The Secret Key Starting Essence is a great dupe for more expensive alternatives such as that by Missha which is much more expensive. The smell is natural, nothing too potent or irritating. It has a cooling feeling when applied to the skin, and it is very quickly absorbed. The packaging is classy with a glass bottle and plastic stopper to save product when not in use, and prevent evaporation. I think this could be good for all ages and skin sensitivities as it is gentle, and does not have too many astringent active chemicals. The bottle is a large size of product too - it lasts me a full year with frequent use.

it's a really good essence. I have an oily acne prone skin and am living in a very humid climate and this is giving me the hydration that i need. not at all heavy on my skin. it really helped me in oil control on my face. helped in fading my hyperpigmentation. A must have for me now

I previously tried the I'm From Mugwort essence to help with breakouts and skin irritation, but it only helped marginally. This is the first FTE I've tried and I really enjoy it. It's super lightweight and doesn't irritate my acne-prone, oily skin. It layers nicely too without being heavy. Also the size you get for the price is nice too.

Nice watery consistance, works well for my combo skin. Does what its supouse to: prepares skin for the next steps in routine. I have ordered next Missha fte so I will compare the two.

I like it so far, it is hydrating, very thin texture, watery like, absorbs immediately, no specific smell, very gentle, no additives, parfume or anything that could cause any irritation, but honestly I don't see any amazing results of out it. However I don't use it daily, only occasionally, so I can imagine if I used it every day for 2 weeks, I might be even more satisfied. It is a good value for money product though due to its big size. I have sensitive, combo skin, very dry on the cheeks and around my eyes.

Great product! It's similar to overpriced SKII but much cheaper with comparable quality. I use it for toner and notice that my skin condition becomes better overtime

I love this Essence! It is so hydrating and it really does prep your skin and amplify the products I follow with. I use this in place of a toner.

This product moisturized and hydrated my skin so well. It also contains arbutin which helped fade my post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, it worked as a nice foundation for my other products.

This product is really nice on the skin, i think its really good for sensitive skin, its gentle, and the packaging is a very nice glass bottle. I havent used this many times but i do feel the overall quality of this product is great.

The best out of the bunch! Secret key has a particular feeling on the skin that Missha essence does not have. This is my goto essence....