Is Salicylaldehyde safe in cosmetics?
Salicylaldehyde has a safety rating of "MODERATE" in our database. EU status: restricted. US status: permitted.
Salicylaldehyde
Also known as: 2-Hydroxy-benzaldehyde, 4-08-00-00176, Benzaldehyde, o-hydroxy-, BRN 0471388, EINECS 201-961-0 (+6 more)
INCI: SALICYLALDEHYDE
Salicylaldehyde (CAS 90-02-8) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Fragrance. NOAEL 10 mg/kg bw/day (cross-referenced against ToxValDB ECHA IUCLID); EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: restricted. 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.
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
Salicylaldehyde is classified GHS Danger (H302, H312, H315, H319, H341, H227, H311, H361) in the chemicals database but is restricted in EU cosmetics.
Source: Cosmetics: ingredients.eu status; Chemicals: ghs classifications.signal word/hazard statement code
Function
Fragrance
Editorial assessment
MODERATE
Preliminary editorial note — not a computed safety verdict.
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
2-hydroxybenzaldehyde
InChIKey
SMQUZDBALVYZAC-UHFFFAOYSA-N
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
restricted
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
Permitted; no specific restriction. Subject to California fragrance allergen disclosure under the 2020 Right to Know Act
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Salicylaldehyde.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment
Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for Salicylaldehyde across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.
Sensitization Profile
Contact sensitization data for Salicylaldehyde based on clinical patch test studies and IFRA standards.
Sensitization Rate
low
Allergen Class
fragrance
EU Allergen Listed
yes
Patch Test Positive Rate
0.2%
Cross-reactivity Group
salicylate-group
Reaction Type
contact-dermatitis
IFRA Restricted
Source: SCCS Opinion
HRIPT Human Patch Test Studies
1 human repeat insult patch test aggregated from dermatological literature.
| Test Type | N | Sensitized | Dose µg/cm² | NESIL µg/cm² | Potency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HMT | - | 0 | 1350 | - | - |
ECHA REACH Registration
European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.
Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
10 - 100 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (2)
Carcinogen Classification
No indication of carcinogenicity to humans (not listed by IARC).
Source: Toxin and Toxin Target Database (T3DB)
Skin Eye Respiratory Irritation
A skin irritant.
Source: Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Regulatory (4)
JECFA Number
897
Source: WHO/JECFA
JECFA Evaluation
o-HYDROXYBENZALDEHYDE | 2001 | No safety concern at current levels of intake when used as a flavouring agent | TRS 909-JECFA 57/84 | FAS 48-JECFA 57/273
Source: WHO/JECFA
JECFA Evaluation
SALICYLAL | 2001 | No safety concern at current levels of intake when used as a flavouring agent | TRS 909-JECFA 57/84 | FAS 48-JECFA 57/273
Source: WHO/JECFA
JECFA Evaluation
SALICYLALDEHYDE | 2001 | No safety concern at current levels of intake when used as a flavouring agent | TRS 909-JECFA 57/84 | FAS 48-JECFA 57/273
Source: WHO/JECFA
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Flavouring and nutrient
Fragrance
No specific technical function
Regulatory List Membership (3)
IFRA Fragrance Transparency List
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS)
Consumer Product Chemical
Editorial summary
Preliminary editorial summary for Salicylaldehyde — not a computed safety verdict. See the sourced toxicological data above.
Regulatory Flags
potential-allergen
fragrance-component
ifra_fragrance
fda_food_additive
jecfa_safe
NOAEL Studies Summary
View details ->Public NOAEL study rows linked to Salicylaldehyde by CAS number or substance name.
Studies
3
Lowest NOAEL
10 mg/kg bw/day
Highest NOAEL
10 mg/kg bw/day
ECHA
Known Synonyms
2-Hydroxy-benzaldehyde
4-08-00-00176
Benzaldehyde, o-hydroxy-
BRN 0471388
EINECS 201-961-0
FEMA No. 3004
Salicyladehyde
UNII-17K64GZH20
FEMA 3004
Salicylaldehyde, 8CI
Salizylaldehyd
Chemical Function
Fragrance
No specific technical function
Flavouring and nutrient
Regulatory Lists
detected; emissions; Europe; Other indirect contact consumer goods; water
Australia; Food and drug - smoking-related products
IFRA Transparency
Europe
food_additive; Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS) (2/2019)
consumer_product
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
SALICYLADEHYDE
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL108925
SOURCE
EFSA / FDA GRAS
food_additives
Food Safety Data
Same-CAS food additive or FDA GRAS records from the core public database.
Food Name
SALICYLALDEHYDE
ADI
No safety concern at current levels of intake when used as a flavouring agent mg/kg bw
Food Category
flavoring
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Salicylaldehyde allowed in the EU?
Salicylaldehyde EU regulatory status: restricted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Salicylaldehyde do in cosmetics?
Salicylaldehyde functions as: Fragrance. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 90-02-8.
Is Salicylaldehyde used outside cosmetics?
Salicylaldehyde 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.
Does Salicylaldehyde have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
Salicylaldehyde is classified GHS Danger (H302, H312, H315, H319, H341, H227, H311, H361) in the chemicals database but is restricted in EU cosmetics.
Compliance Tools
Check Salicylaldehyde compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
Paste a full ingredient list for instant analysis
82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
Check compliance across multiple jurisdictions
MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
Compare limits across jurisdictions
Related Ingredients
2,6-Dimethyl-7-octen-2-ol (Dihydromyrcenol)
EXCELLENT
Same category
Fragrance (perfuming), masking
2-Ethoxy-2,6,6-Trimethyl-9-Methylenebicyclo[3.3.1]Nonane (Boisiris™)
EXCELLENT
Same category
Fragrance (rich woody, orris/iris roo...
3,6-Dimethyl-3-Octyl Acetate
EXCELLENT
Same category
Fragrance / Perfuming agent with flor...
3-Methyl-5-(2,2,3-Trimethyl-3-Cyclopentenyl)Pent-4-En-2-Ol (Sandalore)
EXCELLENT
Same category
Perfuming / Fragrance (sandalwood note)
4-Tert-Butylcyclohexyl Acetate
EXCELLENT
Same category
Fragrance
Acetoin
EXCELLENT
Same category
Skin conditioning, fragrance
(20S)-Protopanaxadiol
MODERATE
Similar safety
(Cnidium Officinale/Coptis Chinensis/Glycyrrhiza Uralensis) Root Extract
MODERATE
Similar safety
Skin conditioning
(Cryptomeria Japonica/Chamaecyparis Obtusa) Stem Ferment Extract
MODERATE
Similar safety
Antimicrobial, antioxidant, humectant
(Eclipta Prostrata/Houttuynia Cordata) Leaf Extract
MODERATE
Similar safety
Skin conditioning
(Lepidium Meyenii/Sarcodon Aspratus) Root Water
MODERATE
Similar safety
Skin conditioning
(Licorice/Reynoutria Japonica) Root/Stem Extract
MODERATE
Similar safety
Skin conditioning, antioxidant
1-Naphthol
MODERATE
Chemical family
Oxidative hair dye intermediate (coup...
Glucolactone
EXCELLENT
Chemical family
Chelating agent, skin conditioning (P...
Glucono Delta-Lactone
EXCELLENT
Chemical family
pH adjuster, chelating agent, humecta...
Is Salicylaldehyde in Your Products?
Scan any product label with Piro — our free ingredient scanner. Point your camera at the ingredients list and get instant safety scores for every ingredient.
Try Piro Free →Analyze Your Full Ingredient List
Paste any INCI list into the Decoder for instant safety analysis, or calculate the Margin of Safety for Salicylaldehyde in your formulation.