Conditioning waxSebum-like esterIn two skin-type blends

Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil

Simmondsia chinensis · INCI Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil

Jojoba is the golden liquid pressed from the seed of Simmondsia chinensis, a desert shrub. It behaves like an oil, but chemically it is something more unusual, and that difference is the whole reason it sits so comfortably on the skin.

It is not really an oil but a liquid wax, close in make-up to the skin's own sebum, and that kinship is why it sits so easily.

Jojoba, the golden liquid wax pressed from the seed of Simmondsia chinensis.

What it is

Jojoba is not, strictly, an oil. It is a liquid wax, made almost entirely of wax esters, and wax esters happen to be one of the main building blocks of your own sebum, the film the skin makes to keep itself supple. Because the two are so alike, jojoba reads as familiar to the skin: it absorbs cleanly, sits lightly even on oilier skin, and softens without the heaviness of a richer oil.

That wax-ester make-up has a second benefit. Where most plant oils will slowly oxidise and turn, jojoba is remarkably stable and keeps for a long time, which is part of why it earns its place in the Dry and Balanced blends.

What it does in our formulas

Two things, both quiet and both well established.

It softens, and the skin recognises it

Jojoba is not a true oil but a liquid wax ester, and wax esters are one of the main things human sebum is made of. That kinship is why it absorbs cleanly, sits comfortably even on oilier skin, and softens without feeling heavy.

Well characterised

It stays stable

Almost entirely wax esters, jojoba is one of the most oxidation-resistant materials in the range, so it keeps well and helps steady the blend it sits in.

Well characterised

What the research does not show

Jojoba is genuinely useful, so most of what is said about it is fair. Two claims, though, are worth putting straight.

Marketed as It balances how much oil your skin makes

The idea that jojoba signals the skin to produce less of its own oil is a long-standing theory, not something the evidence has shown. We value it for how well it sits and softens, not for controlling sebum.

Marketed as Identical to your skin's own oil

Jojoba is a close relative of sebum, sharing the wax-ester chemistry that makes up much of it, but it is not the same thing. We call it a close match, not a copy.

What we do claim is simple and well founded: a light, stable, sebum-like wax that softens the skin and sits comfortably on almost anyone.

On the label and in the range

Jojoba appears in the Dry and Balanced blends, high on the ingredient list since it is one of the main oils. On the label it reads by its INCI name, shown with its common name, and marked as cold-pressed and organic. The exact percentage is published on each product page.

Is it suitable for me?

Jojoba has an excellent safety record, is well tolerated even on sensitive and oilier skin, and suits a vegan routine, with no restrictions under UK or EU cosmetic law. Allergy to it is rare but documented, so as with anything, a patch test first is sensible if your skin reacts easily.

Vegan-friendlySensitive-skin suitableNo known safety concerns

As with anything new, if your skin reacts easily it is worth patch testing first.

The research behind this page

We review the published literature. We do not conduct the studies below.

Gad HA, Roberts A, Hamzi SH, et al. Jojoba Oil: An Updated Comprehensive Review on Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Uses, and Toxicity. Polymers 2021;13(11):1711. →
Ranzato E, Martinotti S, Burlando B. Wound healing properties of jojoba liquid wax: an in vitro study. J Ethnopharmacol 2011;134(2):443-449. →
Pazyar N, Yaghoobi R, Ghassemi MR, Kazerouni A, Rafeie E, Jamshydian N. Jojoba in dermatology: a succinct review. G Ital Dermatol Venereol 2013;148(6):687-691. →

Found in the Dry and Balanced blends Shop the range