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Heartleaf is the English name for houttuynia cordata, a plant called eoseongcho (어성초) in Korean. Korean brands use its extract in soothing toners, pads, ampoules and sunscreens aimed at oily, blemish-prone and easily irritated skin. Anua's Heartleaf 77 Soothing Toner made it famous, and it now appears across brands such as Abib, goodal, Manyo and Benton.
If you have looked at Korean skincare in the last few years, you have seen the word heartleaf. It is the ingredient behind one of the most-bought toners in Korea and a whole shelf of green-labelled products. This is a plain explanation of what it is and where it fits, written for people who keep seeing the name and want to know whether it is for them.
At Daebak, a Seoul-based Korean culture and product company, product descriptions below come from the brands. We describe what products are designed for, not what they will do for you, and we suggest patch testing anything new. The plant facts come from the botanical and research sources listed at the end.
What heartleaf is
Houttuynia cordata is a low, spreading perennial in the lizard's-tail family (Saururaceae). Kew's Plants of the World Online gives its native range as the Himalaya to temperate East Asia and Indochina, Korea and Japan included; gardeners outside Asia know it as the chameleon plant. Its heart-shaped leaves give it the English name; the Korean name eoseongcho means "fish-smell plant", because, as NC State Extension's plant guide notes, the crushed leaves have a fishy odor. A 2021 review in Frontiers in Pharmacology traces that scent to a compound called decanoyl acetaldehyde and records the plant's long use as food and folk medicine across China, Korea, Japan and India. In modern Korean cosmetics it is used as a plant extract in water-based formulas. The finished products do not smell of fish; the extract is processed and usually fragrance-free.
One caution from the same review: most of the research on the plant has been done in the laboratory rather than in people, and the authors note that human tolerance has not been properly studied. That is a good reason to read "calming" as the brands' positioning rather than a proven effect.
Brands position heartleaf as a soothing, calming ingredient, which is why it clusters in products for skin that gets red, oily or bumpy. It sits in the same family of "calming" plant extracts as centella asiatica, which we cover in What Is Cica (Centella Asiatica)?.
Heartleaf vs cica: which one?
| Heartleaf (houttuynia cordata) | Cica (centella asiatica) | |
|---|---|---|
| Korean name | 어성초 (eoseongcho) | 병풀 (byeongpul) |
| Typical products | Toners, toner pads, cleansing oils, light ampoules, sunscreens | Creams, ampoules, balms, sheet masks |
| Usually marketed for | Oily, combination and blemish-prone skin | Dry, sensitive and irritated skin |
| Texture of products | Mostly watery and light | Ranges from watery to rich |
The split is a generalization, and many products use both. A common Korean pairing is a heartleaf toner in the morning and a centella cream at night.
Where heartleaf shows up
Toners
Anua Heartleaf 77 Hyaluron Soothing Toner is the product that put the ingredient on the map; the brand's full range is mapped in the Anua Skincare Guide. The 77 refers to the percentage of heartleaf extract. It took second place for toners at the Olive Young Awards 2025 and is usually the first heartleaf product people try. Those awards are a sales ranking rather than a jury prize: CJ Olive Young says the 2025 list was drawn from 180 million customer purchases between July 2024 and June 2025, across 40 categories. Toner types in general are compared in Korean Toner Types.
Anua Heartleaf 77 Hyaluron Soothing Toner. See details.
Toner pads
Pre-soaked pads are where heartleaf is most common after toners. Anua Heartleaf 77 Clear Pad is the pad version of the toner, and Abib Heartleaf Essence Pad Clear Touch placed third for toner pads at the Olive Young Awards 2025; Abib's wider range is in the Abib Skincare Guide. How to use pads is covered in Korean Toner Pads: How to Use Them.
Abib Heartleaf Essence Pad Clear Touch. See details.
Ampoules and creams
Anua Heartleaf 80 Moisture Soothing Ampoule and goodal Heartleaf Hyaluron Soothing Ampoule are the light treatment-step versions. For a cream, Manyo Our Vegan Heartleaf Moisture Calming Cream keeps the ingredient in a richer texture.
Cleansing oil
Anua Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil is the first-step cleanser in Anua's line and one of the most talked-about Korean cleansing oils. The two-step method is in What Is Double Cleansing?.
Anua Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil. See details.
Sunscreen
goodal Heartleaf Calming Moisture Sun Cream placed third for sun care at the Olive Young Awards 2025, and goodal also makes a mineral-filter version.
How to fit heartleaf into a routine
- Simplest: swap your toner for a heartleaf toner. Nothing else changes.
- Oily or blemish-prone skin: heartleaf cleansing oil, heartleaf toner or pad, light gel cream. See Korean Skincare for Oily Skin.
- Sensitive skin: heartleaf toner, centella ampoule, barrier cream. See Korean Skincare for Sensitive Skin.
- Dry skin: heartleaf is fine as a toner, but put a ceramide cream on top. See Korean Skincare for Dry Skin.
Brand products in our shop are shipped by the brands. If you would rather try a set of Korean products chosen for you each season, the Daebak K-Beauty Box is a separate, curated option; Anua is among the brands it draws from.
FAQ
What is heartleaf in skincare?
An extract of houttuynia cordata, a plant known in Korean as eoseongcho. Korean brands use it in soothing products, most famously Anua's Heartleaf 77 toner.
What does heartleaf do for skin?
Brands market it as a calming ingredient for oily, blemish-prone and easily irritated skin. How much it does for any one person varies, so treat it as a gentle option to try rather than a guarantee.
Is heartleaf the same as cica?
No. Both are calming plant extracts, but heartleaf is houttuynia cordata and cica is centella asiatica. Heartleaf products tend to be lighter; cica products are more often creams and balms.
Does heartleaf skincare smell like fish?
No. The raw plant does, which is where the Korean name comes from, but the processed extract in cosmetics is usually fragrance-free.
Can I use heartleaf every day?
Heartleaf toners, pads and ampoules are designed for daily use. Follow the directions on the product and patch test first.
Sources
- Houttuynia cordata Thunb. (Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew)
- Houttuynia cordata, chameleon plant (NC State Extension Plant Toolbox)
- Houttuynia cordata Thunb: An Ethnopharmacological Review (Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2021)
- CJ Olive Young announces the 2025 Olive Young Awards: 166 products in 40 categories (CJ Group Newsroom, November 2025, Korean)
