What is CosIng? And how do you read an entry?
CosIng is the European Commission’s free database of cosmetic ingredients: INCI names, CAS and EC numbers, functions, annex references and SCCS opinions. This guide covers what an entry shows, what it does not decide, and how to read it against the annexes.
Reviewed by Oğuzhan Eker, M.Sc. Chemist · Last reviewed
01/CosIng
What is CosIng? The Commission’s ingredient database.
CosIng, the Cosmetic Ingredient database, is run by the European Commission and open to anyone at no cost. It brings three sources together in one search, with data back to the Cosmetics Directive of 1976.
The substances in the annexes of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009: prohibited, restricted, colourants, preservatives and UV filters.
The common ingredient names used on labels, compiled by the Commission under Article 33.
References to opinions of the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety, limited to those published online.
The labelling glossary it holds is the one Article 33 asks the Commission to keep, established by Decision (EU) 2019/701. Search it on the Commission’s site: CosIng.
02/An entry
What does a CosIng entry show? Names, numbers, functions, references.
An entry is either an ingredient from the inventory or a substance from the annexes. The fields below come from the Commission’s own guide to consulting CosIng.
| Field | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| INCI name | The common name used in the ingredient list on the label. Ingredients from the inventory are written in capitals; substances from the annexes in small letters. See INCI. |
| CAS and EC numbers | Registry identifiers for the substance. The EC number comes from the EINECS, ELINCS or NLP lists. See CAS and EC numbers. |
| Chemical / IUPAC name | The chemical name, with the INN or Ph. Eur. name where one exists. |
| Description | The official description of the ingredient, searchable in part. |
| Functions | The usual function of the ingredient in cosmetic products, from a list the Commission defines. |
| Annex / Ref # | Where a cosmetic restriction applies: the annex and the entry number. The Commission’s guide uses Methanol, entry 52 in Annex III, as its example. |
| SCCS opinions | References to the SCCS opinions on the ingredient. |
| Status | “Active” is the current description or regulation; “Not active” is a past one, kept for history. |
Some substances in CosIng have never been published in the Official Journal. CosIng marks them with a red star and may point them to the annex entry of a related published substance.
Source for this section: the Commission’s Guide to Consulting CosIng (CosIng 2.0, July 2023).
03/Legal status
Is CosIng legally binding? No. The Regulation and its annexes are.
CosIng says so itself, on the Commission’s page. An INCI name in the inventory is not an approval to use the ingredient.
Important notice
CosIng is a non-legally binding information database. It provides information on cosmetic ingredients but does not, in itself, determine their regulatory status. Only Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and its Annexes establish whether, and under which conditions, substances may be used in cosmetic products.
Two more lines point the same way. The Commission’s page adds that an ingredient with an INCI name in the inventory is not thereby approved for use. And Article 33 says the glossary is not a list of authorised substances.
In practice, CosIng is where you start, and the Regulation is where you finish. A limit, a condition or a warning is quoted from the annex itself.
04/Reading an entry
How do you read an entry against the annexes? In seven steps.
CosIng links an ingredient to an annex entry. The limit that applies to your product is in the annex, so the reading ends there.
Search by CAS or EC number where you have one; a trade name or a misspelt INCI name can miss the entry.
Check the status. Use the “Active” entry; a “Not active” one describes a past state.
Tell the ingredient (capitals, inventory) from the substance (small letters, annex). Restrictions sit on the substance.
Follow “Annex / Ref #” to the annex entry and read its columns: product type and body parts, maximum concentration in ready for use preparation, other limits, and the wording of conditions of use and warnings.
Treat links between an ingredient and an annex substance as a lead, not a ruling: the Commission’s guide says these cross-references are not binding.
Read the entry in the Regulation’s consolidated text, and check the amending act’s dates. Amendments often apply first to placing on the market, then to making available. See the annexes and the change log.
Read an SCCS opinion as science. It changes the law only when an amending regulation puts it into an annex.
05/In Unique Alphabet®
How does Unique Alphabet® use CosIng? It matches every formula line to it.
You don’t search CosIng inside the platform; your formula is matched to it. Three places where that matching does the work.
More than 35,000 CosIng ingredient entries are held in the platform, with their numbers, functions, annex status and SCCS opinions. Each formula line is matched to CosIng; trade names and percentage ranges too, and anything that doesn’t match is flagged.
Paste a list without percentages and each ingredient is marked permitted, restricted or prohibited. Or have the list built from the formula, in label order.
Add the percentages: each ingredient is compared with its annex limits, along with the mandatory warnings it triggers. Download the result as CSV.
To look up one ingredient’s annex entry without an account, use the CosIng search: INCI name, CAS or EC number, or a whole INCI list.
Regulatory Watch follows changes to CosIng too, alongside the EU, UK and Türkiye annexes, and names the product a change touches.
Questions about CosIng.
Is CosIng free to use?
Yes. CosIng is published by the European Commission and anyone can search it on the Commission’s website at no cost.
Is an ingredient in CosIng allowed in cosmetics?
Not by that fact alone. CosIng states that an INCI name in its inventory does not mean the ingredient is approved for use. Whether and how a substance may be used is set by Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and its annexes.
What is the difference between an ingredient and a substance in CosIng?
Ingredients come from the inventory of common names and are written in capitals. Substances come from the annexes of the Regulation and are written in small letters. Restrictions are attached to substances.
Can I search CosIng on the Unique Alphabet site?
Yes, for the annexes. The CosIng search on this site shows an ingredient’s entry in Annexes II to VI by INCI name, CAS or EC number, and checks a pasted INCI list. The full inventory of ingredient names and functions is searched on the Commission’s website. Inside the platform, each formula line is matched to CosIng, and INCI Breakdown and Formula Check read the result against the annexes.
Every formula line, matched to CosIng.
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