Fragrance allergen

Benzyl benzoate

Benzyl benzoate is an ester of benzyl alcohol and benzoic acid, a colourless oily liquid or white solid with a faint, sweet, balsamic smell. It occurs in balsams and some flower oils and is also made industrially. In perfume it works as a fixative and as a solvent for musks, and it is used in medicine against scabies and lice.

Formula: C₁₄H₁₂O₂
Molar mass: 212.25 g/mol
CAS: 120-51-4

Where it comes from

Benzyl benzoate is found in Peru balsam, tolu balsam and ylang-ylang oil, and in the concrete and absolute of tuberose, hyacinth, jonquil and carnation. Reported levels run from about 2 per cent in Chinese cassia bark oil to over 57 per cent in cabreuva oil. Industrial routes include esterifying benzyl alcohol with benzoic acid and treating sodium benzoate with benzyl chloride.

Smell and use

A faint, sweet, balsamic smell with an oily, slightly herbal side. One perfumery description adds floral and fruity nuances, and Fenaroli's Handbook finds it reminiscent of almond. The odour is low in strength but very long lasting.

Benzyl benzoate is used in perfumes as a fixative and as a solvent for musks. Elsewhere it is a plasticiser and solvent for cellulose plastics, a flavour in confectionery and chewing gum, and a skin medicine used against scabies and lice.

On the label

Named on 45% of the 6,851 perfume ingredient lists we hold (3,081 perfumes).

EU: Annex III, entry 85. Must be named above 0.001% in leave-on products (0.01% rinse-off).
Great Britain: Required, same thresholds. GB Annex III

The SCCS opinion SCCS/1459/11 (2012) lists benzyl benzoate among established contact allergens in humans, in its second band (11 to 100 positive test reactions reported). The earlier 1999 SCCNFP list, reproduced in that opinion, put it among chemicals less frequently reported as consumer allergens. IFRA has a Restriction Standard (Amendment 49, 2020) that sets maximum levels by product category. ECHA C&L notifications, as summarised by PubChem, mainly carry H302 and H411.

A list that does not name it does not prove it is absent: brands only have to name it above the threshold.

Frequency by concentration

Eau de parfum 47% of 4,889
Eau de toilette 32% of 1,227
Extrait 50% of 341
Parfum 65% of 194
Cologne 36% of 114
Body spray 26% of 42
Other 52% of 27

Share of the perfumes we hold a list for, in each concentration.

Named alongside

Limonene 93%
Linalool 93%
Geraniol 84%
Citral 80%
Citronellol 79%
Coumarin 70%

Burberry

Statement

Common questions

What does benzyl benzoate smell like?

Benzyl benzoate has a faint, sweet, balsamic smell, a little oily and herbal, sometimes read as floral or fruity. Its odour is weak but it lingers for a very long time, which suits its role in the background of a perfume.

Is benzyl benzoate natural or synthetic?

Both. It occurs naturally in Peru balsam, tolu balsam, ylang-ylang oil and several flower absolutes. It is also made industrially, for example by esterifying benzyl alcohol with benzoic acid or from sodium benzoate and benzyl chloride.

Why is benzyl benzoate on my perfume label?

Perfume is normally listed only as "parfum", but a fragrance allergen above 0.001 per cent in a leave-on product must also be named. Benzyl benzoate is on the EU allergen list, so it appears by name when it passes that level.