Global air care trends and consumer preferences

Busy lifestyles and evolving wellness priorities drive global consumers to seek fresh, pleasant environments. Air care products offer convenience, enhancing homes with refreshing scents and a sense of comfort. Innova’s Insights360 research highlights the global market trends of air care products, including purchasing penetration, consumption frequency, claims, and product attributes. It also highlights what may develop in the future of the air care market.

Air care product launches

Global air care launches increased by 47% CAGR over the past five years. This increase is driven heavily by scented candles and air freshener launches. Air care growth is notably faster than total household care products, which grew at 17% CAGR during the same period.

Scented candle launches display exponential growth, although air fresheners show a notable 25% CAGR during the same period. Air care launches experienced a rise in Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and North America. Air care trends include automatic dispersal units, such as refills, reed diffusers, and odor-absorbing powders. Air care innovation includes smaller formats for tight spaces such as cars or closets. 

Consumer air care preferences 

Air care products, including air fresheners and scented candles, have lower purchasing penetration than other household categories. However, air care trends show that these products remain essential for many consumers, especially in key markets like the US, Brazil, Australia, China, and the UK. Over 20% of household care consumers in these markets purchased air fresheners in the past year.

The US leads in scented candle purchases, with 13% of consumers buying them in the past year. Global air care launches increased by 47% CAGR over the past five years.

Lower-income households buy air care products more frequently, while air fresheners are more popular among those over 45 with mid-low incomes. Scented candles appeal more to women and younger consumers aged 18-44.

Air care trends indicate that over 60% of consumers prioritized scent and functionality when buying household fresheners in the past year. Claims like safety, long-lasting, free-from concerning substances, and aromatherapy will most likely influence their purchasing decisions. Cruelty-free and natural ingredients also impact buying decisions for around a quarter of global consumers. 

Nearly 40% of consumers prefer air freshener sprays, while 28% use scented candles. Toilets, bathrooms, and living rooms are the most common spaces for air care use.  About one-third prefer citrus, botanical, or floral scents. 

Top brands and companies 

Bath & Body Works is the top company in the global air care market, accounting for 35% of launches in the past year. It leads the global home fragrance and personal care market with its top brands, Bath & Body Works and White Barn. The company continues to expand its reach with new innovations, including the 2024 launch of scented candles and concentrated room sprays in Turkey. 

Other top players include manufacturers SC Johnson, Newell Brands, Procter & Gamble, and Reckitt.

Reckitt recently created the air sanitization segment, launching Lysol Air Sanitizers in the US — the first antimicrobial product approved by the US Environmental Protection Agency that kills 99.9% of airborne viruses and bacteria while eliminating odors. Air care innovation includes smaller formats for tight spaces like cars.

Air care positioning trends 

There has been a significant rise in new products displaying long-lasting or aromatherapy claims. Both claims display about 25% more air care entries in the past year than 2020. 

Air care trends show that more launches feature vegan, natural, paraben-free, or no animal ingredient claims, but they still represent a small percentage of new products. Ethical animal claims are also rising slightly, displaying 10% launches in the past year. Sulfate-free and dermatologically tested claims are emerging in the space. 

Brands increasingly highlight cosmetics ingredients, clinical and dermatological testing, and E. coli-inhibiting formulas that provide health and safety benefits, reflecting Innova’s top household care trend, “Guard and Gleam.” This trend highlights the post-pandemic hygiene awareness boom that leads to brands featuring scientific health and safety claims.

Air care ingredient trends 

Manufacturers are using masking ingredients more in air care introductions, driven by growth in benzoic acid, BHT, butyl stearate, alcohol, and acetaldehyde. The fastest-growing perfuming ingredients are hexyl cinnamal, eugenol, and soy oil. Benzotriazole, benzyl benzoate, and alcohol display the highest increases among antimicrobial ingredients over the past year. 

Brands infuse aromatherapy ingredients into air care products to create calming and soothing experiences. Innovations like L:A Bruket No 152 Coriander Candle contain coriander oil for its calming effects, reflecting this growing trend. This aligns with Innova’s “Zenifying the Home” trend, where brands focus on innovating formulations and product designs to promote stress relief and aromatherapy for mental wellness.Not many products claim to improve the healthiness of air but instead focus on smells.

What’s next in air care trends? 

Over half of air care consumers vary their household freshener products to diversify their fragrances, with over two-thirds prioritizing their preferred scents. Brands can tap into this by blending popular florals and fruits with botanicals, spices, or exotic notes to meet evolving scent preferences.

Air care trends reveal that about two-thirds of consumers want air care products to smell as natural as possible, with nearly half preferring natural household fresheners. Despite this, less than 10% of launches include natural positioning. Brands can launch more products with 100% natural or vegan formulas using soy, rapeseed, coconut, or beeswax. They can also feature hero botanicals such as lemongrass, tea tree, cedarwood, or eucalyptus essential oils.

Very few launches claim to improve the healthiness of air but focus almost entirely on smells. The pandemic has heightened awareness of airborne pathogens, creating potential for fresheners that eliminate bacteria and viruses while enhancing scent without leaving antiseptic smells behind. Brands will likely focus on air health, natural positionings, and unique fragrances in the global air care market.

This article is based on the Innova Market Insights report “Now & Next in Air Care – Global.”