Is Ascorbyl Palmitate safe in cosmetics?
Ascorbyl Palmitate has a safety rating of "EXCELLENT" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted. This ingredient has been reviewed by CIR Safety Assessment.
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Also known as: 6-O-Palmitoylascorbic acid, L-Ascorbic acid, 6-hexadecanoate, 5-18-05-00031, L-Ascorbic acid 6-palmitate, Ascorbyl 6-hexadecanoate, L- (+8 more)
INCI: ASCORBYL PALMITATE
Ascorbyl Palmitate (CAS 137-66-6) is a cosmetic antioxidant functioning as Lipophilic antioxidant; ester of ascorbic acid and palmitic acid; product. EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: permitted, max 1%; 1 safety opinion reviewed (CIR Safety Assessment). Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in industrial chemical safety, pharmaceutical, and food safety data.
Function
Lipophilic antioxidant; ester of ascorbic acid and palmitic acid; product stabiliser; skin-conditioning agent; converted to ascorbic acid after ester cleavage by skin esterases
Editorial assessment
EXCELLENT
Preliminary editorial note — not a computed safety verdict.
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
[(2S)-2-[(2R)-3,4-dihydroxy-5-oxo-2H-furan-2-yl]-2-hydroxyethyl] hexadecanoate
InChIKey
QAQJMLQRFWZOBN-LAUBAEHRSA-N
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
EU Max Conc.
1%
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
FDA GRAS for food use as antioxidant preservative. No specific cosmetic concentration limits. Widely used in lipid-based formulations and oil-phase stabilisation. CIR assessed safe as used.
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Ascorbyl Palmitate.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
Safety Opinions
Official safety assessments from the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) and Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR).
CIR Safety Assessment
Verdict: unknown
NOAEL: 1000 mg/kg/day (oral)
Dermal Penetration Profile
Skin absorption and penetration characteristics of Ascorbyl Palmitate, relevant to systemic exposure and MoS calculations.
Absorption %
2-5%
Penetration Level
stratum-corneum
Penetration Depth
stratum corneum/upper epidermis
Molecular Weight
414.5 Da
Log P
7.3
Systemic Absorption
minimal
Topical Bioavailability
1-3%
Safety Margin Factor
low
Vehicle Dependent
Yes — absorption varies by formulation
Source: CIR Safety Assessment
EPA ToxValDB — Toxicity Values
8 toxicity values from EPA ToxValDB (aggregated from CCTE, HPV, ToxRefDB, IRIS, and other regulatory dossiers).
| Endpoint | Value | Species | Route | Duration | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LD50 | =5150 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA |
| LD50 | >10000 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA |
| LD50 | =4700 mg/kg | Mouse | oral | - | ECHA |
| LD50 | =9100 mg/kg | Mouse | oral | - | ECHA |
| LD50 | >20000 mg/kg | Mouse | oral | - | ECHA |
| ADI | <=1.25 mg/kg | Human | oral | - | WHO/JECFA |
| LD50 | >3000 mg/kg | Guinea Pig | dermal | - | ChemIDplus |
| LD50 | =25000 mg/kg | Mouse | oral | - | ChemIDplus |
ECHA REACH Registration
European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.
Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
1 - 10 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Regulatory (2)
JECFA Evaluation
ASCORBYL PALMITATE | 2025 | NOT SPECIFIED | JECFA noted new studies that showed that ascorbyl palmitate was rapidly and extensively hydrolysed pre-systemically to ascorbic acid and palmitic acid. Hydrolysis of ascorbyl palmitate is mediated by carboxylesterases, which are also expressed in neonates and infants, albeit at lower levels than in adults. On that basis, JECFA considered that systemic…
Source: WHO/JECFA
EU Food Improvement
Food additives
Source: EU Food Improvement Agents
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Antioxidant
Deodorizer
Fragrance
Preservative
Regulatory List Membership (6)
EU Regulated in Personal Care
EU Restricted for Children (Cosmetics)
IFRA Fragrance Transparency List
EPA Safer Chemical Ingredients List (SCIL)
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS)
Consumer Product Chemical
Editorial summary
Preliminary editorial summary for Ascorbyl Palmitate — not a computed safety verdict. See the sourced toxicological data above.
Regulatory Flags
antioxidant
lipophilic
vitamin-c-derivative
oil-phase-compatible
stable-ester
product-stabiliser
synergistic-with-vitamin-e
gras
cir-reviewed
eu_children_restricted
epa_safer_alternative
ifra_fragrance
fda_food_additive
Known Synonyms
6-O-Palmitoylascorbic acid
L-Ascorbic acid, 6-hexadecanoate
5-18-05-00031
L-Ascorbic acid 6-palmitate
Ascorbyl 6-hexadecanoate, L-
1-Ascorbyl palmitate
Ascorbyl palmitic acid
BRN 0096552
EINECS 205-305-4
Palmitic acid, ester with ascorbic acid
6-O-Palmitoyl ascorbate
6-Palmitoyl-L-ascorbic acid
UNII-QN83US2B0N
Chemical Function
Antioxidant
Deodorizer
Fragrance
Regulatory Lists
IFRA Transparency
consumer_product
inert_ingredient; Pesticides
inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides
inert_ingredient; non_food_use; Pesticides
children; Europe; Personal care
children; Europe; Personal care - general moisturizing - hand/body lotion
children; Europe; Personal care - specialized bath products - bubble bath
animal_products
Europe; Personal care
Europe; Personal care
Europe; Personal care
Europe; Personal care
Europe; Personal care
Europe; Personal care
food_additive; Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS) (2/2019)
SCIL (9/2019)
Europe; supplements
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
Cross-Vertical Safety Context
Same-CAS public records found in pharmaceutical and food safety data.
SOURCE
ChEMBL / DrugCentral / FAERS
DB_PHARMA CAS match
Pharmaceutical Data
Same-CAS rows from the pharmaceutical spoke database.
Compound
ASCORBYL PALMITATE
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL220190
Max Phase
-1
SOURCE
EFSA / FDA GRAS
food_additives
Food Safety Data
Same-CAS food additive or FDA GRAS records from the core public database.
Food Name
Ascorbyl palmitate
E Number
E304
ADI
1.25 mg/kg bw
Food Category
preservative
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ascorbyl Palmitate allowed in the EU?
Ascorbyl Palmitate EU regulatory status: permitted. Maximum allowed concentration: 1%. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Ascorbyl Palmitate do in cosmetics?
Ascorbyl Palmitate functions as: Lipophilic antioxidant; ester of ascorbic acid and palmitic acid; product stabiliser; skin-conditioning agent; converted to ascorbic acid after ester cleavage by skin esterases. It is classified as a Antioxidant in our database. CAS number: 137-66-6.
Is Ascorbyl Palmitate used outside cosmetics?
Ascorbyl Palmitate also appears in industrial chemical safety, pharmaceutical, and food safety data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.
Compliance Tools
Check Ascorbyl Palmitate compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
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82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
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MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
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