EMULSIFIER
Methyl Gluceth-10
- emulsifier
A sugar-derived humectant that also helps a formula stay blended.
- products in our library
- 51
- of researched products
- 0.7%
- on the label, in our shampoos
- usually #18
- most common in
- Shampoo
- in water
- Water-soluble
At a glance
Four things worth knowing about how this ingredient behaves on hair.
How much of it is left on hair between washes.
What it takes to get it off the hair again.
How much oil it strips, as a class.
The foam the class is known for, not a measured volume.
| Property | Level | Out of |
|---|---|---|
| Buildup risk | Low | 1 of 5 |
| Rinse-out behaviour | Rinses clean | 5 of 5 |
| Cleansing strength | Not a cleanser | 1 of 5 |
| Lather | Little | 1 of 5 |
What it does for a formula
What Methyl Gluceth-10 does
The general function first, then how the role changes by product type where we have researched it.
Without one, a cream separates in the bottle.
Binds water and holds it against the hair rather than adding oil.
What a humectant does depends on the air around it as much as on the formula.
Water alone removes it, so it does not accumulate between washes.
Charge
Charge is not recorded for this ingredient.
Solubility
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 ? |
|---|---|---|
Shampoo
21 products
|
secondary · #18 | |
Conditioner
6 products
|
supporting · #6 | |
Leave-in
4 products
|
supporting · #6 | |
Styler: edge control
4 products
|
supporting · #6 | |
Mask / treatment
3 products
|
secondary · #9 | |
Styler: gel
3 products
|
supporting · #6 | |
Styler: lotion
2 products
|
supporting · #5 | |
Styler: mousse
2 products
|
secondary · #12 | |
Styler: paste
2 products
|
secondary · #10 | |
Co-wash
1 product
|
secondary · #10 |
3 more product types
| Product type | How common | Typical position on label ? |
|---|---|---|
Finisher: shine spray
1 product
|
supporting · #4 | |
Styler: hairspray
1 product
|
secondary · #16 | |
Styler: texture spray
1 product
|
leading · #3 |
| Product type | Products | Share of category | Median position | Earliest position | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shampoo | 21 | 1% | 18 | 4 | secondary |
| Conditioner | 6 | 1% | 6 | 4 | supporting |
| Leave-in | 4 | 1% | 6 | 3 | supporting |
| Styler: edge control | 4 | 11% | 6 | 5 | supporting |
| Mask / treatment | 3 | 1% | 9 | 9 | secondary |
| Styler: gel | 3 | 1% | 6 | 4 | supporting |
| Styler: lotion | 2 | 6% | 5 | 4 | supporting |
| Styler: mousse | 2 | 1% | 12 | 7 | secondary |
| Styler: paste | 2 | 1% | 10 | 4 | secondary |
| Co-wash | 1 | 1% | 10 | 10 | secondary |
| Finisher: shine spray | 1 | 1% | 4 | 4 | supporting |
| Styler: hairspray | 1 | 0% | 16 | 16 | secondary |
| Styler: texture spray | 1 | 1% | 3 | 3 | leading |
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
Every listing in our library, by position on the label.
| Positions | Zone | Listings |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | Leading | 2 |
| 4-8 | Supporting | 21 |
| 9-15 | Secondary | 7 |
| 16-25 | Lower | 14 |
| 26+ | Trace | 7 |
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.
Who should pay attention
Formulation guidance for specific hair conditions, limited to the label positions where it applies. It is not a conclusion about any finished product, or about you.
High-porosity hair loses water fast; a humectant holds some of it in place for longer than the wash itself would.
Binds water into the outer layers of the strand, and water is what makes dry hair flexible again rather than brittle.
A humectant moves water in whichever direction the air allows: it holds moisture in humid conditions and can pull it back out of hair in very dry ones.
Read from this ingredient’s chemical class. Where we have researched the ingredient itself, that reading replaces the class one.
Why it matters to shoppers
What seeing this ingredient tells you, what it does not, and the limits of our own method.
- hydration that does not add oil
- a stable cream that does not separate
- hydration rather than oil
- a rinse-clean feel
- 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
- a secondary emulsifier, listed below the main ingredients in our shampoos
- it was on the printed ingredient list of every product we counted (we read labels, not marketing copy)
- frizz in every climate (what it does depends on the air)
- 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.
- Ethylhexylglycerin · 29
- PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate · 21
- Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride · 20
- Polyquaternium-7 · 18
- Benzoic Acid · 17
- Cocamidopropyl Betaine · 17
- Caprylyl Glycol · 17
- Glycol Distearate · 16
- Citronellol · 15
- Cetrimonium Chloride · 15
The number beside a name is how many products in our library list both.
These ingredients tend to appear together to soften the strand, clean and build foam, and improve feel after rinsing.
Found in these products
The most prominent placements first. The badge is the position on that product’s own ingredient list.
Design Essentials · Leave-in
Almond & Avocado Moisturizing & Detangling Leave-In Conditioner
#3 on the label · $1.17/oz
Sebastian · Styler
Texturizer
#3 on the label · $4.69/oz
Alterna Haircare · Shampoo
Caviar Anti-Aging Clinical Densifying Shampoo
#4 on the label · $3.90/oz
Aveda · Styler
Pure-Formance™ Men Liquid Pomade
#4 on the label · $5.08/oz
Design Essentials · Leave-in
African Chebe Anti-Breakage Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner
#4 on the label · $1.17/oz
Design Essentials · Styler
Almond & Avocado Twist & Set Setting Lotion
#4 on the label · $1.87/oz
Design Essentials · Styler
Coconut & Monoi Curl Defining Gelée
#4 on the label · $0.83/oz
Design Essentials · Shampoo
Peppermint & Aloe Soothing Scalp Care Shampoo
#4 on the label · $1.25/oz
Design Essentials · Finisher
Wave By Design Mist & Shine Dry Finishing Spray
#4 on the label · $1.88/oz
UNITE Hair · Conditioner
BOOSTA Conditioner
#4 on the label · $5.06/oz
UNITE Hair · Conditioner
RE:UNITE Conditioner
#4 on the label · $5.25/oz
Design Essentials · Styler
Almond & Avocado Honey & Shea Edge Tamer
#5 on the label · $3.51/oz
See all 51 products in the library that list Methyl Gluceth-10
Identity
What this entry is, and what our references call it.
No public-domain structure depiction is available for this entry.
Methyl Gluceth-10
- humectant
- methyl gluceth-10
For your hair?
Whether Methyl Gluceth-10 matters for your hair depends on your hair.
51 products in our library list itWhat this ingredient does, and where it sits on the labels we have researched.
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: 51 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.
