What is it?
An oil obtained from grape seeds, Vitis vinifera, which are left over from winemaking. It is rich in polyunsaturated linoleic acid. In cosmetics it softens and conditions the skin in lotions, bath and body oils, lip products, pre-shave products, soaps and hair care. It is also sold as a cooking oil.
Key information
- The CIR Expert Panel concluded in 2011 that grapeseed oil is safe as used in cosmetics.
- A fragranced oil containing 90 percent grapeseed oil caused no irritation or allergy in a patch test on 105 people.
- Grapeseed oil can contain high levels of PAHs, contaminants that include carcinogens, when the seeds are dried in direct contact with combustion gases.
- Grapeseed oil is one of eight seed oils at the center of online diet debates; nutrition researchers say the evidence does not support calling them toxic.
More information
Grapeseed oil is made from the seeds in grape pomace, the skins and seeds left after winemaking. It is highly polyunsaturated: figures compiled by the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) put linoleic acid at 46 to 74 percent of its fatty acids.
In 2011 the CIR Expert Panel concluded that grapeseed oil, reviewed with 243 other plant-derived oils, is safe as used in cosmetics. A fragranced oil containing 90 percent grapeseed oil was neither irritating nor sensitizing in a patch test on 105 people, and a pre-shave lotion with 39 percent did not cause sensitization.
The real quality issue is contamination. Grapeseed oil can occasionally contain high levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a group of contaminants that includes carcinogens, because drying the seeds involves direct contact with combustion gases. In a 2000 study, oil from seeds sampled before drying averaged 1.4 parts per billion of benzo(a)pyrene, and oil from dried seeds averaged 20.2. EU food law caps PAHs in edible oils at 2 micrograms per kilogram (2 parts per billion) for benzo(a)pyrene and 10 for the sum of four PAHs, under limits updated in 2011.
Reality check: grapeseed is one of eight “seed oils” that some online influencers call toxic. Nutrition researchers at Johns Hopkins say studies consistently show otherwise: higher blood levels of linoleic acid, the main fat in these oils, are linked to lower risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes, and seed oils do not cause inflammation. On labels, look for Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil.
Sources: CIR: Final Report on Plant-Derived Fatty Acid Oils as Used in Cosmetics (Expert Panel meeting, March 2011); Journal of the American Oil Chemists’ Society (2000): Processing effects on the polyaromatic hydrocarbon content of grapeseed oil; EUR-Lex: Commission Regulation (EU) No 835/2011 on maximum levels for PAHs in foodstuffs; Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (2025): Influence vs. evidence, the science supporting seed oils