What are INCI names, and how do you use them for handmade soap?
INCI names are the standard ingredient names used on cosmetic labels, such as Olea Europaea Fruit Oil for olive oil or Sodium Hydroxide for lye. Canada and the EU expect them on soap labels, and in the US they apply when your soap counts as a cosmetic. List ingredients in descending order by weight, and check each name in an official database before printing it.
Not legal advice. This is a plain-language summary of public guidance, checked October 2026. Rules change and depend on where and how you sell. Read the primary sources linked below, and ask the regulator or a qualified adviser about your products. Soap Ledger helps you keep records; it does not make a label or a product compliant.
Where the names come from
- US: when a soap is a cosmetic, ingredients are named in this order of preference: a name set by the FDA, then the name in listed reference books (the first being the CTFA Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary, the origin of INCI), then a name consumers recognize, then a chemical description (21 CFR 701.3 (cosmetic ingredient labeling)).
- EU: labels list ingredients by their common ingredient names, which follow INCI (Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (Article 19: labelling)). The European Commission CosIng ingredient database is the place to look a name up.
- Canada: Health Canada's labelling guidance covers INCI names for cosmetics, and the notification form asks for the ingredient list (Health Canada: Industry guide for the labelling of cosmetics; Health Canada: Guide to completing cosmetic notification forms).
INCI names of common soap ingredients
| Ingredient | INCI name |
|---|---|
| Olive oil | Olea Europaea Fruit Oil |
| Coconut oil | Cocos Nucifera Oil |
| Shea butter | Butyrospermum Parkii Butter |
| Castor oil | Ricinus Communis Seed Oil |
| Palm oil | Elaeis Guineensis Oil |
| Lard (pork fat) | Lard |
| Tallow (edible, beef) | Tallow |
| Cocoa butter | Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter |
| Sweet almond oil | Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil |
| Avocado oil | Persea Gratissima Oil |
| Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) | Sodium Hydroxide |
| Potassium hydroxide (KOH) | Potassium Hydroxide |
| Water (distilled) | Aqua |
| Goat milk | Goat Milk |
| Sodium lactate | Sodium Lactate |
| Salt (sodium chloride) | Sodium Chloride |
| Sugar (sucrose) | Sucrose |
| Kaolin clay | Kaolin |
These are the names recorded in Soap Ledger's ingredient catalog. Suppliers sometimes use a slightly different form, so match what your supplier documents and check it in CosIng.
Worked example: an as-made ingredient list
For 1000 g of oils (Olive oil 50%, Coconut oil 25%, Shea butter 20%, Castor oil 5%) at 5% superfat and a 33% lye concentration, the weights from the calculator put the ingredients in this order:
Ingredients: Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Aqua, Cocos Nucifera Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Sodium Hydroxide, Ricinus Communis Seed Oil.
| INCI name | Weight |
|---|---|
| Olea Europaea Fruit Oil | 500.0 g |
| Aqua | 281.3 g |
| Cocos Nucifera Oil | 250.0 g |
| Butyrospermum Parkii Butter | 200.0 g |
| Sodium Hydroxide | 138.5 g |
| Ricinus Communis Seed Oil | 50.0 g |
As-made or saponified names?
Some makers list what went into the pot (the oils, water and sodium hydroxide), as above. Others list what came out, using saponified names such as Sodium Olivate or Sodium Cocoate. Which one a regulator or safety assessor expects depends on where you sell: EU and UK makers usually settle this with their safety assessor. Whichever you choose, check each name in CosIng and keep the order by weight. Fragrance, colorants and additives go in their place by weight too, with the special rules your region has for fragrance and allergens.
Try it in the lye calculator. Every weight in the calculator's result is an ingredient-list starting point.
Sources
- 21 CFR 701.3 (cosmetic ingredient labeling)
- Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (Article 19: labelling)
- European Commission CosIng ingredient database
- Health Canada: Industry guide for the labelling of cosmetics
- Health Canada: Guide to completing cosmetic notification forms
Written for Soap Ledger in our own words. Numbers in the examples are calculated by Soap Ledger's engine when the page is built. Last updated .