A silica composition and a method for forming the silica composition using low surfactant concentrations are disclosed. A metal silicate precursor including a silica source and a hydroxide MOH is prepared, where M is a cation with a valence of 1. In addition, a surfactant solution including a cationic surfactant and an anionic co-surfactant is prepared. Next, the metal silicate precursor and the surfactant solution are mixed to form a mixture. Then the mixture is crystallized to form the silica composition and the silica composition is isolated. The cationic surfactant can have 10 or more carbon atoms, the anionic co-surfactant can have 4 or more carbon atoms, the molar ratio of the cationic surfactant to the silica source can be less than or equal to 0.1:1, the molar ratio of the anionic co-surfactant to the silica source can be less than or equal to 0.1:1, and the molar ratio of the anionic co-surfactant to the silica source can be less than the molar ratio of the cationic surfactant to the silica source.