Magnesium lotion is an increasingly popular way to supplement with the mineral magnesium. Some users report improvements to sleep, mood and even muscle tension.

But does magnesium lotion have proven benefits? Can magnesium be absorbed through the skin? Is it cheaper to make magnesium lotion at home? And what ingredients are needed?

In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze research studies on magnesium supplementation to determine if there are any benefits, and whether topical application of magnesium works.

We'll also share a recipe for making healthy magnesium lotion at home, and share our honest experience trying it for three months.

Magnesium Lotion Benefits

The physiological benefits of magnesium lotion come from the uptake of magnesium into tissues and cells in the body.

A medical review published in the Nutrients journal reported that 45% of Americans are magnesium deficient.

Dietary intake of magnesium is low because Americans don't consume enough fruits, vegetables and legumes.

Magnesium supplementation was described as supporting optimal cardiovascular health in a 2025 medical review.

Transdermal (through the skin) magnesium was shown in a research study published in the Nutrients journal to be more effectively absorbed than oral magnesium.

Magnesium supplementation also has a fantastic safety profile, as we documented in our magnesium glycinate vs citrate article.

How to Make Magnesium Lotion

As the author of this article, I decided to make my own magnesium lotion after looking at how expensive it was to purchase magnesium lotion online for regular use.

I purchased six products:

1. Ancient Minerals Magnesium Flakes
2. Unrefined coconut oil
3. Shea butter
4. A 5-quart stainless steel mixing bowl
5. Vitamix 5-speed immersion blender
6. Amber Mason jars

This is what the initial setup looked like:

Here's the recipe:

1. Mix three cups of magnesium flakes into three cups of filtered water and stir until it fully dissolves
2. Heat seven ounces (oz) of coconut oil and a pound of shea butter in a double boiler
3. After coconut oil and shea butter fully melts, take it off the boiler and let it sit on the counter until it's slightly hotter than room temperature
4. Mix magnesium and water mixture into the stainless steel bowl and use immersion blender for 5-10 mins

You end up with a thick, creamy lotion that looks like this:

The heavy-duty immersion blender is extremely important, because this mixture is viscous.

I then scoop the lotion into Amber Mason jars for storage using a spoon (I may purchase a funnel for this in the future).

This makes about 4-6 week's worth assuming you use the lotion 1-2 times a day. 

The whole setup and cleanup process is about 90 minutes, but you can do other things while it's being prepared.

Is the Home Version Cheaper?

When I prepare the homemade magnesium lotion, it's highly concentrated, containing around 45 grams (g) of elemental magnesium.

The total amount of lotion produced is about 80 oz (each Mason jar I purchased is 32 oz).

Removing the one-time setup costs, the cost of 80 oz of homemade magnesium lotion is $36.50 (shea butter $24.50, magnesium flakes $6, coconut oil $6)

On Amazon, the most popular magnesium lotion is 5 oz and costs $22.95:

image source: https://amazon.com

This would equate to a price of $367.2 for 80 oz of this product.

This makes the homemade version around 90% cheaper than purchasing a retail version of magnesium lotion.

Our Experience Testing Magnesium Lotion

As the author of this article, magnesium lotion has genuinely been a game-changer for my quality of life.

I supplement with oral magnesium, but for whatever reason, my body seems to require more, and this topical magnesium has been a good solution for me.

I've experienced reduced muscle tension/fatigue, better energy and better sleep.

The lotion is also comfortable, whereas magnesium oil is irritating to the skin (as we documented in our how long does magnesium take to work article).

Another benefit to this homemade magnesium lotion is the packaging.

This homemade version is plastic-free, while many of the products on Amazon currently come in plastic packaging.

A medical review published in the Environmental Science & Technology journal found that plastic products leach toxic chemicals into food or water under realistic use scenarios.

This risk is greater for consumable products in our view, but eliminating plastic is still a small advantage to the at-home setup.

Conclusion

Magnesium lotion can be a cost-effective way to supplement with this critical mineral.

There are some doubts about the efficacy of transdermal magnesium absorption, but our research suggests that this method of supplementation is effective, although the available research is early-stage.

We made magnesium lotion with clean, toxin-free ingredients and shared the recipe with readers in this article.

As the author of this article, I've found magnesium lotion to improve my quality of life, and to be more convenient than magnesium oil.

Making magnesium lotion at home with high-quality ingredients is around 90% cheaper than purchasing from the most popular magnesium lotion brand on Amazon, on a per-oz basis.