SEALANT
Petrolatum
- sealant
A heavy sealing agent that locks moisture in and takes detergent to remove.
- products in our library
- 112
- of researched products
- 2%
- on the label, in our styling pastes
- usually #3
- most common in
- Styler: paste
- in water
- Oil-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.
Where the class sits between an ester and a butter.
How much it slows water leaving the strand.
| Property | Level | Out of |
|---|---|---|
| Buildup risk | Needs a cleanser | 4 of 5 |
| Rinse-out behaviour | Rinses with a cleanser | 2 of 5 |
| Weight | Light | 2 of 5 |
| Sealing | Strongest | 5 of 5 |
What it does for a formula
What Petrolatum does
The general function first, then how the role changes by product type where we have researched it.
Slows evaporation from the strand more than any other lipid class.
Smooths the feel of the strand without adding hold or cleaning.
It takes a surfactant to remove, which matters on a low-detergent routine.
Charge
Charge is not recorded for this ingredient.
Solubility
Needs a surfactant to remove. On a low-detergent routine it can build up over time.
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 ? |
|---|---|---|
Styler: paste
56 products
|
leading · #3 | |
Styler: curl cream
16 products
|
supporting · #6 | |
Leave-in
7 products
|
supporting · #5 | |
Mask / treatment
6 products
|
secondary · #10 | |
Scalp treatment
5 products
|
leading · #1 | |
Styler: smoothing cream
5 products
|
leading · #2 | |
Finisher: oil
4 products
|
leading · #3 | |
Conditioner
3 products
|
secondary · #9 | |
Finisher: shine spray
3 products
|
supporting · #4 | |
Styler: gel
2 products
|
supporting · #6 |
4 more product types
| Product type | How common | Typical position on label ? |
|---|---|---|
Styler: mousse
2 products
|
supporting · #5 | |
Relaxer
1 product
|
leading · #2 | |
Shampoo
1 product
|
supporting · #4 | |
Styler: hairspray
1 product
|
leading · #2 |
| Product type | Products | Share of category | Median position | Earliest position | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Styler: paste | 56 | 28% | 3 | 1 | leading |
| Styler: curl cream | 16 | 7% | 6 | 2 | supporting |
| Leave-in | 7 | 1% | 5 | 1 | supporting |
| Mask / treatment | 6 | 1% | 10 | 5 | secondary |
| Scalp treatment | 5 | 2% | 1 | 1 | leading |
| Styler: smoothing cream | 5 | 6% | 2 | 2 | leading |
| Finisher: oil | 4 | 1% | 3 | 1 | leading |
| Conditioner | 3 | 0% | 9 | 3 | secondary |
| Finisher: shine spray | 3 | 3% | 4 | 4 | supporting |
| Styler: gel | 2 | 1% | 6 | 5 | supporting |
| Styler: mousse | 2 | 1% | 5 | 3 | supporting |
| Relaxer | 1 | 25% | 2 | 2 | leading |
| Shampoo | 1 | 0% | 4 | 4 | supporting |
| Styler: hairspray | 1 | 0% | 2 | 2 | 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 | 52 |
| 4-8 | Supporting | 46 |
| 9-15 | Secondary | 10 |
| 16-25 | Lower | 2 |
| 26+ | Trace | 2 |
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.
Emollients fill and smooth the surface of the strand, which lowers the friction that lifts the cuticle and reads as roughness.
Forms a physical barrier on the strand that slows water leaving it. Nothing else in a formula holds moisture in as bluntly.
It does not disperse in water at all: removing it means a detergent wash, and until then it stays exactly where it landed.
Read where it is listed in the first three ingredients, positions 4–8 or the lower half of the ordered list.The heaviest surface layer in common use. Fine hair goes flat under it well before it goes smooth.
Read where it is listed in the first three ingredients or positions 4–8.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.
- a barrier that slows water loss
- a softer feel
- something that lasts through the day
- less frizz and easier combing
- 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 primary occlusive near the top of the ingredient list in our styling pastes
- it was on the printed ingredient list of every product we counted (we read labels, not marketing copy)
- 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.
- Propylene Glycol · 41
- Disodium EDTA · 37
- VP/VA Copolymer · 35
- Citronellol · 35
- PVP · 33
- Coumarin · 32
- Geraniol · 32
- Hexyl Cinnamal · 30
- Ethylhexylglycerin · 30
- Cetyl Alcohol · 29
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 give the formula body and hold.
Found in these products
The most prominent placements first. The badge is the position on that product’s own ingredient list.
American Crew · Styler
Molding Clay
#1 on the label · $6.66/oz
Creme of Nature · Leave-in
Argan Oil Day&Night Hair&Scalp Conditioner
#1 on the label · $0.86/oz
Davines · Styler
This is a Strong Dry Wax
#1 on the label · $14.17/oz
Design Essentials · Scalp treatment
Herbal Complex 4 Hair & Scalp Treatment
#1 on the label · $2.80/oz
Design Essentials · Scalp treatment
Peppermint & Aloe Soothing Scalp Care Treatment
#1 on the label · $2.80/oz
Luster's Pink · Styler
SCURL 360 STYLE WAVE CONTROL POMADE
#1 on the label · $1.40/oz
Luster's Pink · Styler
SCURL WAVE-CONTROL POMADE
#1 on the label · $2.33/oz
Nexxus · Styler
Slick Stick Strong Hold Hair Wax
#1 on the label · $7.30/oz
ORS · Finisher
Coconut Oil Hair and Scalp Hairdress
#1 on the label · $1.36/oz
ORS · Finisher
Jojoba Oil Hairdress adds Moisture & Shine
#1 on the label · $1.45/oz
ORS · Scalp treatment
Tea Tree Oil Hairdress Soothing Hair & Scalp Oil
#1 on the label · $1.45/oz
Palmer's · Scalp treatment
Olive Oil Gro Therapy
#1 on the label · $0.95/oz
Identity
What this entry is, and what our references call it.
No public-domain structure depiction is available for this entry.
Petrolatum
- emollient
- petrolatum
- white petrolatum
For your hair?
Whether Petrolatum matters for your hair depends on your hair.
112 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: 112 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.
