Where does this sheet mask go in my routine?

After toner, in place of your serum step, in the evening. Toner goes on before it, and the rest of the routine goes on after you take the sheet mask off. If you are adding it to a routine you already like, give it a week on its own first, so what you see is the Niacinamide and not three changes at once.

What else is on the list besides Niacinamide?

Tranexamic Acid, Arbutin and Alpha-Arbutin. The order they are printed in on this sheet mask's panel is the order on the box, so you can see where Niacinamide sits relative to them. Further down the same panel: Asiaticoside, Madecassic Acid and Asiatic Acid.

Anua

Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask

Name: Anua Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask
Brand: Anua
Price: 17.99 USD
Availability: OutOfStock

Anua's Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask is a serum mask (1ea), built around Niacinamide for a Korean-market formula, positioned as the leave-on treatment after toner.

Reviewed by Nurcan Saglam, licensed dermo-cosmetic expert (Paris)

No reviews yet

$17.99

1ea

Korean-market formula
Ships from California or direct from Korea
Korean barcode and batch code intact

Suited to: Congested skinUneven textureDry skinCompromised barrier

Helps with: Shoppers looking for Niacinamide in a sheet maskRoutines that want Niacinamide and Tranexamic Acid in one stepFilling the sheet mask step with a Korean-market formula

Sold out.

Tell us where to send it

One email, the moment this exact unit is back in stock. Not a newsletter and not a sequence, and your address comes off the list the second it is sent.

In stock now

Torriden Cellmazing Brightening Mask
Torriden
$3.52
Round Lab Vita Niacinamide Dark Spot Serum Mask
Round Lab
$11.76
Cosrx 5 PDRN Hyaluronic Acid Vital Hydrating Hydrogel Mask
COSRX
$4.70

30-day returns
Free US shipping on orders of $100 or more
Tracked delivery to your door

Verified authentic Shipping and returns

Key benefits

Niacinamide, the active this sheet mask is built around
Tranexamic Acid, Arbutin, Alpha-Arbutin and Asiaticoside on the same list, actives
Madecassic Acid and Asiatic Acid further down the same list
Cyanocobalamin and Yeast Ferment Extract further down the same list
Niacinamide named third on the manufacturer list printed on this page

Key actives

3Niacinamideactive

Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it is the most studied active in Korean formulation. It is the entry this sheet mask is named after, and the list carries it.

All products with Niacinamide

4Tranexamic Acidactive

Tranexamic Acid is a synthetic amino acid derivative used for the look of stubborn discolouration and post-blemish marks. It is water soluble, stable and comfortable next to niacinamide, which is how it is usually paired. The panel names it fourth on this sheet mask's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Tranexamic Acid

8Arbutinactive

Arbutin is the naturally occurring form of the same compound, from bearberry and related plants, used for the look of uneven tone. The alpha isomer is the more stable of the two. It is named eighth on this sheet mask's list, alongside Niacinamide.

All products with Arbutin

10Alpha-Arbutinactive

Alpha-Arbutin is a plant-derived compound, related to the sugar-bound form found in bearberry, used for the look of dark spots and uneven tone. It is stable in water and works at skin-friendly pH. The panel names it tenth on this sheet mask's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Alpha-Arbutin

41Asiaticosideactive

Asiaticoside is one of the four active triterpenes isolated from centella and the most studied of them. Korean formulas name it separately when they want to show which fraction of the plant they standardised. The panel names it forty-first on this sheet mask's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Asiaticoside

Inside the formula

Ingredients declared

No fragrance

on the list

3Niacinamide8Arbutin41Asiaticoside

3Niacinamide
8Arbutin
41Asiaticoside

Where each key active sits on the declared ingredient list, by entry number. Position is proportion: the further forward, the larger its share.

1 of 4

Anua Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask

49 of 51 explained

Water solvent: Water is the base almost every serum, toner and cream is built on. It dissolves the water-loving ingredients and sets how light the finished texture feels. On an INCI list it is usually first, which only means it is the largest single ingredient by weight.
Glycerin humectant: Glycerin is the most used humectant in skincare. It draws water into the outer layer of skin and holds it there, and it is one of the very few ingredients whose hydrating effect is settled science rather than marketing. Higher amounts feel tacky, which is why it is usually blended.
Niacinamide active: Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it is the most studied active in Korean formulation. It is used at roughly 2 to 5 percent for the look of uneven tone and visible pores, and it is water soluble, stable and comfortable beside almost every other active, which is why it turns up in so many lists.
Tranexamic Acid active: Tranexamic Acid is a synthetic amino acid derivative used for the look of stubborn discolouration and post-blemish marks. It is water soluble, stable and comfortable next to niacinamide, which is how it is usually paired.
Butylene Glycol humectant: Butylene Glycol is a small glycol that does two jobs at once: it holds water in the top layer of skin and it dissolves plant extracts and actives that plain water cannot. It also thins a formula, which is why watery Korean essences lean on it.
Diethoxyethyl Succinate solvent: Diethoxyethyl Succinate is a solvent that helps water-resistant actives spread and sink in evenly. It also leaves a light, silky feel.
1,2-Hexanediol humectant: 1,2-Hexanediol is a glycol used for two reasons: it holds water like glycerin, and it makes a formula harder for microbes to live in, so less traditional preservative is needed. Korean formulas use it heavily for that second reason.
Arbutin active: Arbutin is the naturally occurring form of the same compound, from bearberry and related plants, used for the look of uneven tone. The alpha isomer is the more stable of the two.
Sodium Hyaluronate humectant: Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt of hyaluronic acid, and it is what most products labelled hyaluronic actually contain. The salt dissolves more readily and the molecule is smaller, so it sits in the outer layer of skin rather than only on top of it.
Alpha-Arbutin active: Alpha-Arbutin is a plant-derived compound, related to the sugar-bound form found in bearberry, used for the look of dark spots and uneven tone. It is stable in water and works at skin-friendly pH.
Coccinia Indica Fruit Extract plant extract: Coccinia Indica is ivy gourd. Its fruit extract is used as a conditioning, hydrating plant extract in Korean formulas.
Eclipta Prostrata Extract plant extract: Eclipta Prostrata is false daisy, long used in Ayurvedic and East Asian practice. Its extract is used as a conditioning plant extract, most often in scalp and hair formulas.

37 more explained

Macadamia Integrifolia Seed Oil emollient: Macadamia Seed Oil is unusually high in palmitoleic acid, a fatty acid that human sebum also contains, which is why it absorbs faster than most nut oils. It is a cushioning emollient for dry skin.
Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil emollient: Olive Fruit Oil is high in oleic acid and plant sterols. It is a rich emollient that suits dry skin and is heavy enough that blemish-prone skin often does not get on with it.
Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil emollient: Jojoba Oil is a liquid wax rather than a true oil, and its structure is close to human sebum, which is why it absorbs so readily. It is an emollient that leaves a soft, non-greasy finish.
Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil emollient: Grape Seed Oil is a light, linoleic-acid-rich oil with a fast, dry absorption. It is one of the plant oils used where an oil is wanted without a heavy finish.
Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Extract plant extract: Cocoa Extract carries polyphenols and a little caffeine. It is used as an antioxidant plant extract and gives a faint warm tint.
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid humectant: Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is hyaluronic acid cut into much shorter fragments. The smaller the fragment, the further into the outer layer it can settle, which is why serums stack several sizes together instead of using one.
Chamaecyparis Obtusa Leaf Extract plant extract: Chamaecyparis Obtusa is hinoki cypress. Its leaf extract carries aromatic plant compounds and is used in Korean formulas aimed at oily, congested skin.
Prunus Persica (Peach) Flower Extract plant extract: Peach flower extract. Flower extracts of the stone fruits carry flavonoids and sugars and are used as conditioning, water-holding extracts.
Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil emollient: Oil pressed from tea seeds. It is high in oleic acid, carries some of the antioxidants of the tea plant, and is lighter in feel than most oleic oils.
Yeast Ferment Extract ferment: The extract of a yeast culture, carrying amino acids, sugars and B vitamins. It is used as a conditioning ferment.
Centella Asiatica Extract plant extract: Centella Asiatica is the plant behind the whole cica category, sold as gotu kola or Madagascar centella. Its extract is the anchor of Korean formulas built for easily reddened skin, and its work is done by four triterpenes: asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid and madecassic acid.
Artemisia Princeps Leaf Extract plant extract: Artemisia Princeps is Korean mugwort, one of the country's oldest skincare and bathing plants. Its leaf extract is used for the look of reddened, reactive skin, and it is the ingredient behind the mugwort category.
Candida Bombicola/Glucose/Methyl Rapeseedate Ferment ferment: This ferment produces sophorolipids, sugar-based molecules that behave as very mild surfactants and emulsifiers. It is used to keep a formula blended without a harsh cleanser.
Hyaluronic Acid humectant: Hyaluronic Acid is a sugar chain the body already makes, and one gram of it can hold several litres of water. In a formula it is a humectant that pulls water to the surface of skin and holds it in a film, which is what makes skin look plumper while it is there.
Pentylene Glycol humectant: Pentylene Glycol hydrates and, like the other longer-chain glycols, makes a formula less hospitable to microbes so the preservative system can be lighter. It also improves how evenly a product spreads.
Betaine Salicylate exfoliant: Betaine Salicylate is a gentler salicylic derivative. Korean formulas use it at around 2 to 4 percent, which is roughly comparable to a low-strength salicylic acid, and it is easier on the skin barrier.
Sucrose Palmitate emulsifier: A sugar ester: table sugar joined to a fatty acid. Sugar esters are mild emulsifiers with a light, silky feel and no detergent sting.
Hydrogenated Lecithin emulsifier: Hydrogenated Lecithin is lecithin with its unsaturated bonds filled in, which makes it far more stable. It emulsifies and is the standard shell for the liposomes that carry actives into the outer layer of skin.
Gellan Gum thickener: Gellan Gum is a fermentation-derived polysaccharide that sets a clear, brittle gel at very low levels. It is used to suspend particles without thickening the liquid much.
Sodium Phytate chelator: Sodium Phytate is a rice-derived chelator used in place of EDTA. It ties up trace metals so the formula stays stable and its colour and scent hold.
Cellulose absorbent: Cellulose is plant fibre. In a formula it thickens, absorbs oil and, in a sheet mask, is often the fabric itself.
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride emollient: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride is the light fraction of coconut oil, with the heavy parts removed. It is the workhorse emollient of modern formulas: it softens skin, dissolves oil-soluble actives and absorbs without the greasy weight of a whole plant oil.
Panthenol humectant: Panthenol is pro-vitamin B5: skin converts it to pantothenic acid. It is a humectant that holds water and leaves skin feeling soft and less tight, and it is one of the ingredients formulators reach for when a formula also contains something harsh.
Cyanocobalamin vitamin: Cyanocobalamin is vitamin B12, and it is a deep pink-red, which is why a formula carrying it often has a colour nobody added on purpose. It is used as a conditioning vitamin.
Polyglutamic Acid humectant: Polyglutamic Acid comes from fermented soy and holds several times more water than hyaluronic acid for its weight. It forms a light film on the surface, so it is often layered with hyaluronic rather than replacing it.
3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid antioxidant: 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid is a stable vitamin C derivative that skin converts to ascorbic acid. It survives in a formula far better than pure vitamin C and works at a gentler pH, so it suits skin that finds the pure acid uncomfortable.
Ceramide NP barrier lipid: Ceramide NP is the most used cosmetic ceramide, the same class of lipid that makes up roughly half the mortar between cells in the outer layer of skin. Added to a cream it slots into that structure, which is why ceramide formulas feel less leaky rather than merely greasy.
Dextrin thickener: Dextrin is a starch fragment used to thicken and to give a formula a light, powdery finish. It is also a common carrier for powdered extracts.
Asiaticoside active: Asiaticoside is one of the four active triterpenes isolated from centella and the most studied of them. Korean formulas name it separately when they want to show which fraction of the plant they standardised.
Madecassic Acid active: Madecassic Acid is the fourth centella triterpene. A list that names all four is telling you the extract was standardised rather than simply pressed, which is the difference between a cica claim and a cica formula.
Asiatic Acid active: Asiatic Acid is the third of centella's four triterpenes and the aglycone form, meaning it has no attached sugar. It is oil soluble, so it turns up in cica creams and balms more than in watery layers.
Dimethylsilanol Hyaluronate humectant: Dimethylsilanol Hyaluronate is hyaluronic acid joined to a silicon-based group. It hydrates and leaves a smoother, silkier finish than hyaluronic acid alone.
Potassium Hyaluronate humectant: Potassium Hyaluronate is another salt of hyaluronic acid, used for the same reason as the sodium form: it dissolves easily and holds a large amount of water in the outer layer of skin.
Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate humectant: Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate carries a positive charge, and skin carries a slight negative one, so it is attracted to the surface and stays through rinsing. It is the hyaluronic used where a formula gets washed off.
Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer humectant: Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer is hyaluronic acid linked into a mesh. It holds water in a soft gel on the surface rather than sinking in, and it releases that water slowly through the day.
Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate humectant: Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate is hyaluronic acid modified to be part oil-loving, so it clings to skin instead of rinsing away. Formulators call it the one that stays put.
Xanthan Gum thickener: Xanthan Gum is a polysaccharide made by fermenting sugar. It thickens a watery formula into a gel and holds the whole thing in suspension so nothing separates. Too much of it and a serum turns stringy, which is why it appears in fractions of a percent.

How it works

The Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask is a 1ea sheet mask, used after toner, in place of your serum step, in the evening. The active it is built around is Niacinamide, named third on its own ingredient list. The same list carries Tranexamic Acid, Arbutin and Alpha-Arbutin, so the active is not the only thing on it worth naming. How much of the Niacinamide stays on the skin, and for how long, is decided by the sheet mask format rather than by the list alone. Anua sells this Niacinamide sheet mask in Korea, and this is that version.

How to use

Use the Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask after toner, in place of your serum step, in the evening.
Unfold the sheet, line it up at the eyes first, then smooth it outward so no air is trapped underneath.
Take it off at the time printed on the pack, pat in the essence left behind rather than rinsing, then go straight to your moisturizer.
Two or three evenings a week is a normal rhythm. Do not leave it on past its time; a sheet that has gone dry takes moisture back off the face as it goes.

Worth knowing

Patch test this sheet mask on a small area and wait a day before using it more widely, especially with Niacinamide on the list.
Introduce this sheet mask on its own for the first week, so anything your skin does is traceable to the Niacinamide rather than to three changes at once.

Reviews

No reviews yet. Tell us how much you love the product!

Write a review

Anua Niacinamide TXA Dark Spot Serum Mask

How it felt, how your skin took it, what you layer it with. Straight answers help the next person choose.

Read every customer review

Anua, Korean-market original

Built around Niacinamide, named on this product's own ingredient list, sourced as the authentic Korean-market formula.

Verify your unit when it arrives

Korean-market stock with the original barcode and batch code intact, exactly as it left Korea.

Anua uses a holographic QR seal that only the HiddenTag app can read. Install HiddenTag from your phone’s app store and scan the seal on the box. A camera app alone will not resolve it.

Source: Anua packaging, HiddenTag scheme

On the unit itself

The Korean-market barcode, unaltered from the retail package.
The manufacturer’s batch code, exactly as the maker printed it.

정품Genuine article, Korean-market stock

What professionals say

What skin-care professionals say about the key actives in this formula, quoted from the medical sources linked beside each.

Topical tranexamic acid 5% cream is under investigation in the treatment of melasma and is showing promising results in the treatment of epidermal-type melasma.
Faisal R AliConsultant Dermatologist, DermNet NZ
Arbutin works to inhibit tyrosinase, an enzyme present in melanocytes, the pigment-producing cells in the skin. This results in less pigment, dark spots and skin lightening.
Tiffany Jow Libby, MDBoard-certified dermatologist, mindbodygreen

1 more professional perspective

Niacinamide helps reduce the appearance of pores in a few ways. By strengthening the skin barrier and improving elasticity, pores appear less noticeable and more even.
Ashlyn YankeAesthetician, Cleveland Clinic