Is Salt And Stone A Clean Brand

The clean beauty space is loud. Everyone claims to be "natural," "non-toxic," and "free from the bad stuff." Half of them mean it. Half of them are just good at marketing. So when we ask is Salt and Stone a clean brand, we need to go beyond the packaging and actually look at what's inside.

Let's do exactly that.

Where Did Salt & Stone Come From?

Salt & Stone was launched in 2017 by Nima Jalali, a former professional snowboarder. After a knee injury, he turned toward a more natural lifestyle and found that nothing on the market checked all the boxes — ingredients, performance, scent, and design. That gap pushed him to build something from scratch.

The name itself tells the story. "Salt" refers to the ocean, and "Stone" refers to the mountains — the two environments Jalali grew up surfing and snowboarding in. It's not just branding. It's a philosophy built around active living and the elements.

Salt & Stone product collection — image via saltandstone.com

Today, every product Salt & Stone makes is a blend of antioxidant and nutrient-rich ingredients — including seaweed, spirulina, and kelp — created to protect, cleanse, support, and recover the skin.

What Does "Clean Beauty" Actually Mean?

Here's the uncomfortable truth: there's no official legal definition of "clean beauty" anywhere in the UK, EU, or US. None. It's an industry-created term, which means brands can — and sometimes do — abuse it freely.

In practice, clean beauty typically means products that are formulated without ingredients linked to potential health risks. Think parabens, sulphates, phthalates, synthetic fragrances, and petrochemicals. It also often involves ethical production, sustainability, and cruelty-free standards.

So the real question isn't "does Salt and Stone say they're clean?" — it's "can they prove it?"

What Ingredients Does Salt & Stone Avoid?

According to Salt & Stone's founder, the brand never uses artificial fragrances, sulfates, petrochemicals, parabens, phthalates, or GMOs. Their ingredients are grown and produced in ethical and sustainable ways, without the use of pesticides.

That's a fairly comprehensive exclusion list. For context, here's why each of those matters:

These aren't just marketing bullet points. These are things that conscious consumers and dermatologists actually look for when assessing whether a skincare brand can be trusted.

What's Actually In Salt & Stone Products?

Salt & Stone focuses on natural, organic, and cruelty-free ingredients, researching the quality of each ingredient extensively and taking no shortcuts. Their deodorant — probably their most famous product — is a good example of this in action.

The formula includes seaweed extracts (antioxidant-rich kelp to soothe and regenerate skin), probiotics (natural ferments to balance the skin's microbiome), hyaluronic acid (known for holding up to 1000x its weight in moisture), and a moisturising oil blend of coconut oil, shea butter, and sunflower seed oil.

These aren't fillers. Each ingredient has a functional reason to be in the formula. That's the kind of intentional formulation that separates a genuine clean brand from one that just adds the word "natural" to a label.

What Does the EWG Say About Salt & Stone?

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) runs the Skin Deep database — one of the most respected independent tools for assessing cosmetic ingredient safety. EWG's Skin Deep database gives practical solutions to protect yourself and your family from everyday exposures to chemicals in personal care products.

Every product and ingredient in Skin Deep receives a two-part score — one for hazard and one for data availability. The safest products score well on both counts, with a low hazard rating and a fair or better data availability rating.

Multiple Salt & Stone products appear in the EWG database, including their body washes and deodorant lines. Products like their Black Rose & Oud Body Wash and their Eucalyptus Deodorant have been independently logged on the platform, giving consumers a third-party view of ingredient safety.

Salt & Stone's formulations largely meet the requirements of the Credo Clean Standard, one of the stricter clean beauty benchmarks in the industry. Their ingredient selections generally align with EWG standards for lower-risk ingredients.

Certifications: The Proof Is in the Paperwork

Anyone can say they're cruelty-free. Not everyone can prove it. That's where third-party certifications earn their worth.

Salt & Stone's commitment to protecting the planet runs through everything they do — from packaging created from up-cycled ocean plastics, to manufacturing via renewable solar and hydroelectric energy, and a Leaping Bunny certification.

Leaping Bunny Certification is administered by the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC). It means the product has been thoroughly vetted to ensure no animal testing was involved at any stage of production. Crucially, this is an annual vetting process — not a one-and-done paid certification. A business cannot simply buy it. They must attest in writing to their processes and those of all ingredient suppliers.

All Salt & Stone products are vegan. The brand is Leaping Bunny certified, meaning all products are developed without animal testing. Salt & Stone commits every year to maintaining these ethical standards to ensure all ingredients and manufacturing processes adhere to the highest environmental and animal welfare standards.

The Sustainability Story

Clean ingredients are one part of the equation. Clean production is another. Salt & Stone covers both.

The brand manufactures products using renewable solar and hydroelectric energy. Their deodorant and sunscreen stick plastic containers are made from ocean plastic and other recycled, biodegradable materials. All packaging is recyclable and made from post-consumer recycled materials.

Each deodorant stick uses recyclable packaging made from ocean plastic, diverting 18 water bottles from landfills per unit produced. That's a specific, measurable claim — not vague "eco-friendly" language.

For those building a sustainable lifestyle, this matters. It's one thing to put good ingredients on your skin. It's another to ensure that the packaging those ingredients come in isn't piling up in the ocean. Salt & Stone takes a position on both fronts.

If you're also thinking about sustainability at home, you might find useful reading in our article on common yard cleanup mistakes that create too much green waste — another angle on reducing your environmental footprint.

The Clean Brand Checklist: How Does Salt & Stone Score?

The one area where Salt & Stone doesn't have a perfect score is the EWG Verified™ mark. Not all products carry it. That said, their ingredient selections generally align with EWG standards for lower-risk ingredients, and their Leaping Bunny certification is arguably a more rigorous ongoing commitment anyway.

Is Salt & Stone Worth the Price?

Let's be real — Salt & Stone isn't the cheapest option on the shelf. Clean formulations cost more to develop. Ethical sourcing adds cost. Ocean plastic packaging is more expensive than standard plastic. This gets reflected in the price tag.

But price-per-performance is the real question. Salt & Stone's products combine active botanical ingredients drawn from sea and mountain environments with scientific formulation, to create high-performance skincare that supports an active, wellness-focused life.

You're not just paying for clean. You're paying for something that actually works. Their deodorant, in particular, has a strong cult following among people who've tried and abandoned multiple "natural" alternatives that just didn't hold up.

If you care about your skin and what you put on it — and you're building a home environment that reflects those same values — it's worth exploring what else around the home affects your skin, including the surprising debate around silk pillowcases and acne.

Honest Caveats: Where Could Salt & Stone Improve?

No brand gets a perfect score without scrutiny. Here are a few fair points to consider:

Fragrance transparency. Salt & Stone uses natural fragrances, which is better than synthetic, but "fragrance" can still be a broad term even when plant-derived. If you have highly sensitive skin or fragrance allergies, it's worth reading the full ingredient list of each product before buying.

Not all products are EWG Verified™. The EWG Verified™ mark requires active submission, fee payment, and full ingredient disclosure to EWG's standards. Not having it doesn't mean a product is unsafe — but it does mean independent review has been partial rather than comprehensive across the entire range.

Pricing. Clean products cost more to make. That's real. If your budget doesn't stretch to premium skincare, Salt & Stone isn't the most accessible option. That's a genuine limitation, not a mark against their ethics.

That said, these are minor caveats against a very strong overall profile.

So, Is Salt And Stone A Clean Brand? The Verdict

Sustainability, transparency, and clean beauty are central to Salt & Stone's identity. Their ingredient sourcing avoids pesticides; their formulations steer clear of unnecessary or harmful additives like sulphates, parabens, and artificial fragrances; and their packaging is often made from up-cycled ocean plastics — a commitment that goes beyond lip service.

Yes. Salt and Stone is a genuinely clean brand. Not because they shout about it loudly — but because the evidence stacks up when you actually look.

They don't use parabens, sulphates, petrochemicals, phthalates, GMOs, or artificial fragrances. They hold a Leaping Bunny certification that they renew annually. They use ocean plastic in their packaging and manufacture with renewable energy. Their formulations are built around real botanicals — seaweed, spirulina, kelp, probiotics — not filler ingredients dressed up with science-sounding names.

And if you're in the process of building a cleaner, more intentional home environment, the conversation doesn't stop at skincare. Check out our broader coverage of home furnishings that support modern, conscious living for inspiration that goes room by room.