Toluene

What it can be used for

Dissolves other ingredients and stops the product from going off (the functions the EU ingredient database, CosIng, lists for it; a product may use it for any of them)

CAS number

108-88-3

Why it’s flagged

• Prohibited by the fragrance industry's own IFRA standard.

  • IFRA standard “Toluene”: prohibited. Source: IFRA Standards Library

  IFRA is the fragrance industry's own standards body. Its standards are voluntary; a prohibition means the IFRA standard says not to use the substance in fragrance.

• Classified as suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn child.

  • EU classification Repr. 2. Source: EU CLP Regulation, Annex VI harmonized classification

  EU Repr. 2: suspected of damaging fertility or the unborn child.

• Listed as a chemical of concern by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

  • “Toluene”. Source: Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

  The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics is an advocacy group. Its profiles explain why it considers these ingredients a concern.

• Allowed in EU cosmetics only with limits.

  • Annex III entry 185; products: Nail products; max 25%; required warning: Keep out of reach of children. To be used by adults only. Source: EU Cosmetics Regulation, Annex III (restricted)

  Annex III (restricted substances) or Annex V (preservatives) of the EU Cosmetics Regulation sets maximum amounts, allowed product types or required warnings.

What the research says

• Homes painted, refurnished, or re-floored in the previous 6 months had higher levels of indoor chemicals released into the air (including toluene and xylenes) than other homes. Moderate evidence. Maisey 2013
• An "unscented" candle was not toxicologically inert: its headspace was 51.65% toluene by GC-MS peak area, and burning it in rats for 8 weeks still caused duration-dependent serum inflammation and lung injury compared with fresh air, though consistently less severe than the scented candle at every exposure duration tested. Moderate evidence. Mohamed et al. 2025
• The chemical composition of all five fabric-softener dryer-sheet products tested was undisclosed (a trade secret); gas chromatography/mass spectrometry of one scented brand's emissions found only petroleum-derived aromatic compounds (toluene, styrene, xylenes, trimethylbenzene, isopropylbenzene) plus phenol and thymol — no fragrance terpenes, esters, or alcohols were detected, even though prior published analyses had found such compounds (limonene, linalool, benzyl acetate, and others) in fabric-softener emissions generally. Moderate evidence. Anderson & Anderson 2000
• The air freshener's exact formulation is proprietary; GC/MS of its emissions identified toluene, limonene, alpha- and beta-pinene, terpinolene, sabinene, and about a dozen other volatiles the consumer has no way to learn about from the label. Moderate evidence. Anderson & Anderson 1997

About ingredients flagged like this one:

• The fragrance industry's safety system is self-run: by its own 2003 description, companies fund the Research Institute for Fragrance Materials through dues, its expert panel reviews ingredient safety, and conclusions go to the industry's trade body IFRA, which sets voluntary standards for those same companies. No regulator appears in the loop. Strong evidence. Bickers 2003 (RIFM Expert Panel) Industry-funded

Each finding shows its evidence grade. See every graded fact or how we grade.

Check your products

Check a whole labelProducts that list itEWG Skin DeepShop fragrance-free

“Products that list it” opens Open Beauty Facts, a free database anyone can edit.

Flagged the same way

• 6-Methyl Coumarin
• Ethyl Acrylate
• Musk Xylene

Official lists checked September 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.