The Best Essential Oils For Deodorant + An All-Natural Recipe

Making your own botanical deodorant with essential oils can give you peace of mind knowing that the ingredients are healthy and sustainably farmed. And, the average human spends about three days and eight hours of their lifetime applying deodorant (sheesh!), so why not create a custom aromatic formulation? Here's everything you need to know about how it's done.

Synthetic fragrances pepper the beauty industry, but essential oils are natural alternatives that will keep you smelling fresh all day long. Armpit body odor stems from bacterial breakdown of sweat produced by the apocrine glands. Fortunately, there are gentle, deodorizing essential oils. But some, like oregano, cinnamon, and clove, are not suitable for frequent topical use. Here are suggestions for potent, yet nonirritating oils to include in your recipe:

While you may not have heard of this citrus, it's a hybrid of bitter orange and lemon that grows well in southern Italy. Distilled from the peel, it has a sharp, masculine citrusy aroma that not only uplifts but also acts as an effective antibacterial1, antifungal, and natural deodorizer. It blends well with geranium, clary sage, and other citrus oils.

While it seems to have fallen into disuse over the years, clary sage deserves some attention. Its arid, nutty aroma acts as a natural deodorant, and it is particularly beneficial for balancing hormones.

In Latin, cypress partly translates to "evergreen." A superior astringent, it has a piney, woody scent, which is appealing to men and women, as well as a natural antiperspirant, antiseptic, and deodorizing abilities that blend well with geranium, lavender, and clary sage. It's a must-include for those who  sweat profusely since it's known to  prevent perspiration2.

Geranium acts as an antibacterial and hormone balancer3, plus, its strong, feminine, and green aroma blends well with clary sage, lavender, bergamot, and cypress.

Ginger is distilled from the rhizome, and it has been used as medicine since ancient times. Its spicy, warming scent blends well with cardamom and clary sage. It is an amazing antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory oil.

As one of my favorite scents, it cannot go without a special mention. While I am a fan of having at least three essential oils in a blend to maximize therapeutic benefit through synergy, I will sometimes break my rule and make just a grapefruit deodorant. The fresh, sweet scent will have you feeling crisp and energized. A well-known antibacterial, detoxifier, and disinfectant, grapefruit keeps body odor at bay. It blends well with other citrus oils and cypress, too.

Though lavender is known for being an all-around healer, many forget that it is a balancing oil with powerful antibacterial properties4. It is one of the gentlest essential oils with an herbaceous, floral scent. Plus, it blends well with many other oils.

Like lavender, tea tree is gentle enough to use on the skin neat, which makes it a great addition to a daily deodorant blend. It has an earthy, balsamic aroma that pairs well with citrus oils. Tea tree is a proven antibacterial and antiviral that calms inflammation and stimulates the immune system5.

My go-to recipe includes bergamot (15 drops), tea tree (8 drops), and clary sage (6 drops). The recipe below will make a little over 1.5 ounces of vegan, unisex, baking soda-free deodorant, which is enough to last you a few months.

Feel free to experiment with the ratio of butters, oils, and candelilla to find a consistency that you like. Also, many clays contain naturally occurring aluminum; however, the aluminum in bentonite clay is in oxide form in a clay particle and cannot be absorbed by the human body.