Fragrance oil calculator

How much fragrance oil to add, at any load, for any wax. Handles both ways of quoting a percentage — and shows you the same batch expressed the other way.

INPUTS
Your percentage is of…
Oil is a percentage of the wax, added on top of it. 500 g wax at 8% means 40 g oil and 540 g total.
g
Not sure? Run the wax calculator first — it gives you this number.
Typically 8%, rated to about 10%. The container default. Forgiving to pour, frosts a little, holds up to about 10%.
8%
How many candles?
×1 Scales every result together.
Your wax and your fragrance oil each publish a maximum — use the lower of the two. Check the oil's flashpoint clears 185 °F as well, or much of the scent is gone before it binds.
RESULTS
Fragrance oil
40.0 g
Wax
500.0 g
Finished batch
540 g
Same batch, quoted the other way
7.4% of total
Stir the oil in at
85°C · 185 °F
Then pour between
57–63°C · 135–145 °F

How this is worked out

Fragrance load is a ratio by weight, never by volume — oils differ in density, so measuring by millilitres introduces an error before you start. The only complication is which weight the percentage refers to. Quoted as a percentage of wax, the oil is added on top of the wax and the finished candle weighs more than the wax you started with. Quoted as a percentage of the total, the oil is part of the finished weight and the wax is reduced to make room. The calculator does whichever you choose and tells you what the same batch would be called under the other convention, so you can follow a recipe without having to guess which one its author meant. Typical loads across the common waxes run about 5–12%.

% of wax: oil = wax × load total = wax + oil
% of total: oil = total × load wax = total − oil

Questions makers ask

How much fragrance oil per pound of wax?
At 8% of wax weight, one pound of wax takes about 36 g of fragrance oil, which is roughly 1.3 oz. Set the load you actually want in the calculator above — 8% is the common soy default, not a rule.
Is the percentage of the wax or of the whole candle?
Both are used, and they are not the same. 500 g of wax at 8% of wax weight gives 40 g of oil and a 540 g candle. 500 g of finished candle at 8% of total gives 40 g of oil and only 460 g of wax. Most suppliers and most recipes mean percentage of wax weight. The toggle at the top of the calculator switches between them and shows you the same batch expressed the other way.
What is the maximum fragrance load?
It depends on the wax, and it is set by the manufacturer, not by convention. Across the common waxes it runs from about 6% for beeswax up to around 12% for paraffin and coconut blends. Your fragrance oil publishes a maximum too. Use whichever of the two is lower.
What happens if I add too much fragrance oil?
The wax cannot hold it, so it separates. You get oily patches on the surface, oil pooling around the wick, a candle that sweats in warm weather, and a flame that behaves unpredictably because it is drawing fuel it was not wicked for. More oil past the maximum does not make a stronger candle — it makes a worse and less safe one.
Why does my candle not smell strong even at a high load?
Throw is not just load. It depends on the oil itself, whether the wax is one that carries fragrance well, the temperature you added it at, how long the candle cured, and above all whether the wick is big enough to melt a full pool. An under-wicked candle at 10% will smell weaker than a correctly wicked one at 6%.

Read before your next batch

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