The Honest Company was born of a simple purpose: to create safe, effective products that work. And we believe you have the right to know what’s inside the products you use, so that you’re empowered to make the best choices for you and your family. Core to our mission is using plant and naturally derived materials whenever we can — in the interest of health and sustainability, and because of the many benefits these materials can impart. Also core to our mission: providing information and education around the ingredients we choose to use.
More and more, terms like organic, natural and botanical are used to describe the products you see online and on store shelves — and it can be hard to know what it all actually means. The Honest Company is here to help you do that homework, providing transparency in terms of the ingredients we choose and the definitions we use. The Honest Standard is how we make that intention a reality. It’s our set of guiding principles. It’s the way in which we apply our values to innovation and development. And it’s the thoughtful and uncompromising approach we take with every product we make.
As part of our Standard, we have established ingredient definitions that you can look to in order to understand exactly what we mean when we use these terms that are often left open to interpretation.
A
Alcohol refers to ethanol (ethyl alcohol) or isopropyl alcohol. Ethanol and Isopropyl alcohol (also known as rubbing alcohols) are known to quickly evaporate and cause skin dryness. Products labeled “alcohol-free” or “made without alcohol” may contain other forms of alcohol like longer chain and fatty alcohols. Longer chain and fatty alcohols like cetyl alcohol, and stearyl alcohols help stabilize formulas and are known for their hydrating and moisturizing effects, providing a nourishing or soothing feel.
C
Dry skin needs moisture and since colloidal oat is a natural ingredient that acts as an emollient it’s one of our favorite ways to soothe itchy skin.
Honest is a cruelty-free brand. We do not test on animals during product development or production—or allow any third parties to do so with our products. We also offer vegan products that do not contain any animal or animal-derived ingredients, like honey, beeswax, lanolin, collagen, albumen, carmine, cholesterol, gelatin.
M
We define Microplastic as a solid, synthetic polymer that falls between 0.1 um and 5 mm in size and is both insoluble water and not degradable (as set forth by EU Commission Regulation 2023/2055 and the European Chemicals Agency or ECHA).Microplastic-free means that we have not intentionally added Microplastics to the formula.
The quantity of the mineral ingredients represents more than 50% of the total formula.
N
A finished natural product contains a minimum of 95% natural ingredients in the total formula. The non-water portion is at least 50% bio-based (which means animal- or plant-, or microorganism-based), or the product contains acceptable mineral ingredients.
Natural ingredients are water, minerals, plants and animal materials made with minimal processing to keep them true to their natural form.
Naturally Derived Ingredients: Any ingredient whose starting material originates from plants, minerals, microbes or animals that may be adapted to provide performance.
O
Must contain at least 95% certified organic ingredients (not including salt and water). Up to 5% of ingredients may be non-organic ingredients, as outlined by the USDA’s National List.
Organic Ingredients must have at least 70% certified organic ingredients (not including salt and water). Organic ingredients may contain up to 30% of allowed non-organic ingredients, as outlined by the USDA’s National List
P
The quantity of the plant or plant-derived ingredients represents at least 50% of the total formula or materials.
Botanical Ingredients come from a plant source and are made with minimal processing to keep them true to their natural form.
Plant-Derived Ingredients: Any ingredient whose starting material originates from plants and may be adapted to provide performance.
Like a healthy meal for your skin, prebiotics fuel the good bacteria that protect and support its natural barrier.
T
Toxicologist Audited is a part of our Honest Standard and means that we’ve reviewed the final formula for potential chemical hazards, dose-response, and anticipated exposure. While we know nothing in life is truly risk-free, our toxicologist audit process allows us to provide our consumers extra peace of mind about the long-term use of our everyday products.
V
A vegan product does not contain any animal ingredients or animal-derived ingredients. This includes, but is not limited to, honey, beeswax, lanolin, collagen, albumen, carmine, cholesterol, gelatin, etc. All Honest products are not tested on animals.