Methyl Jasmonate

What Methyl Jasmonate smells like

Methyl jasmonate is one of the key odorants of jasmine: sweet, floral and jasmine-like, with a green, herbal side. A trade description puts its sweetness and diffusive power well beyond Hedione's, for which Hedione serves as an economical substitute. Only some of its stereoisomers actually smell of jasmine, so commercial quality varies.

Leading note

Sweet jasmine

Supporting facets

Green herbal

Faint facets

Fruity

Character

Sweet, rich, diffusive, natural

• jasmine
• floral
• herbal
• sweet

What makes Methyl Jasmonate distinctive

It is the richer, sweeter, more natural jasmine that Hedione lightens and dilutes — closer to the flower, less airy.

How Methyl Jasmonate is used

Used in jasmine reconstructions and fine floral compositions where a natural, sweet jasmine is wanted.

Typical role: modifier (used in small amounts to change the character of a blend).

How Methyl Jasmonate differs from similar materials

Hedione*

A trade listing describes Hedione as lacking methyl jasmonate's overwhelming sweetness and diffusive power; Hedione is airier and more transparent. (compared directly by a cited source)

cis-Jasmone

cis-Jasmone is greener and herbal, with celery seed and tea; methyl jasmonate is the sweeter, more floral jasmine.

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.

Identity and classification

Type

Aroma chemical

Origin

Occurs in nature

Odour family

Floral / Green

Note position

Heart note

Physical form at room temperature

Liquid

Also known as

Methyl (1R,2R)-3-oxo-2-(pent-2-enyl)cyclopentaneacetate

CAS number

1211-29-6

Molecular formula

C13H20O3

Molecular weight

224.3 g/mol

IUPAC name

methyl 2-[(1R,2R)-3-oxo-2-[(Z)-pent-2-enyl]cyclopentyl]acetate

The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 5281929, 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 (89 of 89 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

• Hedione

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

• cis-Jasmone

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — green, jasmine, fruity, celery

• Jasmine Absolute (Grandiflorum)

  Absolute · Floral / Animalic — jasmine, floral, indolic, fruity

• Benzyl Acetate

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Fruity — jasmine, fruity, pear, sweet

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 1 published formula

Methyl Jasmonate is an ingredient in 1 perfume formula in the Formula & Accord Library.

RUŌOD House Originals

Original compositions by RUŌOD House.

• Magnolia Cartography

  RUŌOD House Original

Further reading

• White Floral Accords: Jasmine, Tuberose and Orange Blossom

  How jasmine, tuberose, orange blossom, gardenia and ylang-ylang accords are built — benzyl acetate, Hedione, indole, methyl anthranilate — and their pitfalls.

• Hedione in Perfumery

  What Hedione (methyl dihydrojasmonate) smells like, its grades and isomers, what it does across formulas, practical notes and pairings.

• 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 Methyl Jasmonate

Sources

• PubChem — compound 5281929, checked 19 October 2026.
• PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
• ChemicalBook — methyl jasmonate and dihydrojasmonate — odour database.
• University of Bristol — Molecule of the Month: Hedione (on methyl jasmonate isomers) — published literature.
• Perflavory (The Good Scents Company) — methyl dihydrojasmonate — odour database.
• 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.