By AnaMaria Glavan and Sarah Madaus
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Candles are an easy way to elevate your space, and while you can shop for candles on all corners of the Internet, the best candles on Amazon ship to your place more quickly than most retailers and offer a surprisingly dense variety of brands (big-name and small businesses alike). These candles evoke feelings of relaxation, energy, or focus, provide ambient lighting to make any space infinitely cozier, and even double as lovely decorative pieces.
Now, there are thousands upon thousands of scent profiles—from gourmand to herbaceous, floral to fruity, fresh to musky—to sniff before you start pinpointing your favorite notes. Do you prefer the woodsiness of patchouli? Subtle hints of vanilla? Freshness of bergamot? Perhaps the combination of apples and cinnamon turns every single day into sweater weather? The only way to understand your hero fragrance is to, well, try a bunch of them.
Wherever your preferences lie, candles are a welcome addition to your home all year round. Ahead, we put our noses to the test to deliver this curation of the best candles on Amazon: a mix of affordable and splurge-worthy, packaged in unique amber vessels and ceramic porcelain sculptures that will have you hitting "add to cart" before you can contemplate whether your apartment can house another candle. (Spoiler alert: It can.)
Paddywax Candles's Apothecary Collection is an upcycling lover's dream courtesy of stunning amber vessels that can be repurposed into any trinket, from a vase to makeup brush storage. The soy wax candles come in unique, smoky scents reminiscent of woodsy campfires, thanks to combinations such as Tobacco & Patchouli, Amber & Smoke, and Teak & Tobacco. An aromatherapy dream awaits.
Birthdate's Zodiac Candle is customized right down to the day with a personalized tarot card reading, which outlines strengths, weaknesses, ruling planets, and more fun tidbits of inspiration that will lead you down a Co-Star rabbit hole. The scent of each candle is inspired by the reading, too: November 1 Scorpios will experience bergamot, cinnamon, and mahogany, while June 9 Geminis will be surrounded by the scent of orchid, sandalwood, and lemon.
Anyone who has ever walked into an Anthropologie store has totally Googled their store scent. Turns out, you can get it on Amazon in a matter of days (or day if you have Prime). Capri Blue's Volcano is one of the best-smelling candles ever, full stop. With bright notes of tropical fruits, sugared citrus fruits, and mountain greens, it's essentially a portable spa. You can choose from four sizes, but we recommend the largest (48 ounces), which burns for up to 85 hours. Soon your space will smell like you're in a higher tax bracket.
If you gravitate toward cucumber gimlets on the cocktail menu, Tocca's Montauk Candela combination of salt air, cucumber, and seagrass will quickly become your home's signature scent. This hand-poured candle has a burn time of up to 60 hours, plus, the frosted glass vessel is ideal for upcycling into a morning iced coffee mug.
Florals for spring? You know what—we'll let you finish that one. Boy Smell's Cameo single-wick candle is the best of the category, nixing any stereotypes that rose home fragrances smell like old ladies. (Although, we tend to be huge fans of old ladies.) That's because it pairs floral notes with a complex layer of musk, ginger, vanilla, and cedarwood. It's delightful in any space, but we'd especially recommend it in the bathroom.
Malin+Goetz Votive Candles come in a variety of unique fragrances, ideal for sensitive noses that detest anything overly fruity, sweet, or floral. Instead, opt for those inspired by vices, like Dark Rum or Cannabis. We're partial to the former, which creates a moody, romantic aroma of plum, anise, leather, rum, amber, and patchouli. It's spicy and warm and feels like the Caribbean at nighttime.
Tomato girl summer is here once more, folks. Kobo's Wild Tomato Vine Candle, which combines a medley of herbs, clover, and greens, turns your kitchen into a fragrant masterpiece of fresh sauce—even if you're eating takeout dinner for a seventh consecutive day.
If you haven't been introduced to Courteney Cox's home brand, allow us the pleasure. Homecourt is the home of cleaning products and Best of Beauty-winning room fragrances with upscale scents and gorgeous packaging. The Cece Candle is Cox's signature scent: cedarwood smoke, cardamom, cinnamon, and white leather. Each candle is hand-poured into a ceramic vessel that can—and should—be repurposed into a planter, catch-all, or even a coffee tumbler.
Mrs. Meyer's Soy Candle is the perfect way to end a deep-cleaning session around your home. There is nothing more satisfying than placing this candle on your kitchen countertop, lighting a match, and allowing the decadent basil scent to burn whilst you sit on your sofa and watch a cozy romantic comedy.
Relaxation is embodied within LAFCO's Lavender Chamomile scent, which brings together yes, a soothing combination of lavender and chamomile—but also several other scents to make it more complex. Earthy, grounding notes of patchouli, rosemary, and sage, are paired with uplifting bergamot and eucalyptus essential oils, which differentiates this blend from other lavender candles on the market. Keep it in your bedroom to burn for an hour before you hit the hay, pair it with a book, and you might just sleep like a baby.
Jonathan Adler Women's Muse Noir Ceramic Candle is basically a work of art because of its sophisticated porcelain vessel etched with elegant faces filled with rich black wax. Not only will this stunning piece of decor rest beautifully upon a dining or coffee table, but the notes of bergamot, black plum, amber, and vetiver) easily make any space feel instantly more inviting.
Brooklyn Candle Studio's subtle scents are excellent for small, cozy nooks in your home. They're especially divine for scent-sensitive folks. Santorini is earthy and fruity, with notes of fig, red currant, amber, and sandalwood. It's inspired by, you guessed it, Santorini, Greece. If you're looking for more destination candles, Brooklyn Candle Studio also makes best sellers like Catskills, Kyoto, and Brooklyn.
Morning routine: Turn on your coffee machine, and light Friday Collective's three-wick Wake-Up Call Candle. Notes of coffee beans, brown sugar, and whipped vanilla kickstart your day with a boost of energy, turning your living room into the home office of a professional barista.
Voluspa's Goji & Tarocco Orange candle gets rid of something we refer to as "candle guilt," i.e. never lighting your candle for fear that you will waste it. Why? This hand-poured coconut wax blend has a 100-hour burn time, which means this tangy, citrusy goji, and tarocco orange scent will last an exorbitant amount of time—even if you burn it daily.
Ah, the classic candle. Notorious for its variety of scents, Yankee Candle has plenty of signature favorites but we adore the zesty, bright Sicilian Lemon. This blend is reminiscent of a chilled glass of homemade lemonade—we're talking top and heart notes of tangy lemon, paired with base notes of vanilla and sugar. Yes, it's sweet, but the sweetness is cut by the tart lemon. Food smells, be gone. We also appreciate that the glass jar can be cleaned out and reused.
Nest New York's Grapefruit Candle is a crowd-pleasing scent that makes a great gift for your friends who just moved into a new home (or any other occasion, TBH). The grapefruit, lily of the valley, and coriander blossom notes are refreshing and energizing. The cotton wick ensures that your candle has a clean and even, slow burn.
Few people can resist the scent of freshly laundered clothing—thank goodness Otherland did us all a favor and bottled it up in an inviting candle. Part of Otherland's Garden Party collection, Clean Blossom stars notes of crisp linen, mimosa flower, and creamy gardenia, all housed in a vessel that's too cute to pass up.
Read more about our favorite fragrances and candles:
Now, watch a drag singer's entire routine, from shaving to showtime:
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