Cruelty-free 'clean-compatible' skincare but owned by Shiseido
| Ingredient transparency | Full ingredient list read and categorised |
| Ownership | Shiseido (100% owned by Shiseido (acquired 2019)) |
| Where made | USA and contract manufacturers |
| Price | Luxury |
| Cruelty free | Yes |
| Vegan | Partial |
| Organic | No |
| Certifications | CFK-verified cruelty-free |
| Sold in mainland China | No mainland China retail found: drunkelephant.com ships only within the US and its region selector lists the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Germany, France and Taiwan. |
| Palm oil | No public disclosure found on the brand site, though parent Shiseido states it joined RSPO in 2010 and buys certificates covering 100% of palm derived raw materials. |
| Packaging | Recyclable pumps; take-back program |
| Good On You | Rated Not Good Enough, with Planet 2 out of 5, People 2 out of 5 and Animals 3 out of 5. |
| EWG | Listed in EWG Skin Deep at individual product level only, with no EWG Verified products found. |
| External ratings | CFK cruelty-free (parent Shiseido not CF) |
| Lab tested | Yes (formulation/stability) |
| Clinical studies | Not published (brand-led) |
| Controversies | Voluntary recall of Beste No. 9, Protini and Lala Retro in November 2024 after a preservative and surfactant mix up, with yeast including Candida parapsilosis found in some Lala Retro lots, on top of the 2024 Sephora Kids backlash over tween appeal. |
| Caveat | Owned by Shiseido since 2019 and still trading, but Shiseido booked a 46.8bn yen goodwill impairment tied largely to this brand and is running a 2026 turnaround; Leaping Bunny and PETA certification is asserted by Cruelty-Free Kitty and could not be confirmed on the certifiers' own directories or on the brand FAQ, which only says it does not test on animals. |
Why there is no score: Partial read. This verdict is provisional. Only part of the catalogue could be read and the certifications listed have not been checked against the certifiers own registers, so the evidence does not yet support a settled verdict. No score is published. Ingredient lists were obtained for 46 products, but the brand's product listing did not respond when the total catalogue size was measured, so the share of the range covered is unknown. Without a denominator a percentage would be meaningless.
Last checked 22 July 2026.
Not yet independently verified. The certifications listed for this brand are as the brand states them. They have not yet been checked against the certifiers own registers, so they should be read as a claim rather than a confirmed fact.
We analysed 46 Drunk Elephant products, categorising every listed ingredient by function, origin (raw natural, naturally derived or synthetic) and safety concern. This is not the whole catalogue, so it is reported as a partial read. Percentages show the share of each formula that is natural or naturally derived.
Most common flags: Phenoxyethanol, Polysorbate 60, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Polysorbate 20, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Metabisulfite, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Benzyl Alcohol, Disodium Edta
Coverage: Ingredient lists were read for 46 products. The size of the full catalogue could not be established, so no average is shown.
Analyst note: Full ingredient list verified for 46 products and every ingredient categorised by function, origin and concern. Source: INCI verbatim from INCIdecoder product pages (manufacturer-published lists); Umbra sunscreens include the drug-facts active. 46 single products verified; sets, kits, minis and tools excluded. A small number of niche/discontinued SKUs may be missing; nothing was included that was not directly verified.
| Product | Natural | Ingredients | Flagged |
|---|---|---|---|
| A-Passioni Retinol Cream | 84% | 63 | 3 |
| A-Gloei Maretinol Oil | 67% | 6 | 0 |
| A-Shaba Complex Eye Serum | 86% | 59 | 2 |
| Amino Rain Glass Water Serum | 93% | 44 | 0 |
| B-Goldi Bright Drops | 78% | 45 | 3 |
| B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum | 89% | 28 | 2 |
| Bamboo Booster | 100% | 6 | 0 |
| Beste No. 9 Jelly Cleanser | 91% | 23 | 1 |
| Bora Barrier Rich Repair Cream | 90% | 62 | 2 |
| Bouncy Brightfacial | 92% | 52 | 3 |
| C-Firma Day Serum | 87% | 47 | 2 |
| C-Firma Fresh Day Serum | 94% | 33 | 1 |
| C-Luma Hydrabright Serum | 83% | 36 | 2 |
| C-Tango Multivitamin Eye Cream | 91% | 78 | 2 |
| Ceramighty AF Eye Balm | 88% | 43 | 1 |
| Cocomino Glossing Shampoo | 86% | 44 | 2 |
| Cocomino Marula Cream Conditioner | 98% | 49 | 0 |
| D-Bronzi Anti-Pollution Sunshine Drops | 91% | 34 | 3 |
| E-Rase Milki Micellar Water | 78% | 27 | 2 |
| F-Balm Electrolyte Waterfacial | 95% | 57 | 1 |
| Happi Scalp Scrub | 94% | 48 | 3 |
| Juju Bar | 100% | 13 | 0 |
| Kamili Cream Body Cleanser | 92% | 39 | 1 |
| Laini Latherless Conditioning Co-Cleanser | 93% | 44 | 1 |
| Lala Retro Whipped Cream | 82% | 34 | 2 |
| Lippe Balm | 97% | 31 | 1 |
| Mello Marula Cream Cleanser | 90% | 50 | 2 |
| O-Bloos Rosi Drops | 88% | 41 | 3 |
| Pekee Bar | 100% | 11 | 0 |
| Plump-C Tripeptide Lippe Mask | 100% | 46 | 0 |
| Protini Polypeptide Cream | 88% | 58 | 3 |
| Protini Powerpeptide Resurf Serum | 91% | 77 | 2 |
| Scrubbi Bamboes Body Cleanser | 98% | 41 | 0 |
| Sili Body Lotion | 94% | 68 | 2 |
| Sili Whipped Body Lotion | 91% | 46 | 2 |
| Silkamino Mega Moisturizing Hair Masker | 94% | 32 | 2 |
| Slaai Makeup-Melting Butter Cleanser | 100% | 23 | 0 |
| Sweet Pitti Deodorant Cream | 88% | 25 | 1 |
| T.L.C. Framboos Glycolic Night Serum | 88% | 32 | 3 |
| T.L.C. Glycolic Body Lotion | 92% | 49 | 2 |
| T.L.C. Sukari Babyfacial | 87% | 39 | 4 |
| Umbra Tinte Physical Daily Defense SPF 30 | 86% | 42 | 3 |
| Umbra Sheer Physical Daily Defense SPF 30 | 88% | 41 | 2 |
| Umbra 100% Mineral Cream SPF 30 Tinted Face Sunscreen | 90% | 39 | 1 |
| Virgin Marula Luxury Facial Oil | 100% | 1 | 0 |
| Wild Marula Tangle Spray | 94% | 34 | 2 |
Full ingredient breakdown
The full ingredient by ingredient breakdown of all 46 Drunk Elephant products (1840 ingredients, each categorised by function, origin and safety concern) is free with an account.
Create a free accountAlready have one? Log in