RUŌOD Lab

Benzyl Benzoate

Solvent or carrier · No odour family

faint, balsamic — base note.

Aroma illustration for Benzyl Benzoate: a clear droplet with ripples and drops of golden resin, for its faint and balsamic notes. It illustrates smell associations, not the material or its source.Skeletal formula of Benzyl Benzoate, C14H12O2, drawn from PubChem's 2D record. Stereochemistry is not shown.
Aroma View: an illustration of what Benzyl Benzoate smells like (faint, balsamic), drawn by RUŌOD Lab — not its appearance or its source.Skeletal formula drawn by RUŌOD Lab from PubChem's 2D record (CID 2345). Stereochemistry is not shown; the coloured background is decoration.
Images

By the RUŌOD Lab TeamRevision 1Updated

In short

Benzyl benzoate is a nearly odourless ester found in balsams, jasmine and ylang. It is used as a solvent for resins and solids and as a fixative.

What Benzyl Benzoate smells like

Benzyl benzoate has a weak, sweet, balsamic odour, in a chemical listing; supplier sheets give almond, balsamic, herbal, light, oily and sweet, and a glossary a mild balsamic-sweet quality, slightly almond-like and faintly vanillic, when smelled concentrated. It is used as a fixative and solvent, especially for artificial musks, and as a modifier in heavy blossom fragrances. A 1950s study found it delays evaporation at the cost of freshness and lift. It is an EU-declarable allergen and a constituent of Peru balsam.

Leading note
Faint sweet balsam
Faint facets
Almond, vanilla
Character
Faint, oily, tenacious
  • faint
  • balsamic

What makes Benzyl Benzoate distinctive

A solvent with a faint voice: sweet, balsamic and slightly almond-like, holding other notes down.

How Benzyl Benzoate is used

Used as a solvent, especially for musks, and as a fixative in floral and oriental compositions.

Typical role: solvent (dilutes or carries other materials); fixative (slow to evaporate; helps a blend last and holds lighter notes).

How Benzyl Benzoate differs from similar materials

Benzyl Salicylate
Perfumery sources note benzyl salicylate has largely replaced benzyl benzoate where a faint odour is wanted.
Peru Balsam Oil
Peru balsam contains benzyl benzoate, with vanilla, cinnamon and amber around it.
Diethyl Phthalate (DEP)
DEP is nearly odourless; benzyl benzoate has a faint sweet, balsamic, almond-like odour.

An asterisk marks a difference that a cited source states directly. The others compare the published descriptions of each material. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.

Formulation considerations

A declarable allergen covered by an IFRA Standard, so count it even when it arrives as the solvent in another material.

Identity and classification

Type
Solvent or carrier
Origin
Occurs in nature
Odour family
No odour family
Note position
Base note
Physical form at room temperature
Liquid
CAS number
120-51-4
Molecular formula
C14H12O2
Molecular weight
212.24 g/mol
IUPAC name
benzyl benzoate

The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 2345, whose own record lists this CAS number; checked 19 October 2026.

Safety and compliance

The IFRA Standards Library lists a Standard covering Benzyl Benzoate:

  • "Benzyl benzoate" — Restriction, 49th Amendment, published 2020-01

Limits differ by product category and are set out in the Standard itself; this page does not reproduce them. The list above reflects the library as read on 19 October 2026.

Benzyl Benzoate is one of the 26 fragrance allergens listed individually in Annex III of the EU Cosmetics Regulation (label name: Benzyl benzoate), which must be named on cosmetic labels above 0.001% in leave-on and 0.01% in rinse-off products. Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 extended the list; see the fragrance allergens list.

Hazard classification of the neat substance, as PubChem summarises it, read 26 October 2026. It has a harmonised EU classification (Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008, Annex VI): H302 harmful if swallowed; H411 toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects. Companies notifying the ECHA C&L Inventory classify it (2,822 reports): H302 harmful if swallowed (100% of reports); H411 toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects (99.4% of reports); H400 very toxic to aquatic life (21.1% of reports). Unless it is harmonised, this is the notifiers' own classification, not a binding one.

This page is general information, not a safety assessment or a specification. Confirm identity, composition, IFRA status and allergen content from your supplier's documents for the lot you hold.

Materials it works with

Benzyl Benzoate is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Benzophenone, Diethyl Phthalate (DEP), Hercolyn D, Hexyl Benzoate, Phenylethyl Benzoate and Triethyl Citrate.

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 41 published formulas

Benzyl Benzoate is an ingredient in 2 perfume formulas, 36 accords and 3 bases in the Formula & Accord Library.

Further reading

Questions about Benzyl Benzoate

Is Benzyl Benzoate natural or synthetic?

The molecule occurs in nature. Commercial Benzyl Benzoate may be made by synthesis or obtained from natural sources, so check the supplier's specification if the distinction matters to you.

What is the CAS number of Benzyl Benzoate?

120-51-4. It was checked against PubChem on 19 October 2026.

Which published formulas use Benzyl Benzoate?

Benzyl Benzoate is used in 41 published formulas in the RUŌOD Lab Formula & Accord Library, including Açaí Accord, Amber Accord and Aperol Spritz Accord. Each is listed with a link under "Used in formulas and accords" on this page.

Is Benzyl Benzoate covered by an IFRA Standard?

Yes. The IFRA Standards Library lists a Standard covering it: "Benzyl benzoate" — Restriction, 49th Amendment. The limits depend on the product category; read the Standard itself before formulating.

Sources

Your own records, next to the reference

Keep your own record of Benzyl Benzoate — supplier, cost, stock, dilutions and where it is used — in RUŌOD Lab's material library.

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