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ULTA

Beauty retailer, selling makeup, skincare, hair care, and fragrances

ULTA
ULTA's Sustainability Rating

Poor


  • Sourcing & Stocking

    Environmentally-mindful sourcing and stocking commitments?: No

    Promotes collections that help consumers make conscious decisions?: Yes - offers and promotes

    These collections include: vegan, cruelty-Free, other

    Stocks any Commons top-rated sustainable brands? (proportion of rateable categories): Yes - few

    Has time-bound targets to improve its sourcing for owned-brand products?: No

    Certifications for owned-brands and products?: Yes

    These certifications include: Leaping Bunny, PETA Cruelty-free


  • Packaging & Plastics

    Heavy reliance on virgin petro plastic?: Yes

    Shares info on ecommerce packaging?: No / not found

    Shares info on in-store and upstream packaging?: No / not found

    Shares info on own-brand packaging?: Yes - but reporting could be improved

    Petro-based plastics in packaging?: Yes - but working to reduce

    Recycled plastic?: Partially Recycled

    Uses environmentally-mindful materials (non-plastic) in packaging?: Yes

    These materials include ones that are: recyclable, recycled.

    Targets for improving its packaging materials?: Yes - and reports on progress

    Initiatives to reduce packaging volume / intensity?: Yes - vague / limited

    Plastic waste reduction through partnerships?: No / not found:


  • Energy & Water Use

    Uses renewable energy in its supply chain and/or offices?: Yes - Some (<50%)

    Uses renewable energy in its stores?: Yes - some (<50%)

    Targets for increasing renewable energy?: Yes - nonspecific

    On track for these targets?: Unknown (doesn't report)

    Energy efficiency measures?: Yes - vague / limited

    Efforts to lower shipping emissions (e.g. EVs)?: No / not found

    Water conservation measures?: Yes - nonspecific

    Refrigerant management strategy?: N/A - no refrigerated goods sold

    Any EPA GreenChill certified stores?: N/A - no food or no stores


  • Waste Reduction

    Alt models to promote consumer reuse and recycling?: Recycling schemes

    Packaging disposal guidance?: No / not found

    Corporate waste reduction initiatives?: Other (incl general reducing landfill waste)

    Corporate waste reporting?: Yes - vague / limited

    Food waste reduction initiatives?: N/A

    Food waste reporting?: N/A


  • Slow Consumption

    Promotes overconsumption?: Yes

    Methods of promoting overconsumption: Incentivizes impulse purchases (e.g. one-click ordering)


  • Marketing

    Commons is still evaluating this brand's marketing emails.


  • Transparency & Reporting

    Sustainability page on consumer site?: Yes - footer

    Voluntary annual sustainability report?: Yes

    Last published: 2024


  • Emissions Tracking

    Reports its emissions?: Yes

    Breakdown in CO2e?: Yes

    Last reported in: 2024

    Estimated emissions footprint: 2335269 tons CO2e

    Scope 1+2 emissions intensity compared to industry / competitor average: Average


  • Targets & Offsets

    Science-aligned emissions reduction targets?: Yes - SBTi approved

    Target timeframe: Medium-term (5-10 years)

    Reports progress?: Yes - on track for some

    Climate neutral certification?: No

    Offsets emissions?: No / not found


  • Supply Chain & Labor

    Publishes supplier information for owned production?: No

    Publishes supplier code of conduct?: Yes

    Code of conduct: prohibits child labor, prohibits forced labor, disallows unauthorized subcontracting

    Code of conduct does not sufficiently: ensure the right to collective bargaining, ensure a living wage, establish grievance mechanisms, include environmental clauses

    Code of Conduct covers all applicable suppliers (own-production and stocked-brand)?: Yes

    Labor certifications in supply chain?: No

    3rd-party criticisms of supply chain or labor conditions?: No


  • Advocacy

    Discloses all trade association memberships?: No

    Climate-obstructive trade association memberships: None -

    Pro-climate advocacy memberships?: No

    Employs state lobbyists?: No

    Donated more than $100k to any candidates or PACs from 2018-2024?: No

Ulta has an overall lack of sustainability efforts and disclosures. We expect more reporting, accountability, and action from a brand of its size.

Though Ulta promotes some more environmentally mindful options, it encourages overconsumption, which contributes to excessive landfill waste and energy use, and has widespread impacts on the environment. It uses primarily plastic packaging of a virgin or undisclosed source for its own-brand products, shipping materials, and in-store bags, which contributes greatly to waste production and excess energy use. It does, however, have targets and initiatives to improve its packaging materials and reduce its packaging intensity.

Ulta uses some (<50%) renewable energy in its supply chain, offices, and stores, but it doesn't share clear targets for increasing this percentage. It publicly shares its emissions measurements and has SBTi-approved reduction targets that are partially on track.

Ulta offers a consumer-facing recycling program and has initiatives to reduce waste in its corporate operations. However, it doesn't provide detailed reporting, and it appears to still send more to landfill than to recycling.

Our ratings are based on a scale from 1 (harmful) to 5 (best). How we rate →

https://www.ulta.com/discover/conscious-beauty

https://d1io3yog0oux5.cloudfront.net/_eb2de570f6a806bb23c38e6521755f78/ulta/files/pages/ulta/db/1975/description/Ulta_Beauty_2024_ESG_Report_PDF_6_042125.pdf

https://d1io3yog0oux5.cloudfront.net/_d0e19df215dd3c194eba38db1b0655aa/ulta/files/pages/ulta/db/1975/description/Ulta_Beauty_2023_ESG_Report_Final_ADA_vF.pdf

https://www.epa.gov/greenchill/greenchill-certified-stores

https://www.climatefriendlysupermarkets.org/scorecard

https://www.ulta.com/discover/beauty-education/how-to-recycle-makeup-skincare

https://www.ulta.com/company/corporate-responsibility

https://www.ulta.com/company/corporate-responsibility/environment

https://sciencebasedtargets.org/target-dashboard

https://www.ulta.com/ultavendorstandards/Ulta-Vendor-Standards-4-8-24.pdf

https://fminus.org/lobbyists/

https://www.fec.gov/data/browse-data/

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Category

Makeup & Cosmetics


Tags

Haircare/Bodycare/Suncare/Fragrances/Beauty/Cosmetics


Certifications

PETA


Sustainability information was last updated in January 2026.

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