It has been widely used in synthesis of gold nanoparticles (e.g. spheres rods bipyramids) mesoporous silica nanoparticles (e.g. MCM-41) and hair conditioning products. The closely related compounds cetrimonium chloride and cetrimonium stearate are also used as topical antiseptics and may be found in many household products such as shampoos and cosmetics. CTAB due to its relatively high cost is typically only used in select cosmetics.

For R&D use onlynot for drug household or other uses.

Cetrimonium bromide [(C16H33)N(CH3)3Br cetyltrimethylammonium bromide hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide CTAB] is a quaternary ammonium surfactant. It is one of the components of the topical antiseptic cetrimide. The cetrimonium (hexadecyltrimethylammonium) cation is an effective antiseptic agent against bacteria and fungi. It is also one of the main components of the buffer for the extraction of DNA.