We show you the best cruelty-free shampoo brands and list where to buy them. Check out our cruelty-free shampoo guide to help you shop ethically.
Cruelty-Free Shampoo
Shampoos and conditioners are some of the most commonly used personal care products. These products alone make up a third of the $88 billion spent globally on haircare products. While many people focus on the benefits of their favorite shampoo, it is also important to understand how some of these hair care products negatively impact animals.
Why Buy Cruelty-Free Shampoo?
Like many products in the self-care industry, companies need to ensure that their products are safe for humans to use.
Animal testing is the process that various products like household chemicals, cosmetics, and medications are tested on animals to see if there will be any negative effects before allowing them to be sold to the public. The negative impacts on these creatures are astounding. According to PETA (People for the Equal Treatment of Animals), nearly 100 million animals in the United States are killed in labs each year during testing and experimentation.
By purchasing shampoos and conditioners that have been tested on animals, you are telling these companies that it is ok to continue this practice.
Is Cruelty-Free Shampoo the Same As Vegan Shampoo?
The terms vegan and cruelty-free are often used interchangeably. It’s important to note that they both mean very different things.
The term vegan refers to the ingredients of a product. A product that is labeled as vegan will contain no animal products or animal-derived ingredients. There are over 20 animal-derived ingredients that can be commonly found in shampoos and conditioners.
Cruelty-free refers to the testing process of these products. Cruelty-free products are not tested on animals. It’s important to note that a product can be vegan but not cruelty-free. For example, the shampoo you bought may contain zero animal-derived ingredients but was tested on rabbits in a lab before sale.
Ingredients With Negative Environmental Impacts
While it is important to look for products that are both vegan and cruelty-free, there is one more thing you should consider when selecting your next bottle of shampoo or conditioner. The source of ingredients can also harm animals worldwide.
Because of the scale of the haircare industry, many ingredients need to be mass-produced. While plant-based ingredients seem harmless, they can also cause negative environmental impacts. One such ingredient is palm oil. Palm oil is a widely used ingredient in both edible and non-edible products. It is a common ingredient in shampoos and conditioners.
Palm oil production has destroyed thousands of square miles of habitat in Malaysia and Indonesia. Because of the profitability of this plant, large areas of tropical rainforests have been cut down to increase the cultivation area for palm oil. This deforestation has caused orangutans, pygmy elephants, and Sumatran rhinos to become endangered.
Can You Buy Cruelty-Free Shampoo at Stores Like Walmart, Target, and Other Drugstores?
Cruelty-free shampoos and conditioners used to be considered specialty products that were difficult to find. Today, there are dozens of options that are readily available at regular department stores and drugstore chains. Stores like Walmart and Target have sections of their website dedicated to cruelty-free products. If you are unsure of which products are cruelty-free, a quick online search will help you.
Types of Tests Performed on Animals to Test Shampoo
Many people probably conjure up an image of bunnies at the spa testing various shampoos and conditioners. Unfortunately, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Two main tests are conducted to check the safety of shampoo and conditioners – skin tests and ingestion.
Skin tests involve rubbing the product on a shaved area of the animal’s body to see if there are any negative effects such as rashes or irritation. In many cases, the product is also applied in or around the eyes as well.
Shampoos and conditioners are not intended to be ingested, but companies do also conduct testing to understand the effects of accidental ingestion. For ingestion testing, the animals are held down and force-fed increasing quantities of the product.
List of Cruelty-Free Shampoo Brands
A
100% Pure
A Joy Forever Bath + Body
A Spa for You – Simple Path Botanical Skin Care
A Wild Soap Bar
A.M.Y. Belles Beauty
A2Z Beauty
Abbey Essentials
Active Wow
ACURE
Alba Botanica
ALEVA NATURALS
Allurials
AMALUMY
Amika
Andalou Naturals
Annmarie Skin Care
ANTI NEW YORK
Apply Valley Natural Soap
Aquis
ARCONA
Arctic Fox Hair Color
Ariza Beauty
Aroma Naturals
Athar’a Pure
Au Natural Organics Company
Auromère Ayurvedic Imports
Avalon Organics
AYAM Beauty Care
B
BaeBlu
Baldies
Balefire Apothecary
Bartholomew Sisters
Basic Earth Essentials
BCakes LLC
Beach Baby Bath & Body
Beast
Beauty by Earth
Beauty Without Cruelty
Beautycounter
BeautyGARDE
Beekman 1802
BKIND
Blue Monarch
Body By Bella
Bogavia
Bold Life Beauty™
Botanie Soap
BOYZZ ONLY
Brickell Men’s Products
Bright Earth Foods
Briogeo
Brooklyn Made Natural
Brookstone
Bubbles & Balms
Buck Naked Soap Company
Burt’s Bees
By Valenti Organics
Byers Boutique
BYRD
C
Cake Face Soaping
Caley Cosmetics
California North
California Pure Naturals
Cane and Bliss
CannaSmack
Captain Blankenship
carera organix
Carpeli Grooming & Personal Care
Castle Baths Anna
CBD Daily
Céla by Celine Tadrissi
Chaé Organics
Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve
Championne
Clay’s Naturals au carre
Clean Kids Naturally
Cleanyst
Clear Light New Mexico
Clubman
Coastal Classic Creations
ColorpHlex
Common Ground®
Comprehensive Cranium Care®
Cosmic Element
Costa Californica
COTE HAIR
Courtney’s Farm Charm Soap Company
Crafted Bath
CremeFRESH Skin and Health Inc.
CULT+KING
D
Dadirri
Daily Dry Shampoo
Daisy Blue Naturals
DAMANCI
DANI Naturals
Daughter of the Land
Deep Steep
deja
Derma E
DevaCurl
Diane Janowski Soap
Dr. Soap
Dr.C Lab
Drunk Elephant
Drybar Products LLC
E
EarthDye
Earthley Wellness
Earthly Body
Ecology Soap
elaluz
Eleni & Chris
ELON Essentials
Emz Blendz Soap Co.
EO Products
Era Organics
Erbaviva
Essential Wholesale & Labs
Eva-NYC
Evan Alexander Grooming
Exernal Skin Care Activated CharcoalFace Plus Body Wash
Ezolistic
F
FAR Botanicals
Fifth & Skin
Flamingo Estate
Flawless by Gabrielle Union
Forever Living Products
Fox Naturals
Foxbrim Naturals
Fromonda
G
Gabriel Cosmetics
Galiano Island Soapworks
Gardener’s Dream
Gastown Soapworks
Gilchrist & Soames
Giovanni
GKhair
Glop & Glam Hair Products
Go Fabulous Skin
Goddess Garden
Good For You Girls
Good Juju Body & Home
Grace & Stella
Graydon Skincare
Green Girl Basics
Green Goo
Green Tidings
Grounded Sage Skincare
Gryph & IvyRose
Gundry MD
H
Hain Celestial
HASK
Heleka
HELLEN
Hello Bello
Hempz
Henna Color Lab®
Herban Beautanicals
Herban Goods
Hims
Home Spa Collection
Homemade Betty LLC
Honey Sweetie Acres
HoneyCurlz Hair
Hot Tot
I
IGK LLC
Indigo Bath and Body
Intelligent Nutrients
It’s A 10 Haircare
J
J.R. Watkins
Jade Lilly
JĀSÖN
JE Cosmetics Inc.
Jeffrey James Botanicals
Jivi
JJ Clark Body Co.
JKosmmune
Jubel Naturals
Juice Beauty
Jupiter
Just the Goods
JustBirch
K
Karla’s Organic Beauty
Kavella
Kilted Suds
Kino Hawaiian Skincare
Kirk’s
Kitsch
KLARIF
Kmoni Cosmetics LLC
Knotty Boy
Koils by Nature
KREYÓL ESSENCE, LLC.
L
L’EUDINE
La Pharmacie d’invention
Lafes Natural BodyCare
LATHER
Legends Creek Farm
Leonor Greyl
Lines of Elan
Lis Noir Skincare
Little Farmyard
Little Tree Hugger Soap
Little Twig
Liv’Ez Co.
Live Clean
Living Libations
Liz Earle
Loopha
Lubricity Labs
M
mad penguin skin care
MADE OF
Madison Reed
Makes Scents Natural Spa Line
Mallie Boushaye Essentials
ManDay Grooming Inc.
Marrakesh Hair Care
Marula Beauty
Master Soap Makers
Matter Outdoors
Max Green Alchemy
Meant
Meow Meow Tweet
Merci Naturel, LLC
Mi-Me Handmade Bath & Body Products
Miles of Moisture
Mineral Fusion
Miracle Oil
MO MI Beauty
Molton Brown
Monat
Moon’s Harvest
Moor Spa
Morning Blossom Studio
Morrocco Method Int’l
Mountain Sky
N
N Rage
NASSANI Inc.
NASTY ‘Total Athletic Care’
NATPURE Skin Care
Natural Yukon Body Care Co.
Nature’s Brands
Naturopathica
Nealy Naturals
Nettie’s Living Naturally
New Directions Aromatics
NIUCOCO
No Worries
Nokomis Naturals
Nutmeg & Apple Handmade LLC
NYR Organics
O
Oars and Alps
Oh My Garden!
OM Botanical
OMhh Inc.
One Earth Goods
orenda soapworks
Original Sprout
Overland Essentials
P
Pacific Refill Club
Paula’s Choice
Peet Brothers
Plaine Products
Pleni Naturals
Pluff Mud Mercantile
Pollynation Apothecary
POOFY ORGANICS
Profile Cobalt
Project Beauty
Puna Noni Naturals
Punky Color
Puracy
Pure & Gentle Soap
Purple Prairie Botanicals
PUUR Ingrid
Q
Queen Helene
R
Rawness Natural Beauty Products
Reverie
Root Journey
Rudy’s
S
Saavy Naturals
Savon Du Bois Body Boutique
Sayar Care
Scentuals
Sea Calm Skin
SEEN
Semina
Shemen Amour USA
SHIKAI
Shiva’s Delight
Sítrónu
Skin and Skull
SkinRawBar
So Rad
Soap Cauldron
Soapy Soap Company
SofiesSecret
SoGa Artisan Soaperie
Solluni
Somethin’ Special
Sonoma Soap Company
Spinster Sisters Co.
Sprouts Farmers Market
State Of Menopause
SULA NYC
Supreme Suudz
Surya Brasil
Susan’s Soaps & More
Sweet Earth
T
Tangie
Teadora Heirloom Brazilian Botanicals
TEENOLOGY
Terra Beauty Bars
The Alchemist’s Wife
The Beauty Bar FX
The Body Shop
The Dirty Goat
The Grandpa Soap Company
The Jojoba Company
The Mad Optimist
The Seaweed Bath Co.
The Shameless Skin Co.
The Style Witch
The Unscented Company
Theas Essence
Thinkbaby & Thinksport
Thirteen Thieves
Three Sisters Apothecary
Timeless Organics Skin Care
TO112
Touch Body Works
True Botanicals
True Grit Grooming Products for Men
Truly Beauty
Truly Lifestyle Brand
TruSelf Organics
Trust Rx
Tubby Todd
TvN Beauty
Tweak’d By Nature
Tychea Skin Care
U
Underwater Audio
UNITED & FREE
unWashed
UPLEAFS
Ursa Major
US Organic
V
V.I.P. Soap Products
Village Common
Voir Haircare
W
Wander Beauty
Wash with Water
WEN by Chaz Dean
Wildland Organics
William Roam
Woody’s
Y
Yes To Inc.
Z
Zatik Natural
zion health inc
Zosimos Botanicals
