Skip to main content
Film formers and thickeners

GUM

ceratonia siliqua gum

  • gum

A plant or fermented gum. Gums thicken a water-based formula and give it a slippery, cushioned feel; in a styler they also contribute soft hold.

3products in our library
0%of researched products
usually #16on the label, in our scalp treatments
Scalp treatmentmost common in
Water-solublein water
products in our library
3
of researched products
0%
on the label, in our scalp treatments
usually #16
most common in
Scalp treatment
in water
Water-soluble

At a glance

Four things worth knowing about how this ingredient behaves on hair.

Buildup risk Low

How much of it is left on hair between washes.

Rinse-out behaviour Rinses clean

What it takes to get it off the hair again.

Hold Soft

What the polymer class can do, not what any bottle claims.

Humidity resistance Low

How well the film survives damp air, as a class.

The same figures as a table. The at-a-glance levels for ceratonia siliqua gum.
PropertyLevelOut of
Buildup riskLow1 of 5
Rinse-out behaviourRinses clean5 of 5
HoldSoft3 of 5
Humidity resistanceLow1 of 5

What it does for a formula

What ceratonia siliqua gum does

The general function first, then how the role changes by product type where we have researched it.

Thickens and suspends

Gives a gel its body and keeps heavier ingredients from sinking.

A soft, flexible film

A plant-derived film that bends rather than cracking.

Thickens the formula

Changes the texture in your hand. It says nothing about what reaches your hair.

Rinses away easily

Water alone removes it, so it does not accumulate between washes.

Charge

Not recorded not recorded for this entry

Charge is not recorded for this ingredient.

Solubility

Water-solubleOil-solubleWater-dispersibleInsolubleVolatile

Rinses out with water alone, so it does not build up on hair between washes.

Where it appears

Where it appears

One row per product category in our library: how many products list it, what share of that category that is, and where it typically sits on the label.

Product type How common Typical position on label ?
Scalp treatment 1 product
secondary · #16
Shampoo 1 product
secondary · #41
Styler: paste 1 product
secondary · #16
Leading 1–3Supporting 4–8Secondary 9–15Lower 16–25Trace 26+
The same figures as a table. Where ceratonia siliqua gum sits on the ingredient list, by product type.
Product typeProductsShare of categoryMedian positionEarliest positionBand
Scalp treatment10%1616secondary
Shampoo10%4141secondary
Styler: paste11%1616secondary

We have not researched differences by product type yet. The reading below comes from where it sits on the labels in our library.

Position footprint

Leading 0Supporting 0Secondary 0Lower 2Trace 1

Every listing in our library, by position on the label.

Every listing of ceratonia siliqua gum in our library, grouped by its position on the label.
PositionsZoneListings
1-3Leading0
4-8Supporting0
9-15Secondary0
16-25Lower2
26+Trace1

How to read this

US labelling rules put ingredients above 1% in descending order of amount; below 1% they may be listed in any order.

So position tells you about relative amount only above that line, and we never convert a position into a percentage.

Why it matters to shoppers

What seeing this ingredient tells you, what it does not, and the limits of our own method.

A good sign if you want
  • a gel texture from a plant-derived thickener
  • a thicker, easier-to-spread formula
  • a rinse-clean feel
Less relevant if you want to know
  • an exact safety score (we do not publish one for any ingredient)
  • how a finished product performs, which depends on the whole formula, not one line of it
  • the exact percentage in a bottle, because label position never converts into a number
Seeing it usually means
  • a secondary thickener, listed below the main ingredients in our scalp treatments
  • it was on the printed ingredient list of every product we counted (we read labels, not marketing copy)
It does not automatically mean
  • anything about what the product does on hair
  • that a product is right or wrong for you

We do not publish safety scores or hazard grades. Where a regulator has published a restriction or a use condition, we state it and cite it; otherwise we describe what the ingredient does and stop.

Commonly paired with

The ingredients that most often appear alongside this one in our library. We leave out the near-universal ones, because they pair with everything and tell you nothing.

The number beside a name is how many products in our library list both.

These ingredients tend to appear together to carry the formula and let it dry, keep the formula stable, and clean and build foam.

Found in these products

The most prominent placements first. The badge is the position on that product’s own ingredient list.

Identity

What this entry is, and what our references call it.

Structure
Film formers and thickeners

No public-domain structure depiction is available for this entry.

Canonical name

ceratonia siliqua gum

Most-listed rank

#125 of 132 film formers and thickeners in our library, by how many products list it

Also classified as
  • thickener
Also listed as
  • ceratonia siliqua gum
Suits every hair pattern

For your hair?

Whether ceratonia siliqua gum matters for your hair depends on your hair.

3 products in our library list it
What this page is

What this ingredient does, and where it sits on the labels we have researched.

What it is not

A verdict on any product that contains it, and never a safety grade.

We do not physically test your hair. Everything above comes from the ingredient lists in our library and from published references. The consultation is what turns it into a plan.

References

Seed entry, sourcing in progress Written from our reference work; primary sourcing is still being attached.

No published source is attached to this entry yet.

How this page was made

  • Every number above is counted from the ingredient lists in our own product library: 3 of 6816 researched products list this ingredient. Nothing on this page is written per ingredient.
  • The dots are levels, not scores. Each one comes from what kind of ingredient it is (its chemical class, charge and solubility) or from where it sits on the labels we have.
  • US labelling rules put ingredients above 1% in descending order of amount; below 1% they may be listed in any order. Position tells you about relative amount only above that line, and we never convert a position into a percentage.
  • The prominence bands (leading, supporting, secondary) are the same ones the product pages use to read a single label, applied here to the median position across a category.
  • We do not publish safety scores or hazard grades. Where a regulator has published a restriction or a use condition, we state it and cite it; otherwise we describe what the ingredient does and stop.
  • Identifiers and references appear only when a published source is attached to this entry. Without one, we leave the row out rather than fill it in.
  • This is cosmetic information, not medical advice, and nothing here diagnoses or treats a health condition.
  • Entry last updated 2026-09-22. Product-page methodology: the product library.

Hair Care Consultation

A care plan made for your hair and goals, then follow-up questions and plan updates.

  • Answers to your hair concerns
  • Formula-based product picks
  • Routines for your lifestyle and preferences
  • Updates for weather, needs and goals

$49with 60 days of follow-ups

Start my consultation