Hexyl Benzoate

What Hexyl Benzoate smells like

Hexyl benzoate is a mild, woody-green, balsamic ester. The Good Scents Company lists fresh, balsamic, sappy, clean and woody at medium strength; a chemical reference gives woody-green and piney-balsamic, another balsamic, green and melon-like. Arctander, quoted in a perfumery note, compares it to freshly cut cypress twigs and suggests it as a modifier for labdanum. Users find it very mild and slightly green.

Leading note

Mild woody-green

Clear facets

Balsamic

Supporting facets

Sappy, cypress-twig

Faint facets

Melon

Character

Mild, clean, green, soft

• woody
• green
• balsamic
• faint

What makes Hexyl Benzoate distinctive

Freshly cut cypress twigs: a mild, sappy woody-green that softens resins such as labdanum rather than standing out.

How Hexyl Benzoate is used

Used as a mild woody-green modifier and blender, including with labdanum and in green and woody compositions.

Typical role: blender (smooths the joins between other materials); fixative (slow to evaporate; helps a blend last and holds lighter notes).

How Hexyl Benzoate differs from similar materials

cis-3-Hexenyl Benzoate

The cis-3-hexenyl ester is green-herbaceous with a floral, orchid note; hexyl benzoate is woodier and sappier, like cut cypress twigs.

Each difference compares the published descriptions of the two materials. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.

Identity and classification

Type

Aroma chemical

Origin

Synthetic

Odour family

Floral / Green

Note position

Base note

Physical form at room temperature

Liquid

Also known as

n-Hexyl benzoate

CAS number

6789-88-4

Molecular formula

C13H18O2

Molecular weight

206.28 g/mol

IUPAC name

hexyl benzoate

The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 23235, whose own record lists this CAS number; checked 19 October 2026.

Safety and compliance

Hazard classification of the neat substance, as PubChem summarises it, read 26 October 2026. Companies notifying the ECHA C&L Inventory report it as not meeting the GHS hazard criteria (1,547 of 1,648 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

  Solvent or carrier · No odour family — faint, balsamic

• Hexyl Salicylate

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — green, floral, herbal

• Benzyl Salicylate

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Powdery — balsamic, floral, faint, sweet

• Hedione

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Citrus — jasmine, transparent, citrus, airy

Hexyl Benzoate is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Amyl Benzoate.

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 2 published formulas

Hexyl Benzoate is an ingredient in 2 perfume formulas in the Formula & Accord Library.

RUŌOD House Originals

Original compositions by RUŌOD House.

• Green Pod Theory

  RUŌOD House Creation

• Ivy Wall

  RUŌOD House Original

Further reading

• Perfume Fixatives Explained: What They Do and What They Don't

  What fixatives are in perfumery, how low-volatility materials change evaporation and longevity, and the myths worth dropping before you formulate.

• Perfume Materials by Odor Family: A Formulator's Palette Map

  Which materials build each odor family — citrus, floral, woody, amber, musk and more — their usual roles, what to watch for, and links to each in depth.

Questions about Hexyl Benzoate

Sources

• PubChem — compound 23235, checked 19 October 2026.
• PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
• The Good Scents Company — hexyl benzoate — odour database.
• ChemicalBook — hexyl benzoate (CAS 6789-88-4) — odour database.
• Parchem — hexyl benzoate — distributor's description.
• Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 20 October 2026. Evidence: more than one published description. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.