Full stated quantity, and nothing overstated — ask sales for the batch COA matched to the offered or supplied active and review the tests and results recorded for that lot.
Full stated quantity — review the matching batch COA for the reported analytical scope.
GHK-Cu for finished cosmetic formulation and INCI launch work
This Pepoderma page is written for the finished-cosmetic buyer, not the raw-chemistry researcher. It should help skincare brands and cosmetic chemists translate Copper Tripeptide-1 into a serum, eye cream, or post-procedure cosmetic product with the right pH, carrier, INCI documentation, and sample plan.
Use this page when the buyer asks about finished cosmetic format, use level, carrier compatibility, INCI documentation, or sample sizing.
Request the sample packet for bench trials, stability planning, and private-label cosmetic launch work.
Keep the carrier chelator-free and near-neutral (pH 5.5–7.0) so the diagnostic blue holds through shelf-life; cationic bases pull the copper off-peptide, so screen them first.
Overview
On your INCI deck this active reads as Copper Tripeptide-1; on a peptide chemist's bench it is GHK-Cu, the Gly-His-Lys sequence chelating a single Cu(II) (CAS 89030-95-5, MW 401.9 for the copper complex; 340.4 for the free tripeptide; originally identified in human plasma fractions in 1973). What matters at the formulation desk is what those facts mean for a serum, eye cream, or post-procedure ampoule on a launch calendar: a strikingly blue, water-soluble active that signals dermal-repair pathways at use levels measured in tenths of a percent, ships with a finished INCI dossier, and behaves predictably when you treat its copper coordination with respect.
Pepoderma writes its GHK-Cu spec for the people doing the formulating. Recommended use level sits in the 0.05–0.5% window for leave-on serums and 0.1–1.0% for richer eye and recovery creams, dose-adjusted around the rest of the active stack. The water phase is the right home; carriers should be chelator-free (no EDTA, no strong AHA loading), kept in the pH 5.5–7.0 working range, and ordered so reductive antioxidants — ascorbate, glutathione, sulfite preservatives — sit on a different polarity layer or are dosed downstream. The active is a clean partner in anionic and non-ionic emulsions and tolerates most lecithin and polyglyceryl emulsifier systems; cationic bases (quat-stabilised conditioners, some scalp serums) sequester the copper and are worth a compatibility screen before commit. Sample sizes are sized for the way indie brands actually develop: 25 g for first-pass benchtop trials, 100 g to lock the carrier, 500 g to bridge into pilot batches, then bulk for production. For the offered or supplied lot, ask sales which supporting documents are included. The agreed documentation package can contain the INCI name, CAS, allergen and trace-impurity sheet for CPNP and equivalent cosmetic notifications, plus a formulation-notes card. Our cosmetic chemists' walk-through lives in the [GHK-Cu formulation guide](/journal/ghk-cu-formulators-field-guide).
Who buys this, and why
Anti-aging peptide actives — Copper Tripeptide-1 (GHK-Cu), Acetyl Octapeptide-3 (SNAP-8), Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 (Matrixyl) — are sourced by beauty brands, skincare R&D chemists, and med-aesthetic OEMs. Ask sales for the matching batch COA and confirm which use-level, carrier, compatibility, or stability records are available or need a separate written scope.
A carrier peptide: Copper Tripeptide-1 holds a copper ion in the peptide's coordination pocket, and the carrier-peptide activity is a property of the intact complex — which is why the formulation work is about keeping the copper on the peptide.
Stability in base formulation (aqueous serum baseline)
Incompatibility flag list (chelators, low-pH oxidants, etc.)
SDS / MSDS
Photo-degradation note for the active
Reconstitution guidance (BAC water / glycerin / lipid-encapsulated)
Regulatory note
GHK-Cu is supplied as a cosmetic-grade INCI ingredient (Copper Tripeptide-1) for incorporation into finished cosmetic products by the buyer, in compliance with the destination market's cosmetic-regulation framework. Cosmetic-grade material available for med-aesthetic brand OEMs, beauty OEMs, indie founders, and established skincare R&D worldwide; INCI name supplied on SDS for cosmetic-notification workflows (CPNP in EU, NMPA in mainland China, equivalent registries elsewhere).
Frequently asked questions
What use level should I start with in a serum or eye cream?▾
For a leave-on serum, most published cosmetic formulations land between 0.05% and 0.5% on a finished-mass basis; a sensible starting point for a hero-claim serum is 0.1% with room to titrate up. Eye and recovery creams that lean on the dermal-repair narrative typically sit between 0.1% and 1.0%, with the upper end reserved for night-only or post-procedure pots where buyers expect a richer feel and a noticeable colour cast. The colour itself is a feature you can lean into editorially or mute with opaque packaging — both choices are valid, but pick one before you finalise the bottle so marketing and formulation are aligned.
Which carrier systems and emulsifiers play nicely with Copper Tripeptide-1?▾
Add the active to the water phase late in the cool-down, ideally below 40 °C, using copper-clean process water and a buffer that holds pH between 5.5 and 7.0 (citrate is fine at low loading, phosphate is preferable above pH 6). It performs reliably in anionic and non-ionic emulsions built on polyglyceryl, lecithin, and sucrose-ester emulsifiers, and slots into hydrogels based on hydroxyethylcellulose or sclerotium gum. Cationic systems — quat-stabilised conditioners, some occlusive scalp bases — will pull the copper off the peptide and turn the formula colourless within hours, so route those programmes through an INCI-equivalent peptide instead or run a compatibility screen first. Avoid co-formulating with high-load EDTA, ascorbic acid above 5%, or sulfite preservatives in the same phase.
What sample sizes and lead times are available for a brand build?▾
Sample fills are 25 g for first-pass bench trials (enough to take a base recipe through three or four iterations), 100 g once you are locking the carrier and starting stability, and 500 g for pilot scale-up into pre-production batches. Sample shipments leave within five business days of inquiry approval; bulk fills for confirmed brand programmes run on a 21–45 day cycle depending on packaging spec. For the offered or supplied lot, ask sales which supporting documents are included. The agreed documentation package can contain the INCI name, CAS, an allergen and impurity statement for CPNP and equivalent cosmetic-product notifications, and a one-page formulation-notes card so the chemist who opens the box has the answers in front of them, not in a separate PDF.
