How much does a CPSR cost in 2026, and what are you paying for

Most price differences come from three things: how much of the assessment work is actually done, how complete your documents are, and how variants (shades, scents) are counted. This guide explains each so you can compare quotes that look alike but are not.

Typical CPSR prices in 2026

Published price lists from UK and EU consultancies (checked in October 2026) fall into these ranges:

The cheapest prices usually come from UK assessors who specialise in soaps and candles. Prices for complex categories vary the most because the work varies: a sunscreen needs UV filter checks against Annex VI and a claim test, and a hair dye needs Annex III checks for each dye and its combinations.

What is included in the price of a CPSR

A CPSR has two parts (Annex I to Regulation (EC) 1223/2009). The price should cover both.

• Part A, the safety information. Review of your formula and raw material documents, physico-chemical data, stability, microbiological quality, impurities and traces, packaging, normal and foreseeable use, exposure calculation for the product and for each ingredient, the toxicological profile of every ingredient, and undesirable effects data.
• Part B, the assessment. The assessor's conclusion, required warnings and instructions for the label, the reasoning, and the signature of an assessor qualified under Article 10(2).

The expensive part is the toxicological profile. For each relevant ingredient the assessor finds a point of departure (for example a NOAEL from a study), calculates the systemic exposure dose and the margin of safety following the SCCS Notes of Guidance, and checks the ingredient against Annexes II–VI. A cream with 30 ingredients means 30 of these checks, plus fragrance allergens and impurities.

We do the search and arithmetic with our own software and toxicology database (44,000 points of departure and 90,000 ECHA dossiers). The assessors then spend their time on the conclusion, which is why our price is lower without cutting the assessment itself.

What is not included

Ask every provider what their price leaves out. Most of the following are separate:

If your manufacturer already has stability and microbiology results for the formula, you may not need new tests at all. The assessor decides whether the existing data are enough. A free document audit tells you this before you pay for anything.

What makes the price go up or down

1. Product category. Children under three, the eye area, sunscreens, hair dyes, aerosols, acid peels and products with high-risk ingredients need more work and more data.
2. Number and type of ingredients. Botanical extracts, fragrance compositions and ingredients without public toxicology data take the longest.
3. Completeness of documents. Missing specifications, a fragrance without an allergen declaration or no microbiology data add rounds of questions. Each round adds time, and some providers charge for it.
4. Variants. How shades and scents are counted can double the bill for a colour cosmetics line (see the next section).
5. Volume. Prices per report drop for 20+ products because the same raw materials repeat across a line.
6. Language. We write in English. Translation into another EU language, if your RP's authority wants it, is extra.

How shades and scents are priced

Each product placed on the market needs its own safety assessment. But a lipstick in 12 shades is one base formula with different colourants, and a body lotion in 4 scents is one base with different fragrances. The assessor checks what changes, which is the colourants (Annex IV), the fragrance allergens and any ingredient that changes the exposure, and reuses the rest.

Many providers still charge 80–90 % of the base price for each variant. We price variants of one base formula noticeably lower than a separate product. Send the list of shades or scents and we give an exact quote within 48 hours.

Why a CPSR takes 2–4 weeks and not 7 days

Some providers promise seven working days. That is possible when a report reuses an assessment of a nearly identical product, or when the toxicology section is thin. For a new formula with a full margin of safety calculation for each ingredient, allergens per SKU and label warnings, our real time is 2–4 weeks from a complete document package, and the date goes into the contract.

For one client we delivered 26 safety reports in 3 days. The documents were complete from day one, and that, not the promise on a website, is what decides the timeline.

Red flags of a report that is too cheap

Price alone does not tell you much. Our own pilot report costs €45, and it is a full assessment. What matters is what the report contains. A filled-in template can look like a CPSR and still leave your Responsible Person exposed. Check for these:

• No margin of safety per ingredient. Part A lists ingredients but has no systemic exposure dose, no point of departure and no source.
• No assessor qualification. Part B has no name, no diploma, or a qualification that does not match Article 10(2).
• Generic exposure. The exposure section does not match the product type (for example, a lip product assessed as a body cream).
• No fragrance allergens per SKU. Leave-on products must declare allergens above 0.001 % and rinse-off above 0.01 %, now for more than 80 allergens under Regulation (EU) 2023/1545.
• No stability or microbiology data, and no explanation why.
• Old references. No mention of the 2025 ingredient glossary, the Omnibus CMR bans or the 2023/1545 allergens.

Our guide to the structure of a CPSR shows what each section should contain.

Our prices

Example: a brand launching 30 SKUs in the EU pays €150 × 30 = €4,500 for the reports, with shade and scent variants priced lower. Complex categories are quoted individually. The document audit is free: within 48 hours you get one list of what is missing and an exact quote. Agencies get white-label pricing on request.