Beauty ingredient · Exfoliant / preservative
Salicylic acid
- CAS
- 69-72-7
A beta hydroxy acid used to exfoliate and treat acne, and as a preservative.
- Preservative
- Expert review pending
Concern level
Strong evidence of harm at high intake, emerging evidence of harm, or a common allergen or irritant. The concern level sets how many points salicylic acid costs on a product’s receipt.
What the evidence says
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Reproductive or developmental toxicantRegulatory
Classified in the EU as a CMR substance of category 2; allowed up to 0.5% as a preservative and 2–3% for other uses, and not for children under 3 (except shampoos). [1]
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Caution in pregnancyInfo
Pregnant people are often advised to avoid high-strength salicylic acid peels; low-strength washes are a different exposure. [1]
Evidence tiers say how sure the evidence is, separately from how much it matters. About evidence tiers.
Rules around the world
| Where | Status | Details | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Union | Restricted | 0.5% as a preservative; up to 3.0% (rinse-off hair) or 2.0% (other) for other uses; not for children under 3 except shampoos. | — | [1] |
| Canada | Restricted | Up to 2% in cosmetics. | — | [2] |
“Banned” means explicitly prohibited or withdrawn after review; “not permitted” means never authorized there. We use each regulator’s own words.
Popular products that list salicylic acid
1 of the 17,000 most-scanned products in the US with a GoodSwap page list salicylic acid.
Names GoodSwap recognizes on labels (8)
- salicylic acid
- salicylic acid 1
- salicylic acid 2
- beta hydroxy acid
- sodium salicylate
- salicylic acid 0 5
- 2 hydroxybenzoic acid
- willow bark extract salicylic
Sources
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“the substance is safe for consumers when used as a preservative in cosmetic products in a concentration of up to 0,5 % (acid)”
eur-lex.europa.eu
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Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist: prohibited and restricted ingredients
“The following ingredients are only permitted in cosmetic products under the conditions of use specified below:”
canada.ca