The Best CBD Oil UK (2023)

CBD oil has become one of the most popular products on the market for naturally improving your well-being. As it moves into the mainstream, the choice of products seems to get bigger by the day.

With so many options, how do you choose the best CBD oil for you? There's a lot to consider, from price and purity to strength and safety. To help you make an informed choice, we've put together this mega-guide to choosing the right CBD oil, and we've hand-picked the top 8 CBD oils that we think you'll love.

Here's what you're going to learn:

What is CBD oil?

Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a naturally occurring compound from the cannabis plant. It's one of around 133 cannabinoids found in the flower of the hemp plant, along with hundreds of other natural substances like fatty acids, terpenes, flavonoids, vitamins & Minerals.

CBD oil is made by extracting cannabidiol from the hemp plant and blending it with carrier oil, such as olive oil or MCT oil. CBD may be extracted on its own, or with some or all of the other natural compounds, to make different types of cannabis oil products.

Is CBD oil legal in the UK?

Yes! CBD oil is 100% legal in the UK, provided that it meets certain conditions. The finished product must contain less than 1mg THC per container.

THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is another cannabinoid found in the hemp plant. It's the psychoactive substance responsible for the “high” feeling you get when you smoke cannabis. Unlike THC, CBD does not have any psychoactive effects.

What is the best CBD oil?

All CBD oils listed below have met CBD Shopy's quality assessment criteria formulated in consultation with medical cannabis expert Prof. Michael Barnes. Please note, none of the brands paid or offered any other incentive for placement on this list.

• Ardoa Organics

Ardoa Organics is a team of experts producing plant-based products and dietary supplements sold at the Ardoa Market. Their mission is to focus on plant-based products with the highest quality, use certified ingredients, and organic growth processes, provide and discuss relevant science, track products from manufacturing to customers’ doorstep, and be a carbon-neutral company.

Ardoa Organics M-drops Amber42 CBD oil is their most inexpensive broad-spectrum CBD oil drops product, containing 0.2% THC. It is a versatile dietary supplement that is safe for everyday use and takes advantage of the Entourage Effect, making it perfect for a range of uses related to cannabis-based products. It is subject to a rigorous testing methodology and significantly emphasises documentation, provenance, product information, and Good Manufacturing Practices.

Amber42 CBD oil is available in a 1220 mg bottle.

• Blessed CBD

Blessed CBD was established by a family that was dissatisfied with the lack of reliable companies in the UK market that produces high-quality products. They found that some CBD products in the UK lack enough cannabinoids and may cause psychoactive effects.

They offer full-spectrum and broad-spectrum CBD oils that are produced from organic hemp cultivated in Colorado and Europe, and without the use of pesticides or herbicides. Every batch of CBD oil by Blessed CBD is also subjected to third-party lab testing which certifies the CBD content and the absence of any compounds or heavy metals in the CBD oil. Blessed CBD solely offers products in the UK.

Most CBD oils range in potency from 250mg to about 1000mg, while Blessed CBD offers options up to 1800mg.

• Charlotte’s Web

The company reportedly manufactured the first medical CBD oil for a little girl named Charlotte Figi, whose situation has raised the world's attention to the life-saving advantages of cannabis. Today, it offers a variety of over-the-counter products, all of which are excellent. Their products are said to be excellent for anxiety, despair, and attention, and they observed that their mood improved significantly with continued use.

Charlotte's Web CBD Oil is produced in labour-intensive small batches to ensure the highest level of quality. There are no additives, preservatives, or other artificial nasties in any container other than pure Charlotte's Web hemp extract, a carrier oil, and natural flavouring.

It's essential to understand the potency of your CBD oil, but it's not always easy, especially if you're new to CBD. Thank goodness Charlotte's Web made it easy. To clarify how much CBD you are taking in, they rebranded their CBD oil according to the strength per dosage.

Choose from four delectable flavours: mint chocolate, olive oil, orange flower, and lemon twist, each with 17mg, 25mg, 50mg, and 60mg CBD/ml.

• Vibes CBD

Vibes CBD is a small company that has recently entered the UK's CBD market. They meticulously choose each of their products, which are all of the highest quality and effectiveness.

Due to the extraordinary levels of purity and quality achieved through the supercritical CO2 extraction method, Vibes CBD oils undergo extensive lab testing, third-party verification, and cannabinoid content, heavy metals, solvents, and herbicide tests. Additionally, Vibes CBD maintains a 100% organic standard for all its products by not adding chemical fertilisers, colourants, or other additions to the growing process.

Their selection of CBD oil is limited, but they also provide gummies and capsules in a wide range of potencies. They offer CBD oil products with dosages ranging from 1000 mg to 2000 mg.

• Endoca Raw

Endoca Raw is a terrific choice if you're a person who cares a bit more about where their products come from and want to have the least possible negative impact on the environment. The brand offers a vegan-based CBD oil that is organic and entirely gluten-free.

Because of the supercritical CO2 extraction methods used to separate CBD from hemp, you're going to receive very high purity. If you're concerned, though, each batch is certified with a report on purity and a list of the contents.

Their high-quality hemp-derived CBD oil formulas include a full range of beneficial phytochemicals, omega 3, vitamin D, and vitamin E, as well as flavonoids, terpenes, co-factors, and co-nutrients. To guarantee that you get the best extracts possible, their CBD oils are subject to stringent quality monitoring. Every drop is as natural as it can be. Endoca CBD Oils are offered in raw and heated formulations, as well as strong and medium doses (300 mg to 3000 mg).

• Excite CBD

Excite CBD is a UK-based company with operations in Scotland and a few small CBD online marketplaces. Excite CBD's organic hemp is sourced from plants with specific phytochemical ranges, providing a full-spectrum CBD oil.

Furthermore, they maintain it organically, using no pesticides or other chemicals at all in the growing process. Their products also go through a CO2 extraction filtering process.

Excite CBD oil products are available in 500mg, 1000mg, and 2000mg.

• Holistic Hemp

A Scottish startup by the name of Holistic Hemp thinks that the future belongs to hand-crafted CBD products. To achieve this, their plants are produced on small farms that adhere to high standards and use no pesticides or other chemicals around Europe.

Furthermore, all of their hemp extract flowers are hand-picked and extracted under lower pressure and lower heat to preserve the oil's chemical composition.

Their CBD oil is only available in one dose, 500mg, but they also make pastes that are much stronger and can be added to anything.

• CBD Life UK

CBD Life UK is a member of the Cannabis Trades Association that strives to be a pioneer in CBD products.

Their top-notch customer service matches the demands of their customers and their high-quality products. CBDLife UK's hemp oil spray and liquid aqua drops are their two most popular product, but CBD oils that are both full-spectrum and broad-spectrum are also available. Whether you want a broad-spectrum product or something somewhat more refined, they are confident that you will discover the ideal oil for you.

Their CBD oil products are available in 400mg, 500mg, 1000mg, and 2000mg bottles. CBD Life UK provides a diverse choice of products for a variety of tastes, with strong and affordable eligibles containing 25mg of CBD.

When you’re choosing the best CBD oil, there are lots of factors to take into account. Most importantly, you’ll want to make sure you’re getting a safe, legal and high-quality product, but you’ll also want a product that suits your individual needs and tastes.

There’s lots of choice out there, so we’ve created this buyer’s guide to help you find the right CBD oil for you. First, let’s look at the different types of CBD oil.

What types of CBD oil are there?

There are three main types of CBD oil products: full-spectrum, broad-spectrum and CBD isolate.

Full-spectrum CBD oil

Full-spectrum CBD oil contains all of the compounds naturally found in the hemp plant, not just cannabidiol. These fatty acids, flavonoids, terpenes and other substances are all believed to have therapeutic benefits of their own, so people often choose full-spectrum CBD oil to maximise the effects of CBD oil.

When you consume all of the natural compounds of the hemp plant together, something pretty amazing happens! The compounds complement each other and work together to create an amplified effect, known as the “entourage effect”, boosting the benefits of the oil. Essentially, the full-spectrum oil is more powerful than the sum of its parts.

Broad-spectrum CBD oil

Like full-spectrum, broad-spectrum CBD oil contains all of the natural compounds of the hemp plant, but with one key exception: THC.

Although the amount of THC found in UK CBD oil is very limited and tightly controlled, some people prefer not to consume any at all. Broad-spectrum CBD oil is the perfect compromise, offering all the benefits of full-spectrum oil with none of the THC.

CBD isolate

CBD isolate is an ultra-pure CBD powder made only from cannabidiol. To make CBD isolate, all of the other plant compounds are removed during the extraction process, including THC. That means you won’t get the amplified benefits of the entourage effect from CBD isolate.

However, the removal of fatty acids means that it can be used to vape, and the removal of terpenes means that you won’t get the distinctive herbal taste of a full- or broad-spectrum CBD oil.

What strength CBD oil should you take?

Strength refers to the amount of cannabidiol in your CBD oil. It's usually shown in milligrams (mg) per bottle, not per dose. To work out the strength per dose, use this formula:

CBD per dose (mg per 1ml) = CBD per bottle (mg) / bottle size (ml)

For example, if a 20ml bottle has a strength of 1000mg, that means there's 1000mg in the entire bottle. To work out the strength per 1 ml dose, you'd need to divide 1000mg by 20 ml. That would give you 50mg of pure CBD per 1 ml dose.

The FSA recommends a maximum daily intake of 70mg CBD per day. While we're not aware of any risks from exceeding this limit, we do recommend that new CBD users build up to higher doses slowly. It's hard to predict how CBD will make you feel, so it's best to start with a low dose and increase the strength over time.

Do you want the entourage effect?

To recap, the entourage effect is when a CBD oil features all of the natural compounds of the hemp plant with nothing removed, magnifying their positive effects. If you want the entourage effect, choose a full-spectrum or broad-spectrum CBD oil, rather than a CBD isolate.

Are you particular about flavour?

Aromatic terpene compounds give CBD oil a strong, herbal flavour that not everybody enjoys. If you’re not keen on the taste, choose a flavoured oil, or go for a CBD isolate that has had the terpenes removed completely.

Important factors to consider for safety & quality

Unfortunately, the regulation around CBD in the UK is not well-enforced. There are still lots of rogue brands that take advantage of this, so what you see on the packaging is not always what you get in the bottle.

At CBD Shopy, we go above and beyond to give you access to safe, legal, quality CBD oil. In consultation with medical cannabis expert Prof. Michael Barnes we formulated quality assessment criteria for selecting CBD oils for our online store & best lists. Here’s what we look for in a top CBD oil.

Lab reports

First things first – the all-important lab report! A reputable CBD brand will have their CBD oil tested and verified by an independent, third-party lab. This will verify:

• How much CBD and THC the oil contains.
• That the oil is free of mould, pesticides, heavy metals and other contaminants.

The brand should also make the lab reports readily available. If they don’t have lab reports, or they won’t share them, it’s important to ask yourself why.

Some CBD oils have been found to contain only a small fraction of the advertised CBD, and others contain enough ethanol to be legally considered an alcoholic drink! The lab report is the only way to know that you’re getting what you pay for, so don’t buy without seeing it first.

Organic hemp

The choice of hemp makes a difference to the quality of the CBD oil. We make sure that the company knows where their hemp comes from. Specifically, hemp that is organically grown in regulated jurisdictions, using natural farming methods. This ensures that you’re not consuming unnecessary and potentially harmful chemicals like pesticides.

Extraction method

The quality of CBD oil is heavily influenced by the method used to extract it from the hemp plant. The best extraction methods, like CO₂ extraction, use low temperature and low pressure to preserve the delicate plant compounds and deliver a superior CBD oil.

Manufacturing standards

We look for brands that have the seal of approval from international bodies like ISO and GMP. This means your CBD oil has been manufactured in world-class facilities that meet strict industry standards.

Customer satisfaction

If you want to know if a brand truly walks the walk and delivers a great CBD oil, there’s nobody better to ask than the customer. That’s why we sort through reviews on independent sites like TrustPilot to find brands that are getting incredible customer feedback.

Industry association

In an industry where products are ingested for wellness benefits, yet regulations are very lax, brands who proactively consult with authorities in the cannabis industry including but not limited to associations, doctors, professors & researchers show a sign of good faith towards their customer's wellness.

Price

The price of CBD oil varies quite significantly between brands, but you can generally expect to pay higher prices for better-quality products. CBD Shopy checks to ensure the price of oils on this list are within the market range, so customers are not paying extortionate amounts.

The best method of comparing prices between brands is to divide the retail price by the MG strength of CBD, for instance: £36.99 / 500mg = £0.073 per MG of CBD. The average market range in the UK averages between £0.06 - £0.11 per MG of CBD.

How do I take CBD oil?

CBD oil should be taken sublingually, or absorbed under the tongue. The bottle will usually have a dropper or spray top, and the packaging will tell you roughly how many drops/sprays make up the recommended dose. Simply place the required number of drops/sprays under your tongue and wait 30-60 seconds.

Some CBD oils have a strong herbal taste, so you may be tempted to swallow the oil straight away instead of letting it sit in your mouth. However, keep in mind that when you swallow CBD, it has to pass through your digestive system and liver before it gets to your bloodstream. By this time, much of the CBD will have been metabolised and there will be a lot less for your body to use. This is referred to as low “bioavailability”.

On the other hand, CBD taken sublingually goes straight to the bloodstream via the large blood vessels under your tongue. There’s much more CBD for your body to use, so it’s said that this method has high bioavailability. It also means you’ll feel the effects quicker.

Is CBD oil right for you?

If you’re shopping for CBD oil, we’re sure you’ll find your perfect match here in our top 8. However, before you buy, there are a few things to keep in mind.

CBD is generally well-tolerated and there is currently no evidence to suggest that it’s not safe to use. That said, it’s always wise to speak to your doctor first if you:

• Are pregnant or breastfeeding.
• Have any underlying medical conditions.
• Take medication, whether it’s prescription or over-the-counter.

CBD is often equated with medical cannabis, but be aware that they are two different substances. Medical cannabis is a pharmaceutical product that can only be prescribed by licenced doctors to treat specific health conditions.

In the UK CBD oil is sold as a food supplement and it is against regulations to advertise it's supposed 'medicinal benefits', so steer clear of any brands that promise otherwise, and always seek advice from your doctor if you have a medical concern.