Comparison
Fragrance-free face cleansers compared
Eight face cleansers with no fragrance in the ingredient list: what stands first, which cleansing agents they use, a price range and how to check a list.
Published November 5, 2026 · 6 min read
A fragrance-free face cleanser sounds like an easy call, but the words on the front of the box and the ingredient list do not always say the same thing. We read the lists and picked eight face cleansers where we find no fragrance: no Parfum or Fragrance entry and none of the EU's 26 declared fragrance allergens.
What fragrance-free means here
On SkinIndex, fragrance-free means one thing: the ingredient list has no Parfum or Fragrance entry and none of the 26 fragrance compounds the EU requires to be declared by name, such as Linalool, Limonene and Citronellol. The reading is computed from the list, not taken from the brand's own claim. Essential oils are fragrance in natural form and are a flag of their own here; none of the products below has one either.
One limit is worth knowing: in products that are rinsed off, the threshold above which a fragrance compound must be declared is higher than in products that stay on the skin. A list can therefore lack a fragrance compound that is present in very small amounts. That is why the list is a reason to read closely, not a guarantee.
How to read a list yourself
Look for Parfum and Fragrance, and also for Linalool, Limonene, Citronellol, Geraniol, Eugenol and Coumarin. The words “fragrance-free”, “unscented” and “no added scent” on the front are not the same as a checked list. The list on the back is the part you can check. You can paste one into the Ingredient checker, and the basics are in the guide How to read an ingredient list.
Eight face cleansers with no fragrance
The picks come from our catalog: products whose list we have read and where we find no fragrance. The full list is on the page Fragrance-free cleansers, and every cleanser is on Cleansers.
Q+A Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Cleanser (125 ml). The list opens with Aqua, Coco-Betaine, Glycerin and Propanediol. Sodium Hyaluronate sits at position 7, and the preservative is Phenoxyethanol.
Lumene Herkkä (150 ml). A short list of 13 ingredients: Aqua, Butylene Glycol, Poloxamer 184 and bilberry juice (Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Juice) at position 4. The preservative is Phenoxyethanol.
Smuuti Skin Watermelon Cleansing Foam (150 ml). Aqua, Glycerin and the cleansing agents Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Disodium Cocoyl Glutamate and Coco-Betaine. Hyaluronic Acid is at position 9.
Klairs Gentle Black Facial Cleanser (140 ml). Water, Glycerin, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate and Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, which are amino-acid-based cleansing agents. The list has 31 ingredients, with ceramides and Centella toward the end.
Löwengrip Instant Glow Cleansing Foam (150 ml). Aqua, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate and Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate. Niacinamide is at position 11, out of 13 ingredients.
Jorgobé Glycerin Hydra Cleanser (200 ml). The list starts with Glycerin, then Aqua, Betaine and Coco-Glucoside. Lactic Acid is at position 11.
Idun Minerals Mineral Cleansing Face & Eye Lotion (150 ml). Aqua, two polyglyceryl emulsifiers and Glycerin, then Squalane at position 7, plus oat kernel oil and canola oil. Niacinamide is at position 11.
The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser (150 ml). The list starts with Squalane and Aqua, and Coco-Caprylate/Caprate is third. That is an oil-rich start, unlike the water-based gels and foams higher up.
Cleansing agents: what makes a cleanser foam
Cleansing agents, or surfactants, bind both water and fat, which is why a cleanser can be rinsed off with water. The lists above use different kinds: amino-acid-based (Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate), betaines (Coco-Betaine) and sugar-based (Coco-Glucoside). In our analysis we flag sulfates and stronger cleansing agents separately, and none of these eight carries a sulfate or strong-cleanser flag.
Price range
At the time of writing most of these cost roughly €10–35 in the Finnish stores we compare. Sizes run from 125 to 200 ml, so it is worth comparing the price per 100 ml too. Prices move daily: the cards at the end of the page show the current price of each product.
What a list cannot tell you
An ingredient list shows what a product contains and in what order, not how it feels or how it works on your skin. We make no promise about results, and a fragrance-free product is not better for everyone. If your skin reacts to products or a problem keeps going, a dermatologist can answer what an ingredient list cannot. The comparison continues in the guide Fragrance-free moisturizers compared.
