PFAS in Deodorant, 289 Graded and None in Our Poor Band

Deodorant is not where most PFAS exposure comes from, and our data says so plainly. We graded 289 deodorants and antiperspirants. 243 of them grade 75 out of 100, five reach 100, 17 grade 65, and none lands in our Poor or Bad bands.

What separates the top from the middle is not aluminum, not "natural" marketing and not price. It is whether there is outside evidence about PFAS on record. Every deodorant at 100 has either a third-party certification or a published lab test that found no PFAS. Dove, Degree, Old Spice, Secret and Arm and Hammer say nothing about PFAS and sit at 75 or 65, and after our 17 September 2026 corrections so do Tom's of Maine, Crystal, Megababe and LAVANILA.

Summary comparison table

Product	PFAS grade	What is on record
Tom's of Maine Long Lasting Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Tom's of Maine Wicked Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Megababe Women's Santal Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
LAVANILA The Healthy Deodorant Vanilla	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Crystal Deodorant Stick	Excellent, 75/100	Mineral salts, brand says nothing about PFAS
Primally Pure Baking Soda Free Deodorant	Excellent, 100/100	Mineral powder blend, published Mamavation test found no organic fluorine
Native Deodorant Discovery 3-Pack	Excellent, 75/100	Plain formula, no claim either way
Kosas Chemistry AHA Serum Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Water-based serum, no claim either way
Dove Men+Care Aluminum Free Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Schmidt's Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Old Spice Pure Sport High Endurance Deodorant Stick	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Arm and Hammer Essentials Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS
Degree MotionSense Ultra Clear Anti-Perspirant	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS, no material credit
Secret Antiperspirant/Deodorant Invisible Solid	Excellent, 75/100	Brand says nothing about PFAS, no material credit
Secret Outlast Clear Gel Deodorant	Excellent, 75/100	Clear gel antiperspirant base

How we graded these

Every grade here is a model-based estimate built from publicly available product information and manufacturer disclosures, not a lab test performed by our team. A high score means lower concern based on reviewed sources, never PFAS-free and never safe. Across all 265 products the spread is five at 100 and 260 at 75. On 16 September 2026 we corrected eleven deodorants whose records had skipped the penalty for a brand saying nothing about PFAS, or had counted a glass bottle as the product's material, and one gel whose record described a waterproofing treatment that Secret never mentions. On 17 September 2026 we checked the brand PFAS-free claims and certifications in this category against their sources. We could not confirm them for Tom's of Maine, Puracy, Crystal, Megababe, LAVANILA, Lume or Hume, so 22 deodorants that graded 100 now grade 75. Look up any specific deodorant in our PFAS product finder.

Why almost everything sits at 75

A deodorant is a wax, powder, gel or liquid rubbed onto skin. Nothing about the job needs a water or oil repellent coating, which is the property fluorochemicals are usually used for, so most records describe a plain cosmetic base and earn a credit for it. What holds 243 of them at 75 is one factor, the brand says nothing about PFAS.

Seventeen more sit at 65. Their records describe the same kind of product but do not carry the base-material credit. That ten point gap is a difference in the record, not a finding against the product.

What gets a deodorant to 100

Every one of the five deodorants at 100 has outside evidence about PFAS on record. The Each & Every The Mini Edit is EWG Verified, and EWG's program prohibits PFAS, which our model counts as third-party verification. The other four Each & Every deodorants in our data do not carry that verification on their records and grade 75. Four Primally Pure deodorants, including the Baking Soda Free Deodorant, have a published Mamavation lab test that found no organic fluorine, which is the strongest positive factor our model has. Primally Pure itself says nothing about PFAS, so those four also carry the 15 point penalty for silence, and the lab result still takes them to 100.

Tom's of Maine is the clearest correction. All eleven of its deodorants in our data now grade 75. This guide previously said most of them carried third-party PFAS-free verification. We could not confirm that verification or any Tom's of Maine PFAS-free statement, so the brand is now recorded as saying nothing about PFAS. The Complete Protection Deodorant, whose record lists an aluminum zirconium active, grades the same 75 as the brand's aluminum-free products, which is a useful reminder that aluminum and PFAS are separate questions.

Natural marketing does not decide it

If you assumed the natural brands would all be at the top, the data is more mixed. Schmidt's Deodorant is a mineral and plant wax formula and grades 75, the same as Dove and Old Spice, because Schmidt's says nothing about PFAS either. Every Native listing we graded sits at 75 too, and none reaches the products at 100.

The words natural, clean and aluminum-free are claims about other things. What moves a deodorant from 75 to 100 in our model is something on record about PFAS. In this category today that is a third-party certification or a published lab result. A brand PFAS-free statement would also count, but after our 17 September 2026 checks no deodorant brand here has one on record.

The Poor grade that was not

When this guide was first published the Secret Outlast Clear Gel Deodorant graded 75, because its record described a waterproofing treatment on the gel. We said then that we would read it with caution, since a sweat-resistant gel is not a treated textile. We checked, and the treatment was never in Secret's description. Our grading model had read long-wear marketing as evidence of a coating. On 16 September 2026 we removed it, and the gel now grades 65 like most of Secret's range.

What to avoid

• Assuming natural, clean or aluminum-free means a PFAS statement. None of those words does, and several natural brands grade the same as the majors.
• Choosing on aluminum if your concern is PFAS. Aluminum salts are not fluorinated, and a Tom's of Maine deodorant with an aluminum active grades the same as the brand's aluminum-free ones.
• Reading 75 as a warning. It is the most common grade in the category and reflects silence about PFAS, not a finding.

Personal care is generally a lower-concern area in our data. Our toothpaste guide found every product at 75 for the same reason, and our shampoo and body wash roundups follow a similar pattern. For the places where PFAS use is more direct, see waterproof mascara.

Our pick

Based on available materials and data, we would choose the Primally Pure Baking Soda Free Deodorant at 100 out of 100, one of four Primally Pure deodorants with a published Mamavation test that found no organic fluorine. The Each & Every The Mini Edit also grades 100 on its EWG Verified certification. This guide previously picked Tom's of Maine Long Lasting Deodorant at 75 on third-party verification and Crystal Deodorant Stick at 75 on a brand claim. We could not confirm either, and on 17 September 2026 both moved to 75. And if you are happy with a mainstream brand, the honest answer is that a 75 here is a reasonable place to be. These grades are estimates built from disclosed materials, not laboratory proof, and nothing here is being called PFAS-free or safe by us.

FAQ

Does deodorant contain PFAS?

In our data, none of the 265 deodorants is recorded with a factor that points at PFAS use. They are described as plain waxes, powders, gels or liquids. Most brands make no statement either way, so absence of a finding is not the same as a confirmed absence.

Which deodorant brands say they are PFAS-free?

In our records, no deodorant brand currently has a brand PFAS-free statement on record. On 17 September 2026 we removed the claims and verification we had recorded for Tom's of Maine, Puracy, Crystal, Megababe, LAVANILA, Lume and Hume because we could not confirm them. Two brands have products at 100 on other grounds. Each & Every is EWG Verified, and four Primally Pure deodorants have a published Mamavation lab test that found no organic fluorine.

Is aluminum-free deodorant PFAS-free?

Not by definition. Aluminum salts are not fluorinated compounds, so aluminum-free is a claim about a different ingredient. In our data an aluminum-free Dove deodorant grades 75, and a Tom's of Maine deodorant with an aluminum zirconium active grades the same 75.

Are Dove, Degree and Secret deodorants bad for PFAS?

Our data does not show that. Dove and Degree mostly grade 75 and Secret mostly 65, because none of those brands says anything about PFAS. Any discussion of PFAS and health on this site describes association, not proven causation.