Cosmetic ingredient dictionary
PVP in cosmetics: what it is and what it does
PVP is a cosmetic ingredient that makes the product thicker or thinner. Open Beauty Facts finds it in 189 products, most often hair care.
By Bravoora teamUpdated Sources checked 2 sourcesHow we check
What does PVP do in a product?
In a cosmetic product, PVP makes the product thicker or thinner, leaves a thin film on skin, hair or nails and reduces static, so hair stays flat. The EU’s CosIng database lists these jobs for it: viscosity controlling, film forming, antistatic, binding, emulsion stabilising and hair fixing.
What other names and numbers does PVP have?
- CAS number
- 9003-39-8
- CosIng reference
- 37364
Which products contain PVP?
Open Beauty Facts finds PVP in the ingredient lists of 189 of the 22,021 products it has a list for, most often hair care, toothpastes and hair gels.
Products with it, by country of sale: France 46 · Germany 36 · Australia 26 · United States 22.
Counted on 13 October 2026 from Open Beauty Facts, which volunteers fill from real packs: it shows where PVP turns up, not how much of the market it is.
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’.
- European Commission: CosIng cosmetic ingredient database (functions, description, EU annex entry)
- Open Beauty Facts: product database, 77,506 products, read 13 October 2026, ODbL
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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