Blonde Hair Lightener

In the US, ingredients above 1% are listed from most to least. Below 1% they can appear in any order. Each note keeps three things apart: what the ingredient generally does, its role in this type of product, and what its position can tell you.

• 1 Water · Aqua (Water)
  General function

  The base of almost every rinse-off and cream hair product. It carries everything else and is normally the first ingredient on the label.

  Leading ingredient

  Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

  • solvent
• 2 Hydrogen Peroxide
  General function

  An oxidising agent. In hair products it lightens pigment and opens the cuticle; its presence marks this as a chemical treatment, not a conditioning product.

  Leading ingredient

  Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

  • active
• 3 Polysorbate 20
  General function

  Keeps fragrance and oils dissolved in a watery formula so it stays clear.

  Leading ingredient

  Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

  • solubilizer
  • emulsifier
• ▾Below about here, the order stops meaning much. These are usually used at 1% or less.
• 4 Fragrance · Fragrance/Parfum
  General function

  An undisclosed blend of scent ingredients. Regulations let it stay unlisted, so a fragrance-free product is the only way to be certain what is not in it.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  May not suitFragrance-sensitive routines

  Declared fragrance. On a fragrance-sensitive routine this is the line that decides it, wherever it sits on the label.

  • fragrance
  • declared fragrance
• 5 Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Fruit Extract
  General function

  An extract from the fruit of Citrus Medica. Plant extracts are used across a wide range of levels, and label order is the best guide to how much is here.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  • botanical extract
• 6 Ananas Sativus (Pineapple) Fruit Extract
  General function

  An extract from the fruit of Pineapple (Ananas Sativus). Plant extracts are used across a wide range of levels, and label order is the best guide to how much is here.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  • botanical extract
• 7 Silicone Quaternium-8
  General function

  A conditioning silicone that clings to damaged areas for smoothing and heat protection.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  May suitClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair

  A surface film slows how quickly humidity reaches the cortex, which is what limits swelling-driven frizz in damp air.

  May suitFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair

  Amino-functional silicone carries a positive charge, so it binds where the cuticle is worn rather than coating evenly. Damaged areas get most of it.

  May suitMaximum-hold styling

  Film formers are what hold a style: they dry into a connected film across the strands so the shape resists movement.

  • silicone
  • film former
  • conditioning agent
• 8 Disodium Phosphate
  General function

  A buffering salt that keeps pH stable as the product ages.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  DependsFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair

  pH adjusters are how a formula is brought to a chosen acidity, and an acidic formula keeps the cuticle lying flatter than an alkaline one. Which way this one moves the pH depends on the formula, and the finished pH is not on the label.

  PubChem
  • pH adjuster
  • salt
• 9 Phosphoric Acid
• 10 Disodium EDTA
  General function

  Grabs metal ions from hard water so they cannot dull the hair or destabilise the formula.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  May suitBuild-up-sensitive routines

  Binds the calcium and magnesium in hard water, which is what stops mineral deposits accumulating on the strand wash after wash.

  May suitGray, silver, or brass-prone hair

  Copper and iron carried in tap water deposit on the strand and read as a dull, warm cast on gray or light hair. A chelator holds those metals in solution so the wash carries them off.

  PubChem
  • hard-water chelator
• 11 Coumarin
  General function

  A sweet, hay-like fragrance component listed separately as a recognised allergen.

  Estimated lower-concentration zone

  It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

  May not suitFragrance-sensitive routines

  One of the 26 scent components the EU requires to be named individually above a threshold. It is named because it is a known contact allergen, not because it is unusual.

  PubChem
  • fragrance
  • named fragrance allergen
• 12 Ext. Violet 2 (CL 60730)

What the whole list adds up to

• 2 fragrances
• 2 botanical extracts
• 1 solvent
• 1 active
• 1 solubilizer
• 1 emulsifier
• 1 declared fragrance
• 1 silicone
• 1 film former
• 1 conditioning agent
• 1 pH adjuster
• 1 salt
• 1 hard-water chelator
• 1 named fragrance allergen

Ingredient list captured 2026-11-01. Formulas change, so check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.