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Cosmetic ingredient dictionary

Benzyl Alcohol in cosmetics: what it is and what it does

Benzyl Alcohol is a cosmetic ingredient that keeps the product from spoiling. The EU lists it as an allowed preservative, with a maximum amount. It is a fragrance allergen that EU labels must name above set levels. Open Beauty Facts finds it in 3,130 products, most often hair care.

By Bravoora teamUpdated Sources checked 4 sourcesHow we check

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for a fragrance-sensitive skin profile

What does Benzyl Alcohol do in a product?

In a cosmetic product, Benzyl Alcohol keeps the product from spoiling, makes the product thicker or thinner and dissolves other ingredients. The EU’s CosIng database lists these jobs for it: preservative, viscosity controlling, solvent and perfuming.

preservativeviscosity controllingsolventperfuming

What other names and numbers does Benzyl Alcohol have?

CAS number
100-51-6
EC number
202-859-9
CosIng reference
32153

Is Benzyl Alcohol restricted in the EU?

Yes, it has limits. The EU allows it only with limits or conditions of use, such as a maximum amount or a warning on the label (Annex III of Regulation 1223/2009, entry 45). The EU lists it as an allowed preservative, with a maximum amount (Annex V of Regulation 1223/2009, entry 34).

The annex entry sets the exact limits, the products it may be used in and any warning the label must carry.

Is Benzyl Alcohol a fragrance allergen?

Yes. Benzyl Alcohol is one of the fragrance allergens that EU rules make a label name when there is more than 0.001% of it in a product left on the skin, or more than 0.01% in one that is rinsed off. On a label it can appear on its own after “Parfum”, because it is part of the scent.

Who should look out for Benzyl Alcohol?

Fragrance-sensitive skinNot for youIt is a fragrance allergen EU rules name.

Read the fragrance (parfum) guide

Which products contain Benzyl Alcohol?

Open Beauty Facts finds Benzyl Alcohol in the ingredient lists of 3,130 of the 22,021 products it has a list for, most often hair care, shampoos and deodorants.

  • Hair care243
  • Shampoos220
  • Deodorants163

Products with it, by country of sale: France 1,022 · Germany 390 · United States 302 · Australia 234.

Counted on 13 October 2026 from Open Beauty Facts, which volunteers fill from real packs: it shows where Benzyl Alcohol turns up, not how much of the market it is.

On these listsFragrance allergensPreservativesRestricted in the EU

Bravoora reads this ingredient for everyone you shop for: an allergy or intolerance, a vegan or vegetarian diet, a calorie or protein goal, and the labels on supplements and skincare too. Build a profile · For dermatologists, dietitians and doctors

Sources

The job, the description and the EU annex entry are CosIng’s; the fragrance allergens are the EU Annex III names Bravoora’s label checker reads; the product counts are Open Beauty Facts’.

  1. European Commission: CosIng cosmetic ingredient database (functions, description, EU annex entry)
  2. Open Beauty Facts: product database, 77,506 products, read 13 October 2026, ODbL
  3. EU Regulation 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (the annexes)
  4. EU Regulation 2023/1545 (fragrance allergen labelling)

Contains information from Open Beauty Facts, which is made available here under the Open Database License (ODbL). Read the licence · Download this dictionary’s data · How we check

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