
Paul Mitchell is an American manufacturer of professional hair care products and has a longstanding commitment to ending animal testing globally but is Paul Mitchell still cruelty-free and vegan?
Is Paul Mitchell Cruelty-Free?
Yes, Paul Mitchell is Cruelty-free! None of Paul Mitchell’s ingredients, formulations, or finished products are tested on animals, anywhere in the world.
Paul Mitchell has confirmed they do not test their products or ingredients on animals, they do not allow others to test on their behalf, and their suppliers also do not test on animals.
Below is what’s currently stated on Paul Mitchell’s website:
Paul Mitchell Sold in China?
Several cruelty-free consumers have informed me that Paul Mitchell is now selling their products in China but claim to still be cruelty-free.
Here is what’s currently stated on Paul Mitchell’s website:
I emailed and asked Paul Mitchell how they were able to market select Paul Mitchell products in China while bypassing China’s animal testing requirements.
They informed me that with the China FDA’s cooperation, they agreed to test a small selection of products for approval without the normal animal testing required and as a result, Paul Mitchell was granted approval to market a select offering of Paul Mitchell and their Tea Tree products in China without animal testing.
“Thank you for your inquiry. In 2012, John Paul Mitchell Systems® partnered with an American company that is at the forefront of tissue engineering and is a world leader in the production of innovative 3D reconstructed human tissue models. Their innovative use of non-animal (in-vitro) testing had the powerful synergistic effect of lower costs and significantly improved product safety.
John Paul Mitchell Systems® brought a group of respected scientists from China to work side by side and train with their team and, as a result, the China FDA accepted the impressive results and reproducibility of the non-animal test alternatives and agreed to test a small selection of products for approval without the normal animal testing required. Subsequently, we were granted approval to market a select offering of Paul Mitchell® and Tea Tree products in China—without animal testing.
Due to the hard work and dedication of the team, and in compliance with local laws, John Paul Mitchell Systems® is now able to service hairstylists and guests in China while maintaining its core corporate value of zero animal testing. Thanks to years of research and diligence, John Paul DeJoria’s steadfast commitment to providing the finest-quality, cruelty-free professional products continues today.
According to co-founder and Chairman of the Board John Paul DeJoria, “Since the Paul Mitchell brand was founded in 1980, we have always adhered to our strict no-animal testing policy and will continue to do so in the future. We are proud to be the first professional beauty company to announce that we don’t conduct or condone animal testing.”
I then asked about the issue of post-market animal testing where Chinese officials will pull product off from store shelves and test them on animals and this is often done without the company’s knowledge or consent.
Paul Mitchell reassured their products are not subject to post-market animal tests in China and stated, “As long as the products are properly registered and shipped to approved outlets, they will not test.”
It’s from my understanding that Paul Mitchell is only offering a small selection of their approved products to specific outlets in China, specifically for use in hair salons or by hairstylists in China and therefore these products are not required to be tested on animals.
Paul Mitchell is included on our List of Cruelty-Free Brands.
You can find Paul Mitchell products on Amazon and Ulta.
Is Paul Mitchell Vegan?
Not all of Paul Mitchell’s products are vegan as some of their products contain animal-derived ingredients or by-products. However, Paul Mitchell does have some vegan options.
Please reference below for a list of Paul Mitchell vegan products.
Paul Mitchell Vegan Products
Below is a list of Paul Mitchell products that are suitable for vegans and do not contain any animal-derived ingredients or by-products.
You can also find out which of their products are vegan as they’re labelled accordingly on their website under each product description.
Shampoo – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- Awapuhi Shampoo
- Baby Don’t Cry Shampoo
- Color Protect Shampoo
- Dry Wash
- Extra-Body Shampoo
- Instant Moisture Shampoo
- Mitch Double Hitter 2-in-1 Shampoo & Conditioner
- Platinum Blonde Shampoo
- Shampoo One
- Shampoo Two
- Shampoo Three
- Spring Loaded Frizz-Fighting Shampoo
- Super Skinny Shampoo
- Super Strong Shampoo
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Curl Refresh Foam
- Tea Tree Scalp Care Anti-Thinning Shampoo
- Tea Tree Special Color Shampoo
- Tea Tree Special Shampoo
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Moisturizing Shampoo
- Tea Tree Lemon Sage Thickening Shampoo
Conditioner – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- Color Protect Conditioner
- Instant Moisture Conditioner
- Mitch Double Hitter 2-in-1 Shampoo & Conditioner
- Spring Loaded Frizz-Fighting Conditioner
- Super Skinny Conditioner
- Super Strong Conditioner
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Moisturizing Conditioner
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Moisturizing Cowash
- Tea Tree Scalp Care Anti-Thinning Conditioner
- Tea Tree Special Color Conditioner
- Tea Tree Special Conditioner
- The Conditioner
- The Detangler
Hair + Scalp Treatments – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- Awapuhi Moisture Mist
- Taming Spray
- Tea Tree Hair and Body Moisturizer
- Tea Tree Hair and Scalp Treatment
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Conditioning Leave-In Spray
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Deep Conditioning Mineral Hair Mask
- The Conditioner
Hair Styling Products – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- Extra-Body Boost
- Extra-Body Finishing Spray
- Extra-Body Firm Finishing Spray
- Extra-Body Sculpting Foam
- Extra-Body Sculpting Gel
- Firm Style Dry Wax
- Firm Style Freeze and Shine Super Spray
- Firm Style Stay Strong
- Firm Style Super Clean Extra
- Firm Style Super Clean Sculpting Gel
- Firm Style XTG Extreme Thickening Glue
- Flexible Style Fast Drying Sculpting Spray
- Flexible Style Hair Sculpting Lotion
- Flexible Style Hold Me Tight
- Flexible Style Hot Off The Press
- Flexible Style Round Trip
- Flexible Style Sculpting Foam
- Flexible Style Spray Wax
- Flexible Style Super Clean Spray
- Flexible Style Super Sculpt
- Flexible Style Wax Works Gel
- Gloss Drops
- Mitch Construction Paste Styling Hair Paste
- Mitch Hardwired Spiking Hair Glue
- Mitch Reformer Texturizing Hair Putty
- Mitch Steady Grip Hair Gel
- Re-Works Texture Cream
- Soft Style Fast Form
- Soft Style Foaming Pommade
- Soft Style Quick Slip
- Soft Style Soft Sculpting Spray Gel
- Soft Style Soft Spray Finishing Spray
- Soft Style Super Clean Light
- Soft Style The Cream
- Straight Works
- Super Skinny Relaxing Balm
- Super Skinny Serum
- Tea Tree Firm Hold Gel
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Curl Refresh Foam
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Defining Gel
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Nourishing Oil
- Tea Tree Lavender Mint Taming Cream
- Tea Tree Scalp Care Anti-Thinning Root Lift Foam
- Tea Tree Shaping Cream
- Tea Tree Special Wave Refresher Spray
- Tea Tree Styling Gel
- Tea Tree Styling Wax
- Thicken Up Styling Liquid
- Twirl Around
- Ultimate Color Repair Triple Rescue
- Ultimate Wave
Skin Care + Body – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- Awapuhi Moisture Mist
- Tea Tree Aromatic Oil
- Tea Tree Body Bar
- Tea Tree Hair and Body Moisturizer
- Tea Tree Hand Soap
- Tea Tree Shave Gel
Hair Color – Paul Mitchell Vegan
- All Paul Mitchell Professional Hair Color products do not contain any animal-derived ingredients and are 100% vegan, including the color XG, The Demi, and The POP XG.
This vegan product list is updated as frequently as possible, please be aware that formulations may have changed since the publication of this post. If you have new information to suggest one of the above products isn’t vegan, please email me at [email protected] to let me know.
Not Vegan – Paul Mitchell
The following Paul Mitchell products contain animal-derived ingredients or by-products and are not suitable for vegans. This non-vegan product list was provided by Paul Mitchell.
- Flexible Style ESP – not vegan
- Flexible Style Spray Wax – not vegan
- Tea Tree Grooming Pomade – not vegan
- Tea Tree Lemon Sage Thickening Conditioner – not vegan
- Tea Tree Lemon Sage Thickening Spray – not vegan
- Tea Tree Scalp Care Anti-Thinning Tonic – not vegan
- MITCH Matterial – not vegan
- MVRCK (all products) – not vegan
- Awapuhi Wild Ginger (all products) – not vegan
- Marula Rare Oil 3-in-1 Styling Cream – not vegan
- Marula Rare Oil Style Extending Primer – not vegan
- InvisibleWear (all products) – not vegan
Is Paul Mitchell Ethical?
Based in: US
Products Manufactured in: Paul Mitchell styling tools are manufactured in China and their liquid lines are manufactured throughout the US.
Sustainability & Environmental Initiatives: Paul Mitchell states, “We’ve searched the world for natural and sustainable ingredients, from establishing a solar-powered awapuhi farm in Hawaii to wild-harvesting marula oil, a beauty secret from Africa. […] We pride ourselves on being eco-conscious and environmentally friendly as we continually search for sustainable ingredients and work toward adopting the most current green practices in packaging and supply chain.”
Eco-Friendly Packaging Initiatives: Paul Mitchell states, “This year, we’re taking our commitment to reducing, reusing, repurposing and recycling up a notch. We already use recyclable and/or post-consumer recycled (or PCR) material in all of our paper-based packaging, but we’re very excited to announce that, starting this year, Tea Tree will begin phasing in post-consumer recycled packaging for all bottles, tubes and pucks!”
Giving Back Initiatives: Paul Mitchell has a long list of charities and causes that they have and continue to support over the years. “John Paul Mitchell Systems® and Paul Mitchell Schools have donated millions of dollars to hundreds of philanthropic causes: from environmental protection to children’s charities and human rights.”
Ingredients and Formulations Claims: Some of Paul Mitchell products claim to be Gluten-Free, Paraben-Free, or Sulfate-Free, but not all, check their website’s product description to see each product’s claims.
I hope this article helped you to understand Paul Mitchell’s cruelty-free and vegan status and by choosing cruelty-free together, we can help end animal testing for cosmetics once and for all!
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Chris
January 8, 2021Thank you for the great list! Now I know I can buy the vegan Platinum Blonde Shampoo 🙂
Molly Butler
July 27, 2017I checked Leaping Bunny and they don’t come up on the list. It also stated that they didn’t recommit to the program. Of course, this was last year, so maybe it’s different this year. I’m not sure if that means anything or not. Ugh. What to do? Also, as a recent convert to veganism, I want to thank you for all the time and effort you put in to this site. It’s been soooo helpful to me.