Does Deodorant stick have microplastics?
The short answer
Low. A polypropylene barrel holding a waxy solid, applied to a small area of skin. The interesting part of this category is the formula and the packaging waste rather than particle exposure.
Why Deodorant stick scores 29
Small application area and a solid, waxy product rather than a liquid
The polypropylene barrel is in contact with the product for its whole life, and the twist mechanism abrades the stick against it
Applied to skin that is often freshly shaved, which is a barrier consideration rather than a particle one
"Natural" deodorants are typically the same plastic barrel with a different formula
Where the 29 comes from
Five components, added. The page renders the parts rather than a stored total, so the number cannot disagree with the reasoning behind it.
- Packaging contact
- 12 / 30
- Use conditions
- 8 / 25
- Measured release
- 4 / 25
- Polymer behaviour
- 5 / 10
- Processing
- 0 / 10
What material touches the contents, over how much surface area, for how long. Glass and steel score near zero here; a film pressed against fatty food scores near the top.
Heat, abrasion, flexing, repeated opening, reuse beyond design life. The same bottle scores differently in a fridge and in a hot car.
What a laboratory actually counted, for this product or its category. A high number here means real particles were measured, not that the material looks suspicious.
How this specific polymer behaves — brittleness, fat solubility of its additives, thermal stability, whether it is a polymer named in existing restrictions.
What happened before you bought it. Retort sterilisation inside the pack, hot-filling, and pressurised brewing all happen at the most migration-favourable moment.
What we don't know
Unmeasured. This is a low-stakes page and we would rather say so than manufacture concern — if you are prioritising, the kitchen and your drinking water are where the measured evidence is.
This section is on every page in the database, including the ones where the answer is comfortable. How evidence grades work →
Better options
Ordered by how much they change, not by how much they cost.
Cardboard-tube deodorant
a real and growing category, and it works the same way
Deodorant in a glass jar or metal tin
applied with fingers
Do not reorganise your routine over this one
honest advice, and rare in this category
Check the one in your kitchen
This page scores Deodorant stick as a product. Formulations, packaging and suppliers change, and the specific item you own has its own condition — a scratched pan and a new one are not the same object. Scan yours for a score built from what is actually in front of you.
Scan my personal careSources behind this score
Each with the finding we use it for and the limitation that finding carries — because a study quoted without its boundaries is how this subject got so noisy.
- report2026
Earth Action 2026 — Estimated roughly 1,000 tonnes of microplastics migrate from packaging into food and drink annually — about 130 mg per person per year — with PET bottles responsible for around a third, and found UV exposure can raise release up to 100×.
Limitation: An industry-funded modelling exercise, not a laboratory study, and not peer-reviewed. We use it for the relative ranking of formats rather than for any absolute number.
- agency2026
US FDA — States that current scientific evidence does not demonstrate that the levels of microplastics detected in foods pose a risk to human health, while listing detection and characterisation as a research priority.
Limitation: A statement about the state of evidence, not a finding of safety. "Not demonstrated to be harmful" and "demonstrated to be harmless" are different claims, and the agency is explicit that the research is ongoing.