Lé:Play Hairspray

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 Hydrofluorocarbon 152a
  General function

  A non-flammable aerosol propellant used in dry shampoos and finishing sprays.

  Leading ingredient

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

  PubChem
  • propellant
• 2 Alcohol Denat.
  General function

  Fast-drying alcohol used to make sprays set quickly. In leave-on products it can leave hair feeling dry, especially in high position on the list.

  Role in this product type

  In hairspray, denatured alcohol acts as a fast-evaporating solvent that carries the styling polymers and helps distribute them in a fine spray. As it evaporates, the polymers remain on the hair to form the hold film.

  Leading ingredient

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

  May suitFine or easily flattened hair

  May suit hair that needs a fast-drying, lightweight spray base rather than an oil- or wax-led finish.

  May not suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hair

  Porous hair gives water up easily as it is; a fast-evaporating solvent high on the list accelerates that.

  DependsVery dry or highly damaged hair

  Consider if hair is very dry or highly damaged: when alcohol is this prominent, the fast-evaporating base may leave the hair feeling drier.

  Cosmetic Ingredient Review
  • drying alcohol
  • solvent
• 3 VP/VA Copolymer
  General function

  A hold polymer that dries to a clear film. It sets the style and washes out with water.

  Leading ingredient

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

  May suitClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair

  A set polymer film is a physical barrier to humidity, so a style keeps its shape longer in damp conditions.

  May suitMaximum-hold styling

  Synthetic film formers dry into a continuous film, which is what holds a shape against movement and against humid air.

  DependsBuild-up-sensitive routines

  Some acrylate copolymers rinse with water and some need a detergent; the label alone does not say which one a formula used.

  • film former
  • polymer
• 4 Zeolite
  General function

  A porous mineral used to absorb oil and, in some products, to trap odour.

  Supporting ingredient

  Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

  May suitFine or easily flattened hair

  A dry powder takes up oil and adds friction between strands, which is most of what root lift in fine hair actually is.

  • mineral
  • powder
• 5 Water · Water/Aqua/Eau
  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.

  Supporting ingredient

  Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

  • solvent
• 6 Glycerin
  General function

  Glycerin, also called glycerol, attracts moisture and mixes completely with water.

  Supporting ingredient

  Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.

  May suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hair

  High-porosity hair loses water fast; a humectant holds some of it in place for longer than the wash itself would.

  May suitVery dry or highly damaged hair

  Binds water into the outer layers of the strand, and water is what makes dry hair flexible again rather than brittle.

  DependsClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair

  Water moves both ways. Measured across concentrations, glycerin solutions give water up in some conditions and take it from the air in others. What it does for you depends on how much of it is there and on the air around it.

  Scientific Reports
  • humectant
• ▾Below about here, the order stops meaning much. These are usually used at 1% or less.
• 7 Triethyl Citrate
  General function

  A citrate ester used to stabilise fragrance and support the preservative system.

  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
  • preservative
• 8 PEG-12 Dimethicone
  General function

  A water-soluble silicone that smooths without the build-up concern of standard silicones.

  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

  The PEG- and PPG-modified silicones disperse in water, so ordinary washing carries them off instead of leaving a film to accumulate.

  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

  Delivers the slip and surface smoothing of a silicone without needing a detergent wash to remove it afterwards.

  • emollient
  • silicone
  • water-soluble silicone
• 9 C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
  General function

  A dry-feeling ester used for a silky, non-greasy finish - a common silicone substitute.

  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 suitFine or easily flattened hair

  A light emollient: it softens the surface with noticeably less weight than an oil or a butter.

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

  Spreads thin and lowers friction between strands without the heaviness of a fixed oil.

  • light ester
  • emollient
• 10 Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate
  General function

  A UV filter added to protect the product's colour and, in leave-ins, to slow colour fade.

  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 suitGray, silver, or brass-prone hair

  Sunlight oxidises hair pigment, and on gray, silver or lightened hair that shows up as yellowing. A UV filter on the label absorbs some of the light that drives it.

  PubChem
  • UV filter
• 11 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
• 12 Linalool
  General function

  A floral fragrance component listed separately as a recognised contact 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
• 13 Benzyl Benzoate
  General function

  A fragrance component with a faint balsamic scent, named separately on the label because it is a recognised contact 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
• 14 Limonene
  General function

  A citrus-smelling fragrance component that EU rules require to be named separately because some people react to 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

  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

What the whole list adds up to

• 4 fragrances
• 3 named fragrance allergens
• 2 solvents
• 2 emollients
• 1 propellant
• 1 drying alcohol
• 1 film former
• 1 polymer
• 1 mineral
• 1 powder
• 1 humectant
• 1 pH adjuster
• 1 preservative
• 1 silicone

Ingredient list captured 2026-08-27. Formulas change, so check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.