1,3-Dimethylurea (DMU) is a urea derivative and used as an intermediate in organic synthesis.

It is a colorless crystalline powder with little toxicity.

1,3-Dimethylurea is used for synthesis of caffeine, theophylline, pharmaceuticals, textile aids, herbicides and others.

[1] In the textile processing industry, 1,3-dimethylurea is used as intermediate for the production of formaldehyde-free easy-care finishing agents for textiles.

The estimated world production of DMU is estimated to be less than 25,000 tons.