Not all essential oils are created equal. Here's what I look for — and what I avoid.
After years of working with these materials — formulating with them, teaching about them, and watching what works and what doesn't — I've developed a short list of questions I ask about any oil before it ever gets near a client. You can use the same checklist.
Where was it sourced?
The country of origin matters. Lavender from Provence, tea tree from Australia, frankincense from Somalia — these aren't romantic details. They reflect the growing conditions, soil quality, and distillation standards that determine chemical composition. An oil sourced from a region known for the plant will consistently have a more complete chemical profile than a generic substitute. If the label just says lavender oil with no origin, that's a question worth asking.
Is it GC/MS tested?
Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry testing shows the exact chemical constituents of an oil — not just that it's the right species, but that it has the therapeutic compounds it claims to have, in the right ratios, without contamination. Reputable suppliers provide batch test results on request. If a company won't share GC/MS data, that's information itself.
Is it labeled by botanical name?
Every real essential oil should be labeled with its Latin botanical name — Lavandula angustifolia, Melaleuca alternifolia, Boswellia carterii. The common name is not enough. Roman chamomile and German chamomile are completely different oils. Tea tree and niaouli look similar but behave differently. If the botanical name isn't there, move on.
What's the price telling you?
If a rose essential oil is $8 for a 15ml bottle, that's not a deal. That's a signal that something is wrong — either the oil is synthetic, heavily diluted, or from a source that skipped the expensive parts of proper production. Essential oils are not cheap to produce correctly. The price of a quality oil reflects the acreage, the harvest, the distillation time, and the testing. Expect to pay meaningfully more for something that actually works.
Is it diluted or sold as a single note?
Single-note essential oils — sold at full strength — give you the most flexibility and the most control. Pre-diluted blends can be convenient, but you lose the ability to adjust concentration, and you often can't verify what's in the carrier. For professional use, I keep single-note oils and dilute them myself.
The simplest test of all.
Open the bottle. Smell it. If it smells one-dimensional, flat, or nothing like the plant it's supposed to be — it's probably been sitting too long, stored improperly, or cut with something. Good essential oils have depth. They evolve on the blotter. They don't smell like air freshener.
What I keep in my room.
I keep oils that I trust, that I can verify, and that I understand. I keep them properly stored — dark glass, cool space, sealed tight. I keep them labeled with botanical names and dates. And I keep learning — because the materials change, the sourcing changes, and what was reliable five years ago might need checking today.
The plants have been doing this work for a long time. The least we can do is pay attention to what we're actually holding.
