay
"This is a multi-beneficial ingredient, and it does what it says. It will renourish the skin. The smell is quite strong from the ginseng, but I'm happy for you to use this one."
Sponsored
All 2 takes from Dr. Vanita Rattan
5 Beauty of Joseon Products That Will CHANGE Your Skin!
"This boosts skin hydration, diminishes rough texture, and helps fade uneven skin tone. The smell is quite strong from this particular ingredient. The second ingredient is butylene glycol, followed by glycerin, another humectant, and the fifth ingredient is niacinamide to strengthen the skin barrier. This product doesn't have any other actives but it does what it says it will: renourish the skin. For me, this is one I'm happy for you to use. This one's Dr V approved."
Is Beauty of Joseon Safe for Black Skin?
"This is a multi-beneficial ingredient, and it does what it says. It will renourish the skin. The smell is quite strong from the ginseng, but I'm happy for you to use this one."
~Yay
"It's the clinical amount that you want in niacinamide 2% to really start to show effects for dullness, unevenness, and even addressing hyperpigmentation on the skin. [...] At 2% niacinamide also helps to strengthen your skin barrier. Your skin barrier is the root of all healthy skin. Skin that is not healthy is not glowy, is not bright, is not going to resist dullness and unevenness. It is going to look lifeless. [...] The niacinamide is doing double duty here."
Sponsored
All 3 takes from Kelly Driscoll
Beauty of Joseon Amazon Prime Day is HERE! My 5 Picks! | AD
"The Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water does bring out a really beautiful glow to the skin. It actually helps to increase the circulation in our skin and that's what really gets that really glowy healthy look. It's also a strong antioxidant. There's a lot of really good skin nutrition in here, a lot of micronutrients in ginseng that just support healthy skin."
My 5 Most Repurchased Beauty of Joseon Skincare | 2025 UPDATED!
"This is so good. [...] You could use this like an essence in your skincare routine or you could use this like a hydrating toner or like a hybrid combo product. [...] It really does cover what both of those products would do. [...] It has the hydration like a regular toner, but it also has those actives and those benefits that you might expect from an essence, but it's not in a full-on serum or ampule like texture."
The Right Toner for Every Skin Concern | Find Yours
"It's the clinical amount that you want in niacinamide 2% to really start to show effects for dullness, unevenness, and even addressing hyperpigmentation on the skin. [...] At 2% niacinamide also helps to strengthen your skin barrier. Your skin barrier is the root of all healthy skin. Skin that is not healthy is not glowy, is not bright, is not going to resist dullness and unevenness. It is going to look lifeless. [...] The niacinamide is doing double duty here."
~Yay
"This is super hydrating, it's got a lot of glycerin, it's also got hyaluronic acid, and it leaves a kind of plump hydrated feeling on my skin that is just shy of being tacky, and that is such a hard balance to get in a product like that, maximum plumpness but just not sticky. Although I can't guarantee that it will hit that spot for everyone else, it depends on how humid your environment is and your skin, but it does hit that spot for me."
Sponsored

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Niacinamide

Niacinamide has evidence behind it for redness, uneven tone and supporting the skin barrier, and it is usually well tolerated even by skin that reacts to most things.

Source: DermNet

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water?

A lightweight, watery Mists and Essences product from Beauty of Joseon, built around ginseng and niacinamide and designed to hydrate skin when used as a toner or an essence.

Is Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water worth it?

The gurus are split. 4 of the 7 gurus give it their stamp of approval while 2 would skip it, which lands it in the middle at a Guru Score of 67%.

What is Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water's Guru Score?

Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Essence Water holds a Guru Score of 67%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 7 expert reviewers we have collected.

Same formula, for less.

Products built around the same core actives as this one, with what the experts make of each.

See how they stack up →

Similar products worth a look.

Other products the same gurus have weighed in on, plus more from this brand and category.

Compare side by side →

Spotted something on this page that doesn't look right? Let us know.

Share this score

Add this badge to your blog or website. It links back to this page and updates itself when the experts change their minds. Free, no sign-up.

Then paste it into your site's HTML or embed block.

This week's top beauty news, in your inbox.

A weekly read of the takes worth catching up on: the raves, the splits, the ones the gurus won't shut up about. Free, no spam, unsubscribe whenever.

Subscribe to the digest