Ingredient decoder

Cetearyl alcohol: is it comedogenic? What it does in skincare

INCI name: Cetearyl Alcohol

Acne verdict Low clog risk

Not a known pore-clogger

  • Comedogenic2 / 5
  • Irritancy1 / 5

What it does

Fatty alcohol blend that thickens creams and softens skin.

  • Emollient
  • Emulsifying
  • Emulsion stabilising
  • Foam boosting
  • Opacifying
  • Surfactant
  • Viscosity controlling

Cetearyl alcohol in plain English

Cetearyl alcohol is a blend of cetyl and stearyl alcohols that thickens creams and keeps them stable. It is not a drying alcohol. Its ratings are low to mixed. Old rabbit-ear tests of the raw ingredient gave it low or mixed results, and those tests do not predict how one finished product will behave on your skin.

Is cetearyl alcohol bad for acne?

Not based on the evidence we have. Cetearyl alcohol is not a known pore-clogger: it scored 2 out of 5 in Fulton's 1989 rabbit-ear test of the raw ingredient. Our checker rates it as fine for acne-prone skin, so judge by how your own skin reacts.

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Also called

  • Cetearyl Alcohol
  • Cetostearyl alcohol
  • Cetyl stearyl alcohol

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Frequently asked questions

Is cetearyl alcohol comedogenic?

Cetearyl alcohol scored 2 out of 5 for comedogenicity in Fulton's 1989 rabbit-ear study, where 0 means no clogging and 5 means severe. We rate it as a low clog risk and do not list it as a pore-clogger. The test used the raw ingredient, so a finished product may behave differently.

What does cetearyl alcohol do in skincare?

In short: fatty alcohol blend that thickens creams and softens skin. Its listed jobs in formulas: emollient, emulsifying, emulsion stabilising, foam boosting, opacifying, surfactant and viscosity controlling.

What else is cetearyl alcohol called on ingredient labels?

On ingredient lists, cetearyl alcohol can also appear as Cetostearyl alcohol or Cetyl stearyl alcohol.

Sources