This article is not meant to be a comparison between essential oil and fragrance oils, see the What are Essential Oils? article for more information about essential oils.
Many people confuse the terms “essential oil” and “fragrance oil” because of the frequent incorrect practice of using these terms interchangeably. However, essential oils and fragrance oils are different in a number of ways. Although both types of oil can sometimes be used for the same purposes, they are chemically different, priced differently and possess different properties.
Manufacturing of Fragrance Oils:
Fragrance oils are synthetic products and therefore do not possess the natural healing properties of essential oils. Fragrance oils are essentially a “pleasant” aroma, and many modern perfumes are created using fragrance oils. It is possible to create almost any aroma in a fragrance oil, unlike an essential oil, which is extracted from a plant.
Chemical Composition of Fragrance Oils:
Fragrance oils are not volatile because they are synthetically made; therefore, fragrance oils usually last longer than essential oils. The range of fragrance oils is a lot wider than essential oils because almost any fragrance can be made in a laboratory. Fragrance oils may contain a certain percentage of essential oils, but they are not completely natural, like essential oils.
Price of Fragrance Oils
Fragrance oils are much cheaper than essential oils because of the ease at which they are synthetically made; almost any aroma is available as a fragrance oil. Examples of fragrance oils that cannot be extracted in essential oil format include banana, strawberry, melon, apple, blueberry pie and hot fudge cake.
Uses of Essential Oils and Fragrance Oils
Fragrance oils are commonly used in soaps, perfumes and body lotions, and are favourites of craft makers thanks to the variety of fragrances available. Fragrance oils are commonly used hand-in-hand with essential oils, for example fragrance oils are used in soap making to provide a strong and pleasant aroma which is able to achieve by only using essential oils, essential oils are used in soap for their health benefits.
