The 9 Best Marula Oils
Updated by · How we research
Virgin, unrefined or refined? Nine marula oils for face, hair and body compared on purity, organic seals and bottle type, led by The Ordinary Virgin Marula. When users buy our independently chosen editorial recommendations, we may earn commissions to help fund the Wiki.
Marula oil is pressed from the kernel inside the stone of a southern African fruit, and a luxury bottle can cost many times more than a drugstore one holding the same single ingredient. The words on the label matter more than the brand: virgin, unrefined and cold-pressed, with nothing added. These picks suit dry skin, frizzy ends and beards.
Editor's Notes
October 27, 2026, by Ezvid Wiki Editors:
The Ordinary Virgin Marula now leads the list. It holds the same single, virgin oil as the Drunk Elephant Virgin Marula, which stays on as the splurge, for a small fraction of the cost. Paying more buys a lighter feel and a prettier bottle, not a better ingredient.
Seven earlier picks are gone from stores. InstaNatural, Naturium, Marula Organix, Shea Terra and the MarulaOil Rare Light can't be bought new, and we couldn't find Acure or Newday Essence for sale. We also dropped Pure Body Naturals, because its own label calls the oil refined. The new picks cover organic seals, a pump bottle for body use, big bottles for hair, and one for soap makers.
No lab has checked these brands for purity, so we leaned on what each label actually says about extraction and certification, a published analysis of the oil's fatty acids, and a medical site's plain review of what marula oil can and can't do for skin.
Earlier notes
December 13, 2020:
In our most recent update, we removed the Cavin Schon Beauty and the Marula Pure Beauty due to availability concerns and replaced them with the Naturium Deep Moisture and the Pure Body Naturals Refined. While we do have some more expensive picks, such as the Drunk Elephant Luxury and MarulaOil Rare Light, we wanted to make sure we still had some budget-friendly options. With the Naturium Deep Moisture and Pure Body Naturals Refined, you get all-natural, 100% marula oil for an affordable price. They would both be good options if you're thinking about trying marula oil for the first time and don't want to break the bank doing so.
September 23, 2019, by Gabrielle Taylor:
If you've never used a facial oil before, it can seem intimidating, especially if you already have oily skin. But quality marula oil is very moisturizing without leaving a greasy residue once it absorbs, and it's also great for taming frizzy hair and treating split ends.
Drunk Elephant Luxury is a high-quality unrefined oil that's cold-pressed to retain nutrients and contains no dyes, fragrances, or artificial ingredients. It's high in antioxidants to protect skin against environmental stressors, along with omegas 6 and 9 to nourish and moisturize. Formulated for fine hair, MarulaOil Light by Paul Mitchell is a non-greasy treatment that adds shine and helps to control frizz on humid days. It can be used before or after shampooing and is also great for skin and nails. Marula Pure Beauty is sustainably harvested by hand and extracted using no added heat or chemicals in order to preserve its nutrients. It provides long-lasting hydration and helps to smooth fine lines, and can be used alone or mixed in with your moisturizer.
We've also included a few budget-friendly options for those who want results without paying for expensive luxury brands. The Ordinary Cold-Pressed is a virgin marula oil that's completely unrefined. It hydrates and helps to bring out the natural glow of healthy skin, and it comes in a dark glass bottle to protect it from exposure to UV rays. InstaNatural Organic can be used as a simple in-shower treatment by mixing it into your shampoo or conditioner, or on dry hair to smooth split ends and flyaways. It also helps skin to absorb other products better and works well under makeup.
Virgin, Unrefined Or Refined: Reading The Label
Refined oil is cleaned up further, which strips scent and some natural compounds.
Marula oil comes from the white kernels inside the hard stone of the marula fruit, which grows on a tree native to southern Africa (Healthline). Virgin or unrefined oil is pressed out mechanically and bottled with little more than filtering, so it keeps its pale yellow color and faint nutty smell. Refined oil is cleaned up further, which strips scent and some natural compounds. Some large-scale extraction also uses chemical solvents, so a few makers print "hexane-free" on the label to rule that out.
The oil is mostly oleic acid, the same fat that dominates olive oil, with smaller shares of palmitic and linoleic acid (Planta Medica). That mix makes it rich but slow to spoil. On the ingredient line, look for one entry: Sclerocarya birrea kernel or seed oil. Anything else is a blend. An organic seal tells you how the nuts were grown and handled, under rules set by the USDA's National Organic Program (USDA), not how the oil will feel on skin.
Face, Hair Or Body: How Much To Use
A little goes a long way. Drunk Elephant's directions call for two or three drops on the face, neck or hands (Drunk Elephant), and one small bottle lasts months at that rate. For hair, work a few drops through damp ends; too much leaves strands greasy, which matters most for fine or curly hair that already shows oil quickly.
Bottle choice follows the job. Small dropper bottles suit faces, where you want control. Big bottles cost far less per ounce and make sense for scalp massage, hair masks, body oil and soap or balm recipes. A pump keeps hands clean when you're oiling arms and legs after a shower.
If your skin is oily or breaks out, start slowly. Sources disagree on how likely marula is to clog pores. Healthline calls it a light, non-greasy moisturizer, while Skin Type Solutions notes that its palmitic acid can cause breakouts on very acne-prone skin (Skin Type Solutions).
Safety, Allergies And Freshness
Patch test any new oil first. Healthline suggests three or four drops on the inner forearm, then a day's wait for redness or itching (Healthline). Marula comes from a nut, and the same source says some people with nut allergies may react to it, so ask an allergist if you have one. Keep it out of your eyes and off broken skin.
Be wary of big promises. Healthline found no scientific evidence that marula oil treats eczema or psoriasis, and claims about wrinkles rest on its moisturizing, not on trials. In the U.S., cosmetics don't need FDA approval before they're sold, though the agency can act against unsafe or mislabeled ones (FDA).
Light, heat and air turn oils rancid. Store the bottle capped in a cool, dark cupboard, and toss it if it starts to smell sharp or like old crayons. Dark glass protects the oil better than clear plastic.
How we researched this
We compared 18 marula oils, read the ingredient lines, certifier seals and directions on each label and on makers' sites, a published analysis of the oil's fatty acids, Healthline's evidence review and a skin-care site's take on pore clogging, weighed beauty reviewers' comparisons and owner feedback, and checked every brand for recalls with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. No independent lab has tested marula oil brands for purity.
Frequently asked questions
What is marula oil made from?
It's pressed from the white kernels inside the stone of the marula fruit, which grows on a tree native to southern Africa. Good bottles list a single ingredient: Sclerocarya birrea kernel or seed oil.
How is marula oil made?
Virgin oil is cold-pressed: the kernels are squeezed mechanically without added heat, then filtered. Refined oil goes through extra cleaning that removes scent and some natural compounds, and some industrial extraction uses solvents, which is why some labels say hexane-free.
Is marula oil good for oily skin?
It can be. It feels light and soaks in quickly, but sources disagree on how likely it is to clog pores. If you break out easily, patch test and start with one drop at night.
Is marula oil good for curly hair?
A few drops on damp ends can soften dry curls and cut frizz. Use less than you think: too much weighs curls down and looks greasy.
Marula oil vs. argan oil: which is better?
Both are light, oleic-rich oils from African trees and do similar jobs. We found no head-to-head trial, so pick by feel, scent and price.
Does marula oil get rid of wrinkles?
No oil erases wrinkles. Marula moisturizes, which can make fine lines look softer, but there's no strong clinical evidence it reverses aging.
