While this isn’t the only guide to vegan perfumes you’ll find on the internet, this one might be a little different. I’ve never been quite happy with the guides I found on Google or Pinterest because they would either contain a bunch of brands that are only available in the states.
Plus, I’m a sucker for anything extraordinary and unique, so I dug the world wide web for niche and luxury perfume brands that offer vegan fragrances.
Don’t worry, I grouped them into different price points, so there are no surprises when it comes to the price tag.
But first of all:
What are vegan perfumes?
Vegan perfumes are such, that don’t contain animal products such as
- Musk: Taken from a male musk deer, the odour is obtained from glands. Musk deer populations are dangerously low as people have been hunting them for centuries to produce the complex scent found in many fragrances.
- Ambergris: Still used in synthetic and natural perfumes, ambergris is a substance that originates from sperm whale digestive secretions. Whilst whales were caught in the past, this is no longer the case – ambergris can be collected as ocean waste instead of being directly removed from the animal.
- Civet: An African cat-like animal, a Civet’s excretions are collected for use in perfumery to create a velvety, floral scent. This is often carried out using cruel methods, such as enclosing the animal in a cage.
- Castoreum: This is extracted from the castor sacs of beavers. Beavers were caught and killed for this perfume extract, which resembles a musk scent.
- Kasturi: A secretion product from male deer, this is sourced from a gland between the deer’s back and rectum. This gland is removed entirely from the deer for use as a fixative in perfumes.
Source: Shay And Blue: Why is perfume not vegan?
Animal Testing
Then, of course, there’s animal testing. I found some of the “best vegan perfumes” lists included fragrances that were vegan according to the ingredient list but the company isn’t cruelty-free.
I don’t think I need to tell you that you shouldn’t support animal testing, because we’ve all seen the horrible images of monkeys, dogs, cats, and rabbits. But if you want to read more on the subject, Cruelty-Free Kitty has a ton of articles on the matter, plus a very extensive directory of cruelty-free brands.
Finding cruelty-free products can be tricky because there are so many factors that play into it.
- Does the company test the finished products on animals?
- Do they use ingredients from companies that test on animals?
- Is the company owned by a bigger corporation that tests OTHER products on animals?
- Does the company sell finished products in brick and mortar shops in China?
(Selling in China requires the product to be tested on animals by law. Some companies have decided not to sell in China for this exact reason. You can read more about this here.)
I have chosen to include some brands that are owned by non-cruelty-free parent companies because some of these are more easily accessible than some of the smaller, niche products.
But I will provide them with a disclaimer, so you can make an informed decision!
Lower Price Vegan Perfumes
Under 90€ / 100 ml
Geo F. Trumper
Whole range is vegan and cruelty-free according to Grey Fox Blog
Available at Der Gepflegte Mann
Laboratory Parfumes
According to their website, all fragrances are vegan except for “Atlas”, which contains beeswax.
The packaging is sustainably sourced and widely recycled.
Available at Douglas
Le Couvent des Minimes
Vegan products are clearly labeled as such on the package.
Available at Marionnaud and LookFantastic
The Library of Fragrance
I’ve been wanting to try these for a while. They really are a Library of Fragrance with perfumes ranging from Almond to Yuzu Marmelade.
We are absolutely 100% against animal testing. None of our products have been tested on animals by us, or by the suppliers of our raw materials. All of our products happen to be vegan friendly: none of them contain animal-derived ingredients (even those that sound like they might, like Beeswax and Honey!).
https://www.thelibraryoffragrance.eu/fragrance-faq/
Available Online at Library of Fragrance
Mid-Range Vegan Perfumes
90 – 140 € / 100ml
J.B. Filz
Parfumerie Filz is a small family business in the heart of Vienna. It’s been around since 1809 and all of their 5 in-house-made fragrances are vegan and cruelty-free!
My personal favorite is the “Wiener Lieblingsduft” that was created for the Wiener Congress in 1830.
Björk & Berries
All our Eau de Parfums are vegan and made of organic fermented alcohol made from the waste of vegetable extracts from the food industry – like sugarbeets.
Available at Douglas
Farfalla / Richard Lüscher Britos
All vegan and organic company based in Switzerland.
Available at Douglas
Molton Brown
All of our products are not officially certified as being vegan* friendly, however we can confirm that our products do not contain any animal derived ingredients, with the exception of our Milk Musk Eau de Toilette, Milk Musk Bath & Shower Gel, Milk Musk Body Lotion, Vitamin Lipsaver, Pear & Honey collection, Oudh Accord & Gold Single Wick Candle, Oudh Accord & Gold Three Wick Candle and our Ultra Milk soap which is available exclusively in selected hotels. *No ingredient of animal origin
https://www.moltonbrown.co.uk/store/faqs-product#FAQ_5
Leaping Bunny certified cruelty-free, Parent company (Kao) NOT cruelty-free.
Available at Douglas
High-End Vegan Perfumes
140 – 180 € / 100 ml
Aesop
We have never tested our products or ingredients on animals, and we do not use animal-derived ingredients such as beeswax, honey, or lanolin in our formulations. We have never conducted nor commissioned animal testing for any product.
https://assistance.aesop.com/hc/en-us/articles/360001128616-Are-Aesop-products-tested-on-animals-
All new ingredients are reviewed by our Research and Development team prior to use. We research the registration status of these ingredients in world markets and note any past testing.
Before we consider entry into a new country, we extensively review the regulatory requirements to ensure that compulsory animal testing on our products is not required.
We are proud to be Cruelty-Free International Leaping Bunny approved, and to be included on PETA’s cruelty-free and vegan lists.
Available at Niche Beauty
Aimee de Mars
We have opted to be accredited by the vegan society and PETA, which certify vegan and cruelty-free products.
https://www.maisondemars.com/en/vegan-cruelty-free
However, the packaging of “Belle Rose” includes a feather.
Available at Douglas
Arquiste
There is absolutely NO ANIMAL TESTING nor animal-derived products in any compound of ARQUISTE ® Parfumeur fragrances. There is also no beeswax or any other product that relating to animals. Our fragrances are considered VEGAN.
https://arquiste.com/pages/faq
Available at Marionnaud
By Rosie Jane
do you test on animals? no way. we love animals and pride ourselves on being 100% cruelty-free. we are also certified by leaping bunny.
https://byrosiejane.com/pages/faq
all by/rosie jane products are 100% vegan. we do not use any animal-by products including beeswax in anything.
Available at Douglas
Frau Tonis Parfum
Following scents are vegan:
No. 05 Aventure
No. 08 Été Éternel
No. 09 Journal
No. 11 Si tu Savais
No. 12 Accroche-Coeur
No. 14 Grasse à Toi
No. 16 Jardin Vertical
No. 18 Bogota Berlin
No. 19 Oud Weiss
No. 21 Berlin
No. 22 Hamburg
No. 30 Thé Arabique
Available at Niche Beauty
Miller Harris
Our products are suitable for vegans and cruelty-free. You can be confident that our products are formulated entirely without animal-derived products.
https://www.millerharris.com/pages/frequently-asked-questions-faqa
Available at Douglas
Zarkoperfume
All fragrances from ZARKOPERFUME are manufactured in Denmark (EU). Due to the exclusively synthetic ingredients, it is only sufficient to have the perfumes tested by a few voluntary fragrance testers. The fragrances are therefore 100% free of animal testing. As the molecular fragrances are 100% synthetic, they are also 100% vegan. As if that wasn’t enough, ZARKOPERFUME also attaches great importance to sustainability and the use of resources. With very few exceptions, which cannot be avoided, ZARKOPERUME does without additional plastic packaging for almost all products.
https://zarkoperfume.de/en/pages/molecule-parfum
Available at Douglas
Luxury Vegan Perfumes
Up to 300€ / 100 ml
Creed
Are Creed products tested on animals?
https://www.creedfragrances.co.uk/faq
No. Animal testing has been banned in Western perfumery for several decades.
Many of the Creed fragrances do however contain a small quantity of ambergris which is a waste product regurgitated by sperm whales. […] This does mean, however, that some Creed fragrances may not be suitable for vegans.
The musk used in Creed fragrances is a synthetic musk.
Available at Douglas
Heretic
The brand’s products feature no synthetic fragrances or aroma-chemicals, are paraben, phthalate, EDTA, and paraffin-free, as well as cruelty-free
https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/sekhmet-ventures-invests-in,14970#:~:text=Based%20in%20Los%20Angeles%2C%20California,as%20well%20as%20cruelty%2Dfree.
Available at Niche Beauty
Penhaligon’s
None of our products, nor the ingredients that go into them, are tested on animals – and we only work with people who abide by the same strict standards. We never ship our products to markets that would require such testing.
penhaligons.com
Parent company (Puig) not cruelty-free.
Available at Kastner & Öhler
Tom Daxon
We never test on animals. None of our manufacturers test on animals. All our body care has been dermatologically tested on humans.
tomdaxon.com
Available at Douglas
If you like shopping guides like this, also have at my Vegan Boots and Vegan Coats Guide!
And if you want to see more beauty content, check out my Vegan and Cruelty-Free Wedding Hair & Make-up!
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If you choose to buy using one of the above links, I make a small cut and I’m forever grateful!
