Where to Buy the Best Essential Oils
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I used to think that essential oils were a scam, but I ended up finding out that they are a great resource for your natural medicine cabinet for issues such as headaches, ear infections, tummy aches, viruses and bacterial infections, and more. But I eventually felt I needed to figure out where to buy essential oils that I could trust and that I could reasonably afford.
I spent a ton of time calling companies, asking questions, sampling oils. Literally, it was a ton. And it was very exhausting.
I’ve learned a lot with all the time I’ve spent researching oils companies and I’ve covered a lot of what I learned here in this essential oils series, some of which I wrote while I was still trying to figure out which company I was going to be using and recommending.
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Previous Posts In the Series:
- – Which Essential Oils Company is Best? Starting Out – Part 1
- – The Qualities of a Good Essential Oil – Part 2
- – Problems in the Essential Oils Industry – Part 3
- – A Close Up Look at Young Living and doTERRA – Part 4
- – Are Multi-Level Marketing Oils Worth It? – Part 5
- – Personal Attacks, Bias and Distillation Issues – Part 6
In this post, I’ll talk about the company that I decided to purchase our oils from.
It’s also the one that I recommend to you as having the best essential oils for the money, with natural healing qualities and no additives or adulterating.
How I Chose Where to Buy Essential Oils for My Family
This all started with my not being happy with the way questions were (or were not) answered by the “Big Guys” on the block. So I started contacting a bunch of companies and interviewing them about their oils.
If you remember, when I started trying to figure out where to buy essential oils, I mentioned the following about Native American Nutritionals (now Rocky Mountain Oils) in Part One of the series.
“Looks like they carry good products, but they are a bit expensive. Their prices, for a number of oils, in fact, are almost identical to the MLMs in this group, Young Living and DoTerra. And I don’t see any difference on the surface in the quality department.”
In this post, you can see that I ended up recommending them, but this was really a surprise for me. After thinking that I was writing them off, I got a call back from the owner of Native American Nutritionals, and I talked with the owner for a few hours (at first….that turned into many hours in the upcoming month) and found that he really “knew his stuff.”
I also found out that there were a lot of differences between his company and many others in the industry. I asked him tons of questions during our first conversation, and then more and more over the course of the next 10 months, while I investigated other companies as well. (Wow–it’s been that long since I started writing this series…..)
I was intrigued by what he had to say about his company and the oils industry in general.
We had countless conversations from March 2012 – January 2013, during which I literally grilled him about his company and others to figure out which company I wanted to recommend–and if his, was in fact, good enough for my family–and for all of you.
I now can say that I feel very comfortable recommending this company to you and am now using their oils almost exclusively (I have a few bottles of other brands left over :)).
I hope you check them out and I’d love to hear about your experience.
(Disclaimer. I did not choose this company because I was able to become an affiliate for them, but I am one. I decided to work with them and then we made an partnership agreement. I was the first affiliate for the company.)
Where to Buy Essential Oils You Can Trust–
Rocky Mountain Oils Review
Please note – since this series was written, Rocky Mountain Oils has purchased Native American Nutritionals. Native American Nutritionals was the original company, but the two companies had a partnership. Then Rocky Mountain Oils (RMO) purchased NAN and now RMO is a new company. I am even more confident in the quality of oils now that this all has taken place.
Before we get on with the details about the company, you can Rocky Mountain Oils and see all that they have to offer.
1. Experience
The owner of Native American Nutritionals (which later merged with Rocky Mountain Oils), Paul Dean, was in the oils industry since 1997, being first introduced to essential oils about 30 years ago. He started his first full-time essential oils business in 1998.
Rocky Mountain Oils was founded in 2004 by two essential oil enthusiasts, Michael and Leah Vincent. With years of experience in essential oils, the acquisition of Native American Nutritionals, and 14 years of company growth, RMO has become one of the leading direct-to-consumer essential oil companies in the world.
2. Purity
Quality Oils – all oils have been third party GC/MS tested.
Certificates are available upon request by easily entering in the batch number from any bottle.
Almost all of the oils come from plants grown in remote locations where no pesticides, herbicides, or harmful chemicals are used and only natural fertilizers are used.
3. Indigenous Plants
All oils come from plants grown in their indigenous locations (where they grow naturally).
4. Oils from Small Farms
Almost all oils from NAN were sourced directly from small farms (many are from third-world countries). Mr. Dean contracted with locals in the countries from where he sourced the oils, finds a quality farm, sets up a distiller, and extracts the oils. The oils are then sent to Native American, then sent for testing, and bottled. The only oils at NAN that are not from small farms are mainly the organic citrus oils.
Since Rocky Mountain Oils purchased Native American Nutritionals, some of the sourcing has changed as the company has put a high priority on the purity and quality of the oils sold. They source from small farms and also from leading experts in the industry.
5. No Solvents
They use no solvents for distillation except when necessary, as in the case of absolutes like vanilla and jasmine (since the cost of those essential oils is otherwise prohibitive.) Update 2015: they now sell a vanilla extracted with CO2.
6. Affordable Pricing
They have affordable prices (not as expensive as the multi-level marketing companies, but not “too good to be true” either.)
7. Quality Pure Oils
I have a lot of standards for quality and making sure that you are purchasing quality oils. See this post on pure essential oils for that information.
In addition, I prefer buying organic whenever I can, and that includes essential oils. Recently (Nov 2017), Rocky Mountain Oils has included an organic line of oils in their lineup and should be expanding it soon.
8. Transparency
Details for oils are listed clearly on their site (including the Latin name and country of origin).
The company is working on how to indicate the growing method now that they sometimes have a variety of sources for some oils.
9. Reasonable Shipping Costs
I found the shipping costs with YL and doTERRA to be a little on the steep side. I was told several times by customer service reps of one of the companies that it was due to businesses being charged more than residential customers.
That didn’t make sense to me – business rates being more expensive than residential when they have that kind of bulk shipping going on? So I called UPS and FedEx and was assured that this is not the case. So I don’t know why their shipping is so high. Maybe they are pocketing the extra?
Rocky Mountain Oils offers Free Shipping domestically in the U.S. and reasonable shipping internationally, with free shipping over $199.
10. Common Sense Approach
The companies recommend using caution with the oils — but also make practical recommendations so that you can confidently use the oils in your every day life.
11. No Adulterating
Oils are not heated, mixed with anything else, or adulterated in any way.
Unless declared on the label, the oils are pure.
No Minimum Purchase
One other reason that I don’t want to buy from an MLM essential oils company is that when you do, you often end up buying way more than you need to.
For example, with doTERRA and Young Living, in order to get the best discounts on their oils as a rep, you need to order monthly over $100 of products (to get free products that essentially reduce your costs). Do that every month and you end up with way too many oils).
A lot of multi-level marketing oils reps end up ordering other things from the company like personal care products in order to get to that “minimum.” And I am not thrilled with the ingredients in many of the other products offered.
Undesirable Ingredients in Other Products from Essential Oils Companies
When I was trying to decide where to buy essential oils, I looked at other things besides just oils.
With doTERRA and Young Living, for example:
– DoTERRA’s On Guard toothpaste contains titanium dioxide, a metal that I initially thought that I should avoid due to the possibility of heavy metal toxicity. Now I’m not worried about it for that reason, but it simply because it isn’t necessary. It’s there just for color. Overall it is supposed to be pretty benign, but why introduce it to your body unless needed?
The company also has carrageenan (which, depending on the form, is known to cause inflammation) in their capsules and PEG 100 in their Deep Blue Cream.
{Update 2018 – I have been doing some additional research into carrageenan and am not sure where to come down on this. There are two types and it’s possible that the negative effects being discussed are not of concern. I hope to have an update to this in the near future.}
Both companies’ skin care products had ingredients rated 3 and above on EWG’s Skin Deep rating system. I prefer to stick with ingredients rated 2, at the highest. Depending on what you are looking for, that may or may not be acceptable to you. Of course, it depends on their performance too. I don’t think all of EWG’s ratings are flawless, but I do pay attention when I see higher ratings there.
There was, in fact, one essential oils company whose oils I thought looked to be very high quality, but their personal care items were loaded with lots of toxic chemicals.
Also note, if you are used to Young Living or doTERRA oils, Rocky Mountain Oils carries oil blends that are comparable to Young Living and doTERRA blends.
There are other good companies out there. However, I think that there are fewer “excellent” companies than I originally thought when I started all of this evaluation.
What About Other Companies?
I often receive inquiries asking me what I think about other essential oils companies.
Please read this post on Essential Oils Testing and Quality and this report on 10 Things You Need to Know About Essential Oils to see if a brand measures up.
There are more and more companies out there on a daily basis. It truly seems that every day there is a new company selling essential oils and many are making claims that they are the “only pure oils out there” – which is not true. My standards are high. I don’t just want a company that says they are pure–when deciding where to buy essential oils, I want to make SURE I’m getting purity. And more.
This post on Pure Essential Oil Testing should be of help too for evaluating any company that you wish to consider.
Free Essential Oils Report
Also, if you go and grab my Free Report on 10 Things to Know About Essential Oils Before You Buy, you will not only get more myth-busting essential oils information, but you’ll get access to my VIP newsletter as well–complete with updates, great healthy living offers, of course new posts on essential oils, and more.
What are your thoughts?
Please let me know in the comments.
Hi there thoughts on Plant Therapy?
I didn’t go w/ them for a number of reasons. I will be sharing more about the superior quality control of the company that I went with. Stay tuned :).
I’ve been using Rocky Mountain Oils for at least the last 4 years in my massage business. I do continue to order from them but I am careful as to which oils I order. (I’ve had some go rancid) So, my recommendation is that don’t order an oil just to have it. Wait for when your need for a particular oil arises then order it.
RM oils has great information on their web site for which oils to use for specific purposes.
Please tell me what you feel has gone rancid and I will address this w/ the company. Thanks!
Thank you so much for sharing all this information. I’ve read so many reviews here, I’m on information overload?
My friend just got me into YL and I’ve spent a bit of money on their oils. I think I’m more confused than ever. I didn’t see where it was ever mentioned what the head of YL did, but am curious. I have fibromyalgia, stomach issues, get sick quite a bit and am going through depression due to the death of my son. I want what is best for my health, but it’s so expensive. For tonight, I’m just going to leave this here and maybe tomorrow do more reading. My brain is in a fog, so only so much information can go in at any given time ?
Thank you again for you time, God Bless! If you want to share or suggest anything, I’m open to receive it ?
Let me know exactly what you want and maybe I can help. But I left Young Living for a number of reasons and am going w/ this company now.
Hi Adrienne! I am so glad I came across your posts and really appreciate all of the effort and research you put into this. I was wondering if you had done any sort of research on Arlys Naturals. Thanks!
I haven’t – sorry. You can use my report and post to check them out.
https://wholenewmom.com/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-essential-oils-before-you-buy/
https://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/toxic-overload-health-concerns/essential-oils-testing-is-it-reliable/
I loved your article. I was wondering if you have ever checked out Essential Wholesale Essential oil blends and what is your final take on Mountain Rose Herb? . I buy oils from both of these companies. I often worry about taking essential oils internally. No one can ever seem to get a strait answer as to what is really safe.
Never checked out the first one. MRH seems to be a good company but they don’t specialize in oils – I really like them, but have honestly preferred Frontier’s spices so it’s a toughy for me. Here is the official statement of internal use from RMO:
I was just wondering if you tried natures gift and/or stillpoint aromatics by any chance?
I tried to talk to NG and did talk to SA. I didn’t try either of their oils.
Hi Adrienne,
I was wondering if you also researched Eden Gardens during this process?
If so what did you find. I was also wondering if you would have a ranking of the companies?
Maybe listing the top 4-5 companies and why they are ranked that way.
Thanks so much for all your work!
Terri
Hi there. I did look at them but didn’t choose them for a number of reasons. I think your idea is great but the thing is that these companies change what they do all the time – it would be very hard to pin them down. For example, if they get caught w/ synthetics in their oils they can start ordering something else….or they might not have names on their bottles and then they get them. It’s craziness trying to keep up. There are some other good ones out there, but it’s hard to stay on top of it and I sure can’t w/ how fast the industry is exploding. Everyone is trying to get a piece of the pie, so to speak. You’re welcome!
Adrienne,
Thank you for all the information. I appreciate your work. I have a few question about using essential oil . There are different opinion about the internal use of essential oil. There was a gut summit where Dr. Axe and Dr. Eric Z. were talking about essential oil, and both of them recommended using essential oil internally. I also bought one of Dr. Axe information package about essential oil, and there are some advice about using essential oil internally. So I am totally confused. Why do they recommended like that if it is not safe without working personally with a doctor. I have just started using essential oil. I would like to get a basic information about using them., and learn about them as much as possible. The books you are recommended are more advanced. Can you give me some information about the basics. Thank you very much.
Erika
I have a few thoughts. I used to use oils internally but only did it a lot when I was with doTERRA. It was when I started talking to the owner of NAN (that has now been bought by RMO) that I questioned that as he told me that the oils were so strong and if you are especially using the hot oils you could really change the microbiome of the gut. So I really backed off. I think that the big MLMs benefit from promoting so much internal use.
Is it going to kill a lot of people? Probably not. But I think that it’s best to use caution. I know that there are a few cases of people getting very ill due to side effects of mixing the oils internally w/ Rx meds, and such so I would just be really careful. There is also the big mess of the FDA. They are getting increasingly involved in essential oils on the internet and so companies are being more cautious.
Dr. Axe is with doTERRA. Eric Z. is as well. You can see why I walked away from them (doTERRA).
As for a book, I would look at this one. https://us.nyrorganic.com/shop/wholenewmom/area/shop-online/category/books/product/7861/essential-oil-book/ I just started working with this company for a number of reasons that I will share later, but the author is incredible (I got to speak with her on the phone the other day) — she is very very knowledgeable, and the reviews I have seen on the book are stellar – 5 stars all the way. It is more of a beginner’s book.
These are the reviews I have read:
There are more, but you get the picture. Also, they are published by DK books, so you know it will be lovely. I am ordering it myself today :).
Hope that helps and good timing on the book question. I was just looking at all of their books last night thinking I need to check them out more, so you pushed me to do so. Thanks!
Adrienne,
Thank you very much. Your help is greatly appreciated. I will buy the book you were mentioning
I have already checked it out. I have checked your blog too. I think the Ava product you are promoting might be the solution about my dilemma for my home care.
Looking forward to read all your news letters.
Erika
You are welcome. Oops – I forgot to put the link in for the book. Here you go. https://us.nyrorganic.com/shop/wholenewmom/area/shop-online/category/books/product/7861/essential-oil-book/
Hi Adrienne, Does NAN/RMO recommend their oils for internal use?
Hi there. The company (and I) does not recommend internal use except under professional care. Here is their official statement:
That being said, if you are asking if they are pure enough to do so, the answer is yes – that you can check their purity guarantees on their site. I think you will see that they go above and beyond to guarantee purity.
Why does the NAN review on this website have a note saying it should not be taken when pregnant or nursing?
(site link removed by Whole New Mom owner)
Thanks you.
Hi there and sorry for the delay in responding. It’s typical for companies to put that kind of a warning regarding their products for their protection and they leave it up to the customer to do their research. That being said, I’m sorry but I removed the link you left b/c I have suspicions about that site that it is just a set up to get Amazon clicks. Thanks for understanding.
Hi Adrienne, thanks so much for all of the effort you put into this project. I noticed that when I used you link to go to Rocky Mountain Oils that the link switches from an affiliate link to the company’s home page. Did you decide not to be affiliated with them any more and if so, did you learn something about them that might influence your recommendation? Thanks! Haven
That is fine – sometimes they change like that. I didn’t change my recommendation — in fact I feel better about them than ever. I will be writing more soon to bring you up to speed. I hope you enjoy them should you try them!
I wonder if this has something to do with the fact that they have merged with RMO? It was a little confusing to me when I first went to the NAN site. Second time through I noticed the link to their new e-store, which is actually taking you to the RMO site. So if your affiliate was through NAN, I assume that going to RMO would lose the link. Probably just need to switch it around.
The option to go to RMO is b/c of the merger but the link disappearing can be pretty typical. I still get credit if you end up shopping at RMO. Thanks for checking!
I just went to this website sincerely interested and found them to be very often massively dilluted with coconut oil. That really turns me off….if you are paying that much for only 5% or 33% essential oil in a bottle when YL is not dilluted, that does not seem right or a good deal. I am with YL but thought this would be a good place to get oils YL doesn’t make, like vanilla for example. What are your thoughts on this dillution in your bottles?
Hi there. Basically the oil blends are sold that way bc of customer demand. If they were neat they would be maybe $70 per bottle. The other reason folks want them (besides for cost savings) is to have the convenience of not having to add a carrier oil. Which blends are you interested in? I can talk to the company and get a neat blend recommendation for you. Let me know…
Just wanted to tell you that I love your series on checking out essential oils. I started out trying to do that and found you had done it for me!!
My friend started using Young Living and shared some products which I thought were excellent. I was thinking of signing up but couldn’t get past the pricing and multi-level marketing approach. Personally, I’ve been pleased with Somatherapy (Dreaming Earth Botanicals) and Flower Essence Society (small collection) but now looking for the best quality at the best price.
Thank you for all your work on this topic. Much appreciated!
You are so welcome! Thanks for taking the time to share. Hope to see you around again!
Good morning,
I am with a company called Melaleuca wellness. I have been with them for quit a few years now and they are now introducing pure essential oils as well. I am just getting started into using the oils. I feel I can trust the company.
have you ever heard of them? I love all their other products they have to offer .
HI there. Yes, I have heard of them. I don’t like that they have some really bad ingredients in some of their other products – perhaps you didn’t notice? They have artificial flavors, artificial colors, artificial fragrances, acesulfame potassium, and more. I know that they say good things about their products being natural, but those ingredients are not natural and it bothers me that they market themselves as being healthy when they are not. What do you think?
Its tough when you don’t know what to look for in stuff like this.I am going to look at the labels more closely.I know with the cleaning products I don’t get headaches anymore since I use them.I know its hard to list them all but can you name a few more that I should be watching out for. Did you see anything wrong with there oils by chance?
I love the feed back you are giving and research
Carol
Look at their labels – i think they all had those things. The Melapower has fragrance. https://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/dangers-of-fragrances/
I didn’t even look at their oils b/c if a company doesn’t care about putting things like that in their products then I don’t really trust them w oils. I would recommend you look at other brands. I personally have been using Ava Anderson and love their things, but they are having a big mess right now – they have had a lot of labeling issues.
Maybe try some DIY? https://wholenewmom.com/whole-new-budget/revised-homemade-shower-cleaner-homemade-soft-scrub/
I am going to be looking at more brands. What kind of cleaning products do you most need?
What a find to come across your post. I just went to a do Terra intro, but I decided not to buy anything because I had a friend that does Young Living and wanted to hear from her before I spent the money. I really want to start using oils in my home, and with a couple health issues, I need to and am eager to start. I took a brief look at the web site and the starter kits, but was hoping for a little more “help” on what to get before I make the investment. Which kit to you recommend? Thank you again for all the information!
Hi there. Did you mean which kit from Rocky Mountain or Native American Nutritionals? or doTERRA?
I am looking for a kit from NAN/RM off the link in this post. I’m looking for a basic starter type kit. I know both YL and DT have starter kits, something I can go to instead of the “medicine cabinet”. Do they have kits that come with starter info as well? It also doesn’t appear that they are an MLM/Direct sales either. Is that true? Thanks again for all you info, research and help!
Hi there. They have a bunch of kits. And they are on sale right now – I would look at the contents and choose. I think the Mom’s Kits are really nice. More info on each of the kits is in this post: https://wholenewmom.com/whole-new-budget/free-kindle-books-healthy-living-deals-jan-31-2016/
They don’t have information in them but I just passed that recommendation on to the company. Great idea!
Thank you!. Last question… It appears that the blends do NOT need a carrier oil, they are diluted? So just the “pure” essential oils would need a carrier? Is that correct? I’m thinking of making some rollers for various ailments? Thanks again!
Yes, that is correct, unless you want to have them further diluted :).
Hi again. If you feel you need to “make your own kit” I have a 10% off code for you – just email me at wholenewmom {at} gmail {dot} com.
This was an awesome post… and will definitely be buying some of the oils after using your link. Thanks so much!
You are so welcome!!I hope you like them!
Wow! This is fantastic information. Thank you so much for all the time you’ve taken to research and sharing the whole process with us.
My family has been using essential oils for over 20 years and I’ve just stuck with one or two brands, not really knowing too much about the companies.
Your series of articles has changed that for me.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
You are so welcome! More to come…….
Have you ever looked at Poofy Organics oils? They are first distilled and USDA Certified Organic.
I have just been looking at the company. I didn’t evaluate them for their oils. As for them being first distilled, that only applied to ylang and peppermint (possibly) so if they said that they are first distilled then they might not know what that means. Let me know. Honestly, if I were to evaluate every oils company out there I would be doing it nonstop full time as there are so many and they are continually changing what they do. I didn’t know that when I started looking but I am sure you have noticed that more and more companies are showing up. Thanks!
Hi Adrienne, thank you for all these posts. Did you learn anything about Simplers Botanicals oils at all? I’ve bought them a few times. I can’t afford NAN, and Simplers seems only one step down.
I haven’t heard of them. But I did look at a few oils and they seem to be right in line w/ NAN / RMO plus NAN and RMO have a 10% off kits special right now and free shipping always domestically so I think it evens out quickly. Does that help?
Yes thanks much. Good to know re free shipping too. Thanks ? .
You are so welcome. I hope you like them should you try them.
I just wanted to say I greatly appreciate the work you did on this, very informative and helpful…and time saving for the rest of us!
You are so welcome. Thanks and hope to see you around again!!!
I was looking through the RMO site and putting an order together – I’m a newbie and I thought that perhaps buying some blends along with a basic kit would be a good start. I noticed their blends already have fractionated coconut oil in them. Why would that be, and what purpose would that serve? Thanks in advance.
They have them preblended so you don’t have to use a carrier oil (saves time and mess) and b/c using the oils blended / diluted is safer. However, they do have some blends that are not blended. I do think they are considering bringing back more unblended (neat) blends. Also, it helps w/ cost when the oils involved are pricey.