Honey has been part of beauty and personal care for a very long time. Now, the familiar ingredient is getting attention again, with beauty companies bringing it into more products and categories.
From skincare and haircare to fragrance, honey is showing up in products from different beauty brands. The interesting part isn't that someone discovered honey for the first time. It's that an ingredient with such a long history is finding its way back into modern beauty in so many different forms.
Honey Is Getting Attention in Skincare
One of the areas where honey is getting renewed attention is skincare.
Aunu Beauty, for example, has built a skincare line around honey, with products including a mask, essence and cleanser. Icon Skincare has also incorporated honey into its products.
Manuka honey is especially interesting because medical-grade versions have been used in wound care.
Dermatologist Adam Geyer, M.D., says honey can help hydrate the skin, support the skin barrier, and provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits. He also points to the use of medical-grade Manuka honey in hospitals for wound care.
That doesn't mean the honey sitting in your kitchen should be treated like a medical product. Medical-grade honey used in healthcare is prepared specifically for medical use.
But its history in wound care has helped make Manuka honey an interesting ingredient for beauty companies.
Haircare Brands Are Using Honey Too
Honey's return isn't limited to skincare.
Haircare is another area where brands have been using it as a featured ingredient.
Gisou, founded by Negin Mirsalehi, launched its first honey-based hair oil in 2015 and has since expanded into a larger range of honey-infused hair products. The brand has also moved into honey-infused hair and body mists.
Then there's &honey, a Japanese haircare brand that launched in the U.S. in January 2026. Its formulas use three types of honey: Manuka, acacia and Japanese honey. The brand offers different ranges aimed at concerns such as dry or damaged hair and frizz.
Guerlain's Abeille Royale line is another established example of honey being used in beauty products.
The appeal isn't only about the ingredient itself. Honey also has a distinctive color, texture and scent, which can add to the experience of using a beauty product.
Honey Is Moving Into Fragrance Too
Honey isn't just being used in products you put on your skin or hair.
It's also becoming a fragrance note.
Honey has a naturally sweet, warm character, making it a good fit for the continuing interest in gourmand fragrances.
Phlur's Honey Moon, for example, features a Manuka honey heart alongside orange blossom and mandarin, followed by notes including tonka, vanilla and sandalwood.
Other fragrances are also using honey notes, including Kilian's Forbidden Games and Dolce & Gabbana's Velvet Honey Santal.
A number of 2026 fragrance releases are also featuring honey, showing that the ingredient's return isn't limited to skincare or haircare.
As fragrance expert Ashlee Posner explained, honey can bring warmth and sweetness while adding more depth than a simple sugary note.
Why Honey Again?
Honey isn't a new discovery.
That's actually part of its appeal.
Beauty companies can take an ingredient people already recognize and use it in very different ways. Instead of simply being thought of as an old-fashioned home remedy, honey can now be incorporated into carefully formulated skincare, hair products and fragrances.
There is also a long history behind the ingredient.
Honey has been used in traditional remedies for generations, while medical-grade Manuka honey has a more recent connection to wound care.
And then there's the sensory side.
Honey has a recognizable golden color, texture and warm scent. Those qualities can make it appealing in everything from hair products to perfumes.
Jenn Krouse, founder of Aunu Beauty, has also talked about the appeal of combining familiar ingredients with modern beauty formulations.
This Isn't Just One Company's Idea
That's what makes the current honey story interesting.
We're seeing the ingredient appear in products from different companies and across different parts of the beauty industry.
Aunu Beauty and Icon Skincare are using honey in skincare.
Gisou, &honey and Guerlain have honey-focused beauty offerings.
And fragrance brands including Phlur, Kilian and Dolce & Gabbana are using honey as part of their scent profiles.
So this isn't simply about one company bringing back an old ingredient.
Honey is catching attention in several corners of beauty at once.
An Old Beauty Ingredient, Getting Attention Again
The interesting thing about honey's current moment is that it doesn't need to pretend to be something new.
It's an ingredient people have known for generations.
What's changing is how beauty companies are using it.
A jar of honey on the kitchen shelf is one thing. A honey-based cleanser, hair oil, body mist or fragrance is something else entirely.
And right now, beauty brands seem interested in exploring all of those possibilities.
Whether the current attention turns into a long-term beauty staple or eventually fades as another ingredient takes the spotlight remains to be seen.
For now, though, honey is clearly having another moment.
The ingredient has been here before. Now it's catching attention across beauty products all over again.
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