Once you start shopping for Aleppo soap, you’ll notice the same phrase everywhere: a percentage of laurel oil. 20% laurel. 40% laurel. Sometimes just “high laurel” with no number at all. It’s the single most important thing to understand before you buy — and it’s the difference between a soap you’ll love and one you’ll quietly retire to the back of the cupboard.
Here’s what that number actually means and how to pick the right one for your skin.
A quick reminder: what laurel oil does
Traditional Aleppo soap is made from two oils — olive and laurel. Olive oil is the gentle, moisturising base. Laurel (bay) oil is the active, cleansing, aromatic part. The more laurel a bar contains, the more cleansing and aromatic it is — and, because laurel oil is costly, the more expensive.
So the laurel percentage is really a dial between two qualities: gentle and moisturising at the low end, and deep-cleansing and aromatic at the high end.
What the percentages mean in practice
- Low laurel (around 5–15%). Mild, moisturising and easy to live with. The scent is subtle. This is the everyday, whole-family end of the range and the safest place to start.
- Medium laurel (around 20–25%). The popular middle ground — noticeably cleansing, a clear laurel scent, still comfortable for most skin. If you’re not sure, this is a sensible default.
- High laurel (around 30–40%+). Rich, deeply cleansing and strongly aromatic. Prized by long-time Aleppo soap users and often used on hair and for shaving. It’s the most expensive, and it can feel a little too cleansing on very dry skin.
How to choose for your skin
- Sensitive or dry skin: start low (5–15%). You get the gentle olive-oil character without a strong scent or a deep-clean feel.
- Normal or combination skin: a 20–25% bar is the comfortable all-rounder.
- Oily skin, or you just want a thorough clean: go higher (30%+), and enjoy the stronger scent.
- For hair or shaving: higher-laurel bars are the traditional choice.
A few honest pointers
- Higher isn’t “better” — it’s different. A 40% bar isn’t a better soap than a 12% bar; it’s a stronger one. Match it to your skin, not to the price tag.
- Fresh bars are more intense. A new high-laurel bar can be powerfully scented. It softens as it ages, so don’t judge it on day one.
- If in doubt, start lower. It’s easier to step up to more laurel next time than to live with a bar that’s too strong for you.
- Watch the ingredient list, not just the number. A real Aleppo bar is mostly olive and laurel oil. A big laurel percentage means little if the rest of the list is full of synthetics.
Still unsure? Start here
If this is your first Aleppo soap, a low-to-medium laurel bar is almost always the right call. You can always go richer once you know you like it. Browse our Aleppo soap collection to find your starting point — and if you want the full background on how this soap is made, our complete guide to Aleppo soap has you covered.