DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is a rich emollient ester used to add cushion, gloss, and slip, especially in lip color, balms, and pigment-heavy formulas. It also helps wet and disperse pigments for smoother payoff.
What does DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is a rich emollient ester used to add cushion, gloss, and slip, especially in lip color, balms, and pigment-heavy formulas. It also helps wet and disperse pigments for smoother payoff.
Is DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE clean?
From a clean-beauty perspective, it is generally well tolerated and is not a common restricted-list ingredient. The main caveat is that its clean-standard fit depends on feedstock origin and processing, since it can be made from mixed natural and synthetic inputs.
Is DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE sustainable?
This material can be derived from plant-based fatty alcohols and a fermentation- or plant-derived acid, but supply chains may also include palm-linked or petroleum-linked inputs. It is expected to be ultimately biodegradable as an ester, though its branched, oily structure may break down more slowly than simpler, water-soluble ingredients.
Is DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE COSMOS-approved?
It may align with COSMOS-natural when made from approved natural-origin feedstocks using accepted esterification chemistry, but it is not automatically COSMOS-organic. Green Chemistry alignment is moderate, with good potential for renewable sourcing and solvent-light manufacture, balanced by feedstock traceability and slower biodegradation than lighter esters.
How does DIISEOSTEARYL MALATE work chemically?
The molecule is a high-molecular-weight diester made from a hydroxy dicarboxylic acid and branched C18 fatty alcohols, giving it a viscous, nonvolatile, lipophilic profile. It is commonly used around 1 to 30% in color cosmetics and lip products, is most stable in anhydrous or low-water systems, and can hydrolyze under strongly acidic or alkaline conditions.
Last updated 2026-05-14