Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice, and is just the opinion of the writer(s). We recommend that patients follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to CBD.
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil is exploding in popularity across the US and across the world, as more and more consumers seek natural solutions for pain, sleep and anxiety.
Our goal with this article is to provide a clear set of criteria that consumers can use to evaluate CBD oil brands, and then recommend the best CBD products in five important categories:
Best Overall CBD Oil, Best Flavored CBD Oil, Best CBD Isolate Oil, Cheapest CBD Oil and Best CBD Oil for Dogs.
What Makes a CBD Oil Brand the Best?
We recommend CBD oil products based on three criteria: test results, clean formulation and price.
Test results prove that a CBD oil supplement is safe and accurately labeled.
High-quality CBD brands publish updated test results for each product batch they manufacture.
When we analyze test results, we’re ideally looking for potency data (proving the amount of CBD on the label is actually in the product), label accuracy data (proving that all ingredients listed in the product are actually in the product), and contaminant data (proving that contaminants like pesticides and heavy metals are not present in unsafe concentrations).
Clean formulation means an ingredient list that's free of any questionable additive ingredients like refined sugar or artificial flavors.
Price is an important consideration.
We report price per 25 milligram (mg) serving of CBD to provide a standard price comparison. This dose is within the effective range for CBD supplementation based on a medical review published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine Research.
We will only recommend products which meet our standards for each of these three benchmarks.
Best Overall — Cornbread
Cornbread CBD Oil is our top overall CBD oil pick.
Cornbread publishes updated lab testing results for every supplement they manufacture.
The brand tests against a wide set of criteria, and at the above link consumers can see that their CBD oil is as potent as advertised, accurately labeled and free of contaminants like pesticides and heavy metals.
This CBD oil has a clean formulation. The only ingredients are organic hemp flower extract (which contains CBD), and organic coconut MCT oil (as a safe, food-based carrier oil).
At the time of updating this article, Cornbread CBD oil costs $39.99, which equates to $1.33 per 25 mg serving.
Best Isolate — Beam
CBD isolate oil is free of all cannabinoids (like THC) except for CBD.
This makes them a good option for consumers who get drug tested, or who react poorly to low levels of THC.
Beam The One is our top CBD isolate oil pick.
Like Cornbread, this brand has a Lab Testing resource page on their website that allows consumers to input the batch number of their product and get updated testing data.
The test results prove that this CBD oil has 0.0% THC content, and is free of harmful contaminants.
This CBD oil passes the clean formulation test, because it contains no unhealthy additives.
Beam's CBD isolate oil contains 2,000 mg of CBD total and currently costs $95, which equates to $1.19 per 25 mg serving.
We consider this quite a reasonable price given that the CBD isolate manufacturing process requires more steps than producing typical full-spectrum CBD oil.
As one of the authors of this article (Calloway), I tried Beam The One myself for around a month.
I found that taking this supplement combined with melatonin a few hours before bed unlocked some of the best sleep of my life.
Cheapest — Lazarus Naturals
Lazarus Naturals CBD Oil is the most cost-effective option of any CBD oil that we recommend.
The brand passes the test results criteria, as they publish testing data to a Test Results Repository database on their site.
Lazarus Naturals CBD oil is tested for potency, label accuracy and a wide range of contaminants including pesticides and heavy metals.
This CBD oil currently costs $119.99 for 6,000 mg of CBD, which equates to $0.50 per 25 mg serving.
This is around 50% cheaper than the other brands we've recommended.
This product also passes the clean formulation test, with three whole food ingredients: organic hempseed oil, fractionated coconut oil and hemp extract. There are no unhealthy additives.
Best Flavored — Medterra
Medterra Citrus Oil is our top flavored CBD pick, because the brand uses organic flavoring which meets a higher ingredient standard than natural flavors according to USDA flavoring guidelines.
This brand conducts third-party testing, and consumers can request updated test results by reaching out through their website.
This CBD oil costs $64.99 and contains 1,000 mg of CBD. This equates to $1.63 per 25 mg serving.
Best for Dogs — Holistapet
Holistapet CBD Oil is our top CBD oil for dogs.
CBD oil is often prescribed to dogs as a natural alternative to pharmaceutical medications.
We only recommend giving CBD oil to a dog if approved by a veterinarian, as doing so otherwise is not safe and can put the animal's life in danger.
A medical review on hemp-based medicines in dogs published in the Journal of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics found that CBD oil is safe and can help relieve pain, but only at a dosage and format approved by a vet.
Holistapet’s CBD oil for dogs is lab tested, and is one of the few CBD brands for animals with lab testing data. The lab tests prove the potency and label accuracy of the CBD oil, but there is no test for contaminants.
Holistapet’s CBD oil passes the clean formulation test, because it only contains two safe ingredients: CBD extract and hemp seed oil.
The price of Holistapet CBD oil for dogs varies based on the size of the dog, but pricing between human and pet CBD products is significantly different so there is no benefit to a price-per-serving comparison.
