The percentage is the active matter — the share of the product that is genuinely sodium alkyl sulfate. The rest is mainly unsulfated fatty alcohol, inorganic salts and moisture.
Moving from 92% to 95% buys you two things:
- More surfactant per kilogram — roughly 3% more functional material, which matters in concentrated and solid formats.
- A cleaner impurity profile — premium grades are made under tighter process control, so unsulfated alcohol, salts and color are lower. That shows up as better odor, whiter color and milder skin feel in personal care, and acceptable taste characteristics in toothpaste.
Typical usage: laundry powders and industrial cleaners run on SLS 92%; toothpaste and premium personal care use 94–95% grades such as SLS 94%.
When comparing offers, normalize to cost per kilogram of active matter: price per kg ÷ (active % ÷ 100). Our grade selection guide walks through the calculation with examples.