IFRA categories explained
By Omer Siton, founder of PerfuMate · Updated
IFRA sets its limits per product category, because how much of a material reaches the skin depends on the product: a lipstick, a perfume and a candle expose people very differently. There are 12 categories, some split into sub-categories, grouped by whether a product stays on the skin or is rinsed off and by where it is used. A perfume is Category 4. PerfuMate's IFRA check, in the app and in the free IFRA calculator, covers Category 4 only.
What are the IFRA categories?
The list in IFRA's own guidance for the 51st Amendment, with a few of the products it places in each:
| Category | What it covers | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Products applied to the lips | lipstick, lip balm |
| 2 | Products applied to the underarms | deodorant, antiperspirant, body spray and body mist |
| 3 | Products applied to the face with the fingertips | eye makeup, foundation, makeup remover, face wipes |
| 4 | Fine fragrance and related products | eau de parfum, eau de toilette, cologne, solid perfume, perfume oil, aftershave |
| 5A | Body products applied with the hands, mostly left on | body lotion, body oil, foot cream |
| 5B | Face products applied with the hands, mostly left on | face moisturizer, beard care |
| 5C | Hand products, mostly left on | hand cream, nail care, hand sanitizer |
| 5D | Baby products, mostly left on | baby cream, baby oil, baby powder |
| 6 | Products with mouth and lip exposure | toothpaste, mouthwash |
| 7A | Rinse-off hair products with hand contact | rinse-off hair dye and relaxers |
| 7B | Leave-on hair products with hand contact | hair spray, styling gel, dry shampoo, hair perfume |
| 8 | Products with significant intimate exposure | intimate wipes, intimate deodorant, baby wipes |
| 9 | Rinse-off products for body and hands | soap, shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, bath products, shaving cream |
| 10A | Household products with mostly hand contact | laundry detergent, fabric softener, surface cleaner, dishwashing liquid, reed diffuser oil |
| 10B | Household sprays with possible skin contact | room sprays, aerosol insecticides, sprays for animals |
| 11A | Products touching the skin through an inert material, no sunlight | incontinence pads, sanitary pads, diapers |
| 11B | The same, with possible sunlight | scented socks and gloves, tights with moisturizers, facial tissues, paper face masks |
| 12 | Products not meant to touch the skin | candles, incense, plug-in and automatic air fresheners, dryer sheets |
The guidance names many more product types, and places a product it does not list by how it is used and on which part of the body.
Why does one material have a different limit in each category?
Because the limit is set from how much of the material reaches the skin, and how often. A cream left on the face all day exposes more than a soap that is rinsed off, and a candle exposes almost nothing. IFRA's guidance works this through for coumarin: at most 0.089% of a lip product (Category 1), 0.38% of a body lotion (5A), 1.5% of a fine fragrance (4) and 33% of an air care product that does not touch the skin (12).
Which category is my product in?
- Eau de parfum, eau de toilette, cologne, extrait, solid perfume, perfume oil: Category 4, which covers fine fragrance with or without alcohol.
- Body mist or body spray: Category 2, with deodorants, because it may also be used on the underarms. One clearly labelled not for the underarms can be considered under Category 4.
- Hair perfume: 7B when it is sold for the hair only. If it can be sprayed on the skin as well, or the label does not say, IFRA treats it as a fine fragrance, Category 4.
- Attar: it depends on the use: as a fine fragrance, Category 4; as a body oil, 5A; as incense, 12. Without a clear use, IFRA recommends the strictest outcome.
- Aftershave: Category 4, though a cream or balm may be placed with face moisturizers (5B).
- Body lotion: 5A. Face cream: 5B. Hand cream: 5C.
- Soap, shower gel, shampoo: Category 9.
- Reed diffuser oil: 10A, because the reeds and refills are handled. Room spray: 10B.
- Candle: Category 12.
A product sold for several uses takes the strictest limit of them all.
What does PerfuMate check?
Category 4 only. The app checks a formula against the Category 4 limits of the 51st Amendment while you build it, and the free IFRA calculator does the same for a formula you paste: fine fragrance, with or without alcohol. For a candle, a soap, a lotion or a room spray, use that category's limits from the IFRA Standards and your fragrance supplier's IFRA certificate, which states up to what concentration the fragrance can be used in a given kind of product. What an IFRA certificate says.
Sources: IFRA, Guidance for the use of IFRA Standards (51st Amendment, June 2023), and the IFRA Standards Library. IFRA for independent perfumers and how to calculate IFRA limits go further. Start a formula, free.