Toothpaste is essential for maintaining your oral health. It is a paste, or sometimes a gel, used to clean teeth and prevent tooth and gum disease.
Dentists around the world recommend brushing with toothpaste for two minutes twice a day. So, it is no surprise that tubes of toothpaste can be found in nearly every bathroom around the world.
Fun fact: toothpaste was originally sold in jars.
Despite the necessity of toothpaste, it is not even in the top 15 in terms of health and beauty care product sales. Still, toothpaste alone accounted for over $3 billion in sales in 2020 in the health and beauty care industry.
Colgate. New York, New York
Parent Company: Colgate-Palmolive
2022 Annual Revenue: $17.967 billion
Current CEO: Noel R. Wallace
Number of Consumers (in millions): 139.37
Followers on Instagram: 175k
Colgate was founded in 1806 by William Colgate. The company originally made soap and candles. However, it wasn’t until after the death of the founder and namesake that they began selling jars of toothpaste in 1873.
The toothpaste became popular in the 1950s and has continued to grow in popularity. Today, Colgate is the most recognized name in toothpaste in the United States.
Colgate toothpaste was reformulated in 1968 to include fluoride as a way of maintaining oral health. While Colgate-Palmolive, the parent company, does have other brands that focus on health and beauty care products, the Colgate brand focuses exclusively on oral hygiene.
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Crest. Cincinnati, Ohio
Parent Company: Procter Gamble
2022 Annual Revenue: $140.0 million
Current CEO: Nick Benson
Number of Consumers (in millions): 117.14
Followers on Instagram: 86.6k
Despite being the second most popular brand in terms of sales units, it is one of Crest’s toothpastes that tops the bestsellers list in terms of sales numbers: Crest 3D White. This particular Crest toothpaste sold $263.9 million in 2019.
Though Procter Gamble is a multinational corporation, Crest is an American brand. The Crest brand toothpaste is sold under a different name in other countries. The main manufacturing plant for Crest in the United States is in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Introduced to test markets in 1955, it expanded the next year and continued growth nationally. Unlike many other Procter Gamble brands, Crest was a creation of Procter Gamble. They set out to research ingredients for toothpaste that would actively reduce tooth decay. The research was conducted at Indiana University under Dr. Joseph Muhler.
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Tom’s Of Maine. Kennebunk, Maine
Parent Company: Colgate-Palmolive
2022 Annual Revenue: $58.3 million
Current CEO: Tom O’Brien
Number of Consumers (in millions): 6.94
Followers on Instagram: 25.3k
Tom’s Of Maine is best known for its naturally sourced and derived ingredients. They believe in transparency and quality when it comes to their ingredients. You will find their toothpaste will not include artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, nor will any of their other products.
Founded by husband and wife duo Tom and Kate Chappell in 1970, they didn’t introduce a toothpaste until 1975. The company donates 10% of profits to nonprofit organizations and encourages employees to use 5% of their paid time to volunteer at organizations of their choice.
Today, Toms Of Maine is a majority-owned subsidiary of Colgate-Palmolive; they were acquired by the company in 2006. Unlike many of their other subsidiaries, Colgate-Palmolive decided to keep Chappell on to lead the company. He is still acting as CEO of the Toms Of Maine brand.
Sensodyne. London, England
Parent Company: GlaxoSmithKline
2022 Annual Revenue: $36.54 million
Current CEO: Brian McNamara
Number of Consumers (in millions): 45.61
Followers on Instagram: 16.4k
As the name suggests, the Sensodyne brand of toothpaste is specially formulated for those with sensitive teeth. With tooth sensitivity affecting one in three people worldwide, it is no surprise that this brand sits near the top of our list.
Originally introduced in 1961 in the United States and the United Kingdom, this brand is owned by GlaxoSmithKline, more commonly seen as gsk. While GlaxoSmithKline is a British company headquartered in London, England, this is still an incredibly popular brand on this side of the pond.
In fact, Sensodyne Pronamel, which launched in 2006, was the second most popular toothpaste in terms of sales numbers, with $196.7 million in sales in 2019.
Arm Hammer. Ewing Township, New Jersey
Parent Company: Church and Dwight
2022 Annual Revenue: $13.3 million
Current CEO: Matthew Farrel
Number of Consumers (in millions): 13.85
Followers on Instagram: 25.4k
Who doesn’t recognize the name Arm Hammer? Arm Hammer is a well-recognized brand in home and personal health. Arm Hammer was created in 1846 with brothers-in-law Dr. Austin Church and John Dwight. It began with baking soda. And, truthfully, it stayed with baking soda.
In the 1970s, Arm Hammer expanded to include other products by using their baking soda as an ingredient. Laundry detergent and toothpaste were two of these expansion products.
Arm Hammer shares a parent company and CEO with the brands above and below it on this list, as well as number nine. Despite being a less recognized name, Church and Dwight own most of the top 10 toothpaste brands.
Aquafresh. London, England
Parent Company: GlaxoSmithKline
2022 Annual Revenue: N/A
Current CEO: Emma Walmsley
Number of Consumers (in millions): 22.59
Followers on Instagram: N/A
Like Sensodyne, Aquafresh is owned by British conglomerate GlaxoSmithKline (gsk). However, despite being owned by the same parent company and being only one spot below its sister brand, there is a big difference in consumer count between Aquafresh and Sensodyne.
Sensodyne has 45.61 million consumers, while Aquafresh has only 22.59 million—that’s less than half of its sister brand. The consumer difference between Colgate and Crest and the rest of the list is incredible. As the list goes on, consumer numbers continue to shrink exponentially. So, it is lucky that Aquafresh can count itself near the top of the list.
Aquafresh toothpaste was first introduced in 1973 by SmithKine Beecham—what would later become GlaxoSmithKine (gsk). It was the first striped toothpaste launched. The two stripes (blue and white) represent two separate product benefits: fresh breath and fighting tooth decay. They have since added a third stripe (red).
Aim. Ewing Township, New Jersey
Parent Company: Church and Dwight
2022 Annual Revenue: N/A
Current CEO: Matthew Farrel
Number of Consumers (in millions): 14.88
Followers on Instagram: N/A
Aim toothpaste was created in 1973 by British multinational consumer goods company Unilever. In 2003, thirty years after its debut, the Aim toothpaste brand was purchased by household product manufacturer Church and Dwight.
In addition to Aim toothpaste, Church and Dwight also own Arm Hammer (the number 6 toothpaste on this list) and Orajel. They also have licenses for Close-Up (the number 7 toothpaste on this list) and Pepsodent (the number 9 toothpaste on this list).
Close-Up. Ewing Township, New Jersey
Parent Company: Church and Dwight (US); Unilever (International)
2022 Annual Revenue: N/A
Current CEO: Matthew Farrel
Number of Consumers (in millions): 10.84
Followers on Instagram: 14.8k
Another toothpaste brand that was launched by Unilever, Close-Up was first introduced in 1967. It is considered to be the first gel toothpaste on the market. While the brand is still owned by Unilever, New Jersey-based company Church and Dwight have licensed the brand in North America since 2003.
Unlike most toothpastes, which boast a minty flavor, Close-Up is a red gel with an “ultra cinnamon” flavor. Today, they do provide some toothpastes with the standard mint flavoring. However, they tend to aim for a younger target audience with their advertising.
Pepsodent. Ewing Township, New Jersey
Parent Company: Church and Dwight (US); Unilever (International)
2022 Annual Revenue: N/A
Current CEO: Matthew Farrel
Number of Consumers (in millions): 6.71
Followers on Instagram: N/A
Like Close-Up, Pepsodent is a joint venture of British company Unilever and American company Church and Dwight. Church and Dwight hold the license for Pepsodent in North America.
Pepsodent was launched in 1993 in India and is a top brand in that country. It is sold under a few other names internationally: Mentadent, Zhonghua, PS, and Signal.
In 2008, the Pepsodent brand collaborated with both the Indian Dental Association (IDA) and the World Dental Association (FDI) to educate school children on the importance of regular brushing and oral hygiene.
This particular toothpaste brand offers solutions to dental problems such as bleeding gums and sensitive teeth.
Ultra Brite. New York, New York
Parent Company: Colgate-Palmolive
2022 Annual Revenue: N/A
Current CEO: Noel R. Wallace
Number of Consumers (in millions): 5.93
Followers on Instagram: N/A
Colgate-Palmolive introduced the Ultra Brite brand of toothpaste in 1967. While it stood on its own and gained popularity in its early days, UItra Brite sales have continuously declined over the years.
This brand is no longer being sold on its own but has been combined with Colgate-Palmolive’s number one toothpaste brand, Colgate, to become Colgate Ultra Brite.
Who are the major players in the toothpaste industry?
The major players in the toothpaste industry are:
Colgate-Palmolive
Procter & Gamble
GlaxoSmithKline PLC
Unilever
How big is the toothpaste industry?
The global toothpaste industry has a market size of $35.5 billion. The global toothpaste market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.2% through 2030.
