Is Burt's Bees cruelty free?
The short answer, who owns the brand, what's actually certified, and where to go instead — checked against the brand's own policy and the certifier registers.
Yes for the brand — but the parent company does test
Burt's Bees itself is certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny, but its parent company, Clorox, has no equivalent group-wide policy.
Who owns Burt's Bees?
The Clorox Company
Clorox acquired Burt's Bees in 2007. Clorox does not hold a Leaping Bunny certification for its wider portfolio, so shoppers who avoid brands with non-certified parents will want an independent alternative.
Is Burt's Bees vegan?
Not vegan. Beeswax and honey are core ingredients across the range, and some products contain lanolin or carmine — check each item.
Does Burt's Bees test on animals? The detail
This is the most common shape of a cruelty-free question: the brand qualifies, the parent does not. Leaping Bunny certifies at brand level, and Burt's Bees has held that certification with supplier monitoring for years. Whether that is enough is a values call — the certification is real, and so is the fact that money flows to a parent without a group-wide commitment.
Verify current market availability against the Leaping Bunny register rather than assuming; brand-level certification is what the register tracks.
Certified alternatives to Burt's Bees
Dr. Bronner's
Independent B Corp, vegan, no animal testing anywhere in the chain.
Ethique
Independent, certified cruelty-free and vegan lip and body care.
Pacifica
Leaping Bunny certified and vegan, with no conglomerate parent.
Sources we checked
Certification status changes when brands, ownership or market rules change. Always re-check the register before a purchase you care about.
How to check whether any brand is cruelty free
- Search the Leaping Bunny register. leapingbunny.org lists every brand certified with supplier-level monitoring — the strictest standard available.
- Check PETA's Beauty Without Bunnies database. crueltyfree.peta.org is broader but relies on brand attestation rather than independent supplier audits.
- Read the brand's own policy page. Look for a fixed cut-off date and a statement covering ingredient suppliers, not just finished products.
- Identify the parent company. Brand-level certification does not bind a conglomerate parent. Decide whether that matters to you before you buy.
- Separate cruelty-free from vegan. Cruelty-free is about testing; vegan is about ingredients. A product can be one without the other.
Frequently asked about Burt's Bees and animal testing
Is Burt's Bees cruelty free?+
Burt's Bees itself is certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny, but its parent company, Clorox, has no equivalent group-wide policy.
Does Burt's Bees test on animals?+
Burt's Bees states that it does not test its products or ingredients on animals, and that commitment is verified by Leaping Bunny rather than self-declared.
Who owns Burt's Bees?+
Burt's Bees is owned by The Clorox Company. Clorox acquired Burt's Bees in 2007. Clorox does not hold a Leaping Bunny certification for its wider portfolio, so shoppers who avoid brands with non-certified parents will want an independent alternative.
Is Burt's Bees vegan?+
Not vegan. Beeswax and honey are core ingredients across the range, and some products contain lanolin or carmine — check each item.
What are cruelty-free alternatives to Burt's Bees?+
Dr. Bronner's — Independent B Corp, vegan, no animal testing anywhere in the chain. Ethique — Independent, certified cruelty-free and vegan lip and body care. Pacifica — Leaping Bunny certified and vegan, with no conglomerate parent.
How can I verify Burt's Bees's cruelty-free status myself?+
Search the brand name in the Leaping Bunny register at leapingbunny.org and PETA's Beauty Without Bunnies database at crueltyfree.peta.org, then read the brand's own animal-testing policy page. If a brand appears on neither register, it is not certified — whatever the packaging says.
Other brands we've checked
How we assess Burt's Bees's testing policy
A cruelty-free assessment has three layers: the brand's own testing, testing commissioned from suppliers on raw materials, and testing required by law in any market where the brand sells. A company can honestly say it never tests and still have animal-tested ingredients or third-party-tested products in a regulated market.
Parent-company ownership does not automatically disqualify a brand, but it changes what a promise is worth: a subsidiary's policy can be revised after acquisition without a public announcement, so we track ownership alongside the policy itself.
Where a brand is certified by a recognised programme, that carries far more weight than a statement on an FAQ page, because certification requires supplier declarations and periodic renewal rather than a one-time claim.
Cruelty-free evidence, ranked
| Evidence | Strength | What it misses |
|---|---|---|
| Recognised certification | Strongest | Formulation ethics — certified does not mean vegan |
| Published policy naming suppliers and markets | Good | Verification depends on the brand's own reporting |
| Generic “we don't test” statement | Weak | Suppliers, third parties and regulated markets |
| No statement at all | None | Everything — treat as unverified |
Questions worth asking
- Do suppliers test?Ingredient-level testing is the most common blind spot.
- Where do you sell?Some markets can still require testing for certain categories.
- Who owns you?Ownership changes the durability of any promise.
- Is it also vegan?Cruelty-free covers testing, not animal-derived ingredients.