Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol ●
TL;DR. This ingredient is a preservative blend used to control bacteria, yeast, and mold in water-containing formulas. One part provides broad antimicrobial protection, while the glycol portion boosts preservation and adds light humectancy.
What does Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol do in a cosmetic formula?
This ingredient is a preservative blend used to control bacteria, yeast, and mold in water-containing formulas. One part provides broad antimicrobial protection, while the glycol portion boosts preservation and adds light humectancy.
Is Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol clean?
It is accepted in many conventional and some clean frameworks when used within regulatory limits, but it has clean-standard friction because the primary preservative portion is often capped at 1% and can irritate very sensitive skin. The glycol portion is generally well tolerated and can help reduce the total preservative load.
Is Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol sustainable?
This material is typically petroleum-derived or mixed petrochemical and plant-derived, depending on supplier. It is not a high-persistence silicone-type material, but its natural-origin and renewable-feedstock profile is only partial.
Is Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol COSMOS-approved?
This ingredient is not permitted under COSMOS-organic or COSMOS-natural as a complete blend because the primary preservative component is outside the accepted preservative list. Its Green Chemistry profile is mixed: it is effective at low levels, but it usually relies on petrochemical input and only partial renewable sourcing.
How does Phenoxyethanol Caprylyl Glycol work chemically?
Chemically, this is a two-part system combining an aromatic preservative component with a fatty diol booster, improving antimicrobial coverage through complementary membrane and solubility effects. Finished formulas commonly use the blend around 0.5% to 1.5%, with the regulated preservative portion kept at or below 1% in many markets, and it is broadly stable from about pH 3 to 10.
Last updated 2026-08-18