Hair Colouring Patents: Top Companies & Filing Trends 2026
- 50.7% concentration. The five leading assignees combined account for 2,647 of the 5,224 records in scope — half the field sits with a handful of filers.
- Filing has cooled since its 2017 peak. 261 records published that year against 8 so far in 2026, with the last complete comparison showing 2021's 130 falling to 2024's 68, a 48% drop.
- Chemistry classes dominate over application classes. A61K medicinal preparations covers 83.9% of records and A61Q cosmetics use covers 79.6%, while hairdressing equipment (A45D) sits at just 7.4%.
Filing growth compares 2021 (130 records) with 2024 (68) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 5,224 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this landscape covers
Hair colouring and bleaching patents cluster around oxidative dye chemistry, formulation stability and the trade-off between colour performance and fibre damage. The search set combines core dye and bleach terminology with the technical concerns that dominate recent filings — ammonia-free systems, developer strength, colour fastness and allergy risk — rather than the broader cosmetics category as a whole.
Records span filings from 2015 through the mid-2026 data cut-off, drawn primarily from United States, European, PCT, Australian and Japanese receiving offices. Because publication trails filing by roughly 18 months, the most recent one to two years understate actual filing activity and should be read as provisional.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 5,224-record dataset: how filing volume has moved year over year, and which IPC subclasses carry the claims.
A 2017 peak followed by a multi-year decline
Filings peaked at 261 records in 2017. The most recent complete comparison — 2021 at 130 down to 2024 at 68 — shows a 48% contraction over three years. Years after 2024 are still filling in under publication lag and should not be read as a continued fall.
Formulation chemistry outweighs application hardware
A61K (medicinal preparations) and A61Q (cosmetics use) each cover the large majority of records, at 83.9% and 79.6% of the 5,224 records respectively, confirming this is overwhelmingly a formulation-chemistry field. Dye-specific class C09B (9.0%) and textile dyeing class D06P (6.0%) trail well behind, while hairdressing equipment (A45D, 7.4%) is a minor share — the patenting activity is in what goes into the bottle, not the tools used to apply it.
Shares are the percentage of the 5,224 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Hair Colouring and Bleaching with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about hair colouring and bleaching and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited prior art in this field
Hair colouring compositions (US20070186357A1)
The present invention relates to an oxidative hair colouring and bleaching composition comprising an oxidizing agent, a source of carbonate ions, an alkalising agent, and specific dyes, utilised at pH 9.5 and below which improve colour delivery and intensity, excellent dye deposition and colour and improved grey coverage, particularly for dark shades such as brown or black. The compositions also exhibit low odour and deliver a high level of lift and lightening equal to currently utilised ammonia/peroxide systems, whilst reducing peroxide concentration and hair fibre damage.Filed by Procter & Gamble, published 2007-08-16.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US5534267A | Composition for the oxidative dyeing of hair containing 4,5-diaminopyrazole derivatives as well as new 4,5-di… | 507 |
| 2 | US20110268802A1 | Delivery particle | 337 |
| 3 | WO2001066646A1 | A method of colouring hair using cationic dyes | 311 |
| 4 | WO2003029359A1 | Cationic reactive dyes | 301 |
| 5 | US3912808A | Hair waving and straightening process and composition containing water-soluble amino and quaternary ammonium … | 281 |
| 6 | US3986825A | Hair coloring composition containing water-soluble amino and quaternary ammonium polymers | 231 |
| 7 | US6171347B1 | Compositions, methods and kits for reductively removing color from dyed hair | 207 |
| 8 | US20110269657A1 | Delivery particles | 191 |
| 9 | US6540791B1 | Stable alkaline hair bleaching compositions and method for use thereof | 185 |
| 10 | US4027008A | Hair bleaching composition containing water-soluble amino and quaternary ammonium polymers | 181 |
Citation counts reflect influence within the searched corpus and skew toward older filings; they are a signal of foundational status, not current commercial relevance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Reading the concentration, trend and class data together points to where claim space is occupied and where it has loosened.
Half the field sits with a handful of filers
The five leading assignees combined hold 2,647 of the 5,224 records in scope, a 50.7% share. The top ten extend that to 65.4% (3,416 records), meaning the remaining ranked companies and the long tail beyond them compete for roughly a third of the field.
Filing activity has thinned since 2021
Complete-year filings fell from 130 in 2021 to 68 in 2024, a 48% decline. Several leading assignees show zero filings in the latest tracked year, though this should be weighed against publication lag rather than read as abandonment of the space.
The claim space is chemistry-heavy
A61K and A61Q together dominate the classification profile, while smaller classes like C09B (dyes and pigments, 9.0%) and D06P (textile dyeing, 6.0%) point to narrower, more specific pockets of activity worth checking individually before filing.
One 1990s filing still anchors the field
US5534267A, covering 4,5-diaminopyrazole derivatives for oxidative dyeing, carries 507 citations — far ahead of any other record in scope. Its heavy citation load reflects foundational status in oxidative dye chemistry rather than current filing relevance.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to hair colouring and bleaching, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is filing, and where the field has gone quiet
The ranking is dominated by established personal-care and consumer-goods groups, with most measurable recent-year momentum flat or negative — consistent with the broader filing decline since 2021.
A single filer holds a clear lead
The top-ranked assignee holds 1,170 records, well ahead of fifth place at 259 and tenth place at 100 — a steep drop-off that marks this as a leader-plus-field structure rather than an evenly spread market.
Corporate structure shows up in joint filings
The strongest co-assignee pair in the data links two entities under the same corporate umbrella at 82 shared records, with inventor-linked co-assignee pairs at 38 and 25 records showing how individual inventors get named alongside their corporate assignee.
Recent-year activity has gone quiet at the top
Multiple leading assignees show zero filings in the latest tracked year, several with -100% year-on-year change. Given the roughly 18-month publication lag, this is likely to be partly a reporting artefact rather than a full exit from the space.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Firmenich SA | 1 | -50% |
| Procter & Gamble Co | 0 | — |
| Kao Germany GmbH | 0 | -100% |
| L'Oreal SA | 0 | -100% |
| Kao Corp | 0 | — |
| Henkel AG & Co. KGaA | 0 | -100% |
| Noxell Corp | 0 | — |
| Unilever PLC | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate, white space identification, or competitive tracking.
Check freedom-to-operate against the leader's claims
With one assignee holding 1,170 records, any new oxidative dye or bleaching formulation should be checked against that portfolio's claim scope before development proceeds.
Run a claim comparison in Patsnap EurekaTrack whether the 2021-2024 decline continues
The 48% drop in complete-year filings from 2021 to 2024 warrants monitoring as 2025-2026 data fills in, to see whether it reflects a genuine slowdown or a temporary lull.
Set up a filing trend alert in Patsnap EurekaProbe the under-claimed branches directly
Ammonia-free lift systems and allergen-reduced coupler chemistry show thinner filing density than the core oxidative-dye claims, making them candidates for a closer novelty search.
Explore white space in Patsnap EurekaCommon questions on hair colouring and bleaching patents
The assignee ranking is led by a single company with 1,170 records, well ahead of the fifth-placed company at 259. The top five assignees together account for 2,647 of the 5,224 records in scope, or 50.7% of the field, and the top ten extend that to 65.4%. This concentration means most freedom-to-operate work in this space should start with the leading handful of portfolios rather than a broad survey of all ranked filers.
Filing peaked in 2017 at 261 records and has trended down since. The most reliable comparison, using complete years, shows 130 filings in 2021 falling to 68 in 2024, a 48% decline over that span. Years from 2025 onward are still incomplete because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so it is too early to call the recent trend a continued fall rather than a reporting gap.
The classification data shows this is overwhelmingly a formulation-chemistry field: A61K (medicinal preparations) covers 83.9% of the 5,224 records and A61Q (cosmetics use) covers 79.6%. Narrower classes such as C09B for organic dyes and pigments (9.0%) and D06P for textile dyeing (6.0%) capture more specific chemistry niches. Hairdressing equipment under A45D is a comparatively small share at 7.4%, indicating that claims center on chemical composition rather than application tools.
US20070186357A1, filed by Procter & Gamble and published in 2007, claims an oxidative hair colouring and bleaching composition combining an oxidising agent, a carbonate ion source, an alkalising agent and specific dyes, operated at pH 9.5 or below. The stated advantages are improved colour delivery and grey coverage for dark shades, lower odour, and lightening performance comparable to ammonia/peroxide systems while reducing peroxide concentration and fibre damage. Anyone formulating a lower-pH oxidative system with reduced peroxide load should review this filing's specific pH threshold and reagent combination before finalising a formulation.
The classification and momentum data point to comparatively thin filing density in ammonia-free lift systems, colour-fastness test methodologies, and allergen-reduced coupler chemistry, relative to the dense core of oxidative-dye and bleach claims. Several leading assignees also show zero filings in the latest tracked year, though this partly reflects publication lag rather than a genuine pullback. A targeted novelty search in these narrower branches is more likely to surface open claim space than a broad search across the core oxidative chemistry, which is heavily occupied by the leading five assignees.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company’s registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.