Pp
PPG-26-Buteth-26
PPG-26-Buteth-26
Dissolves small amounts of oily ingredients, like fragrance, into clear water-based products.
What it does
It dissolves small amounts of oily ingredients, like fragrance, into clear water-based products, often alongside PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil. It’s lab-made. It’s there to hold the formula together, not to change your skin.
The evidence, graded
expert consensusUS safety reviewers (2022) assessed 46 butyl polyoxyalkylene ethers, PPG-26-buteth-26 among them; most condition hair and skin, and many dissolve other ingredients. They judged all 46 safe as used, in products made not to irritate. Some are made with ethylene oxide, so they asked makers to limit the impurities 1,4-dioxane and ethylene oxide.Fiume 2022 · International Journal of Toxicology ↗
Graded per the methodology: strong · moderate · emerging · expert consensus. A weak source on a strong claim gets the weaker label.
Browse all 1238 ingredients — grouped by what they do, each with whatever evidence we can cite.
This page is public so a shared ingredient card always has its sources behind it — and so you can check them without an account.
Want more like this?
Every evidence-based flag cites its source, Drop tells you when your routine is complete, and it helps you simplify — instead of selling you more. The app launches on iOS and Android in October 2026. Rate my routine works today at /rate — no sign-in.