Hello Deodorant Firsthand Review, Not Sponsored

Hello, a Colgate-Palmolive Company, makes a mostly natural, aluminum-free deodorant that I tested out on my very smelly pits.

Claims:

• Clinically proven 24-hour odor protection
• Soothes and moisturizes
• Gender neutral formula
• No staining
• No aluminum, baking soda, parabens, talcs, dyes, artificial fragrances, gluten, or phthalates,
• Cruelty-free (Leaping Bunny Certified and PETA recognized) and vegan
• Container made from all recycled plastic

This article contains affiliate links, upon purchase I earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Active Ingredients in Hello Deodorant:

1. Magnesium – magnesium functions quite well as a deodorant and antiperspirant (the Doctorly doctors classify it as an antiperspirant that can stop sweat).
2. Charcoal – charcoal can absorb odor molecules.
3. Zinc Ricinoleate – zinc ricinoleate neutralizes odor-causing molecules. It binds to and encapsulates these odor molecules, preventing them from being released. It also has antimicrobial properties that help inhibit the growth of odor-causing bacteria.
4. Arrowroot – this is moisture-absorbing and therefore acts as a natural deodorant to decrease sweat and odor.
5. Essential Oils – many essential oils do more than mask the odor from armpits, many of them are antibacterial including Tea Tree Oil.

Ingredients in Hello Deodorant:

Hello with Charcoal:

• Maranta arundinacea root powder (arrowroot powder)
• Cocos nucifera (coconut oil)
• Stearyl alcohol (produced from stearic acid, a naturally occurring fatty acid)
• Caprylic/capric triglyceride (coconut oil)
• Butyrospermum parkii (shea butter)
• Copernicia cerifera (carnauba wax)
• Triethyl citrate (an ester of citric acid)
• Oryza sativa (rice bran wax)
• Natural fragrance
• Magnesium hydroxide
• Zinc ricinoleate
• Tocopheryl acetate (synthetic vitamin E)
• Charcoal powder
• Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) leaf oil

EWG and Clean Rating

Hello Clean & Fresh Charcoal has an EWG rating of 3, their previous fragrance-free formula had a rating of 2. Natural fragrance contributes to a higher rating on EWG due to allergy potential.

Hello (Sweet Coconut) Deodorant tested positive for 14 ppm organic fluorine, by Mamavation. Fluorine is an indicator of possible PFAS. Mamavation believes this may be accidental contamination (like from factory machinery) as it’s not high enough to be intentionally added.

Hello claims they use no aluminum, baking soda, parabens, talcs, dyes, artificial fragrances, gluten, or phthalates.

SPECS

Price:

$4.89 on their website, free shipping over 35$.

If you are trying this for the first time, I would recommend getting it on Amazon which has free shipping with Prime so that you don’t have to spend $35.

Scents:

• Sage and Eucalyptus – smells more like lemon
• Coconut – smells like shea butter and coconut
• Unicorn – smells like candy
• Peach – a couple of people have said it doesn’t really smell like peach.
• Lavender – smells like lavender but one person described it like a medicine smell

Review of Hello Deodorant

Effectiveness: Hello kept me smelling good longer than Native without baking soda but not as long as Native, or any other brand, with baking soda. Hello can get me through 12 hours and certainly has some effect beyond that.

Smell: They do not have an unscented version but they say they are naturally scented. The Clean & Fresh scent smelled like cucumber and melon to me. The scent is fairly strong, and lasts longer than essential oils do. As someone who was sensitive to scent for a long time I would have guessed this is synthetic, especially because scents based on essential oils don’t last very long and don’t have bite to them.

Texture: Hello with Charcoal goes on slightly gray if you over-apply, but then is clear if you rub it in, is less oily than other brands like Native and dries faster.

PS. See my review of Hello vs Native here.

Corinne Segura is an InterNACHI-certified Healthy Homes Inspector with certifications in Building Biology, Healthier Materials and Sustainable Buildings, and more. She has 10 years of experience helping others create healthy homes. You can book a consult here.