Candle Making Costs: Calculating Fragrance Loads, Wax Ratios, and True Margins
Published 26 April 2026 · Last reviewed 15 March 2026
The £2 candle myth
Ask a candle maker what a candle costs to make and the first answer is usually the wax and fragrance. "About £2 per candle." Maybe £2.50 if they count the container.
The real number — once you add wicks, labels, CLP stickers, packaging, labour, platform fees, and monthly overheads — is usually £4-6 per candle for a standard 200ml soy candle. That gap between the perceived cost and the actual cost is where margins disappear.
Here's a full breakdown of candle making costs in the UK, with current supplier prices and a realistic margin calculation.
Material costs: the full ingredient list
A 200ml soy candle requires more components than most new makers expect:
| Component | Quantity per candle | UK price range | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soy wax (e.g., Golden 464) | 180-200g | £3.50-5.10/kg | £0.76 |
| Fragrance oil | 16g (8% load) | £4-12/100ml | £0.76 |
| Cotton wick + sustainer | 1 | £0.06-0.15 each | £0.08 |
| Glass container (200ml) | 1 | £0.70-2.50 each | £0.95 |
| CLP warning label | 1 | £0.03-0.06 each | £0.04 |
| Dust cap / lid | 1 | £0.03-0.10 each | £0.05 |
| Wick sticker (centering) | 1 | £0.01-0.03 each | £0.02 |
| Total materials | £2.66 |
These prices assume bulk buying from UK candle suppliers (5kg+ wax, 500ml+ fragrance, 100+ containers). Smaller quantities cost significantly more per unit.
Fragrance: the expensive variable
Fragrance oil is typically the second most expensive material after the container. The cost depends on three factors:
1. Fragrance load percentage. Most soy wax manufacturers recommend 6-10% fragrance by weight. At 8% load on 200g of wax, you need 16g of fragrance per candle. At 10%, it's 20g — a 25% increase in fragrance cost.
Use our Candle Fragrance Calculator to calculate exact quantities for your batch size and fragrance percentage.
2. Oil quality and source. UK fragrance oil suppliers typically charge £4-6 per 100ml for standard scents and £8-12+ per 100ml for premium or complex blends. The difference between a £4 and an £8 fragrance oil is £0.38 per candle at 8% load — significant when multiplied across hundreds of candles.
3. Scent throw performance. A cheap fragrance that requires a 10% load to perform costs more per candle than a quality fragrance that gives strong throw at 6%. Buy test quantities before committing to bulk.
Wax: not all equal
UK candle makers primarily use:
| Wax type | UK price/kg | Max fragrance load | Burn characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soy (Golden 464, EcoSoya CB) | £3.50-5.10 | 8-10% | Clean burn, good scent throw, frosting common |
| Paraffin | £3.85-4.83 | 8-12% | Strong scent throw, soot risk, not "natural" |
| Coconut-soy blend | £5.50-7.00 | 6-8% | Smooth finish, premium positioning |
| Rapeseed | £4.00-5.50 | 6-8% | UK-grown, "natural" positioning |
The wax cost per candle varies from £0.63 (cheapest paraffin) to £1.40 (premium coconut blend) for a 200g candle. That £0.77 difference per candle is £18.48 across a batch of 24 — enough to affect your pricing strategy.
Labour: the cost most candle makers ignore
A batch of 24 candles takes approximately:
| Task | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Weigh ingredients | 15 min | Wax, fragrance, additives |
| Melt + heat wax | 20 min | Mostly waiting, but you can't leave |
| Add fragrance + stir | 10 min | Temperature-sensitive — must be precise |
| Pour into containers | 15 min | Including wick centering |
| Cool + second pour (if needed) | 5 min active | Sinkholes require a top-up pour |
| Label + package | 25 min | CLP labels, dust caps, quality check |
| Cleanup | 15 min | Equipment, workspace |
| Total active time | ~1 hr 45 min |
At £15/hour, that's £26.25 in labour for 24 candles = £1.09 per candle.
Most makers don't count cure time (1-2 weeks for soy wax). If you're renting workshop space, that cure time has a cost — shelf space occupied for 14 days before you can sell.
The full cost picture
Bringing it all together for a standard 200ml soy candle:
| Cost layer | Per candle |
|---|---|
| Materials (wax, fragrance, wick, container, labels) | £2.66 |
| Labour (1.75 hrs ÷ 24 at £15/hr) | £1.09 |
| Packaging (box, tissue, branded sticker) | £0.45 |
| Overheads (insurance, energy, equipment depreciation) | £0.40 |
| Waste allowance (5% — cracked/failed candles) | £0.23 |
| True cost per candle | £4.83 |
Compare this to the "about £2" most makers quote when they only count wax and fragrance.
Margin by sales channel
Your production cost is fixed. Your margin changes dramatically by channel:
| Channel | Selling price | Fees | Profit per candle | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etsy (£10 + £3.50 shipping) | £10.00 | £2.17 (see Etsy fees guide) | £3.00 | 30% |
| Own website (£12 + £3.50 shipping) | £12.00 | £0.50 (Stripe) | £6.67 | 56% |
| Craft fair (£10, £50 stall ÷ 40 candles sold) | £10.00 | £1.25 per candle | £3.92 | 39% |
| Wholesale (50% off £12 retail = £6.00) | £6.00 | £0.00 | £1.17 | 20% |
The same candle generates £6.67 profit on your own website and £1.17 at wholesale. This is why understanding your full production cost matters — a wholesale order that looks profitable at a £2 material cost becomes marginal at the true £4.83 cost.
How to improve your margins
1. Increase batch size. Labour and setup costs are largely fixed per batch. Going from 24 to 48 candles per batch drops your labour cost per candle from £1.09 to roughly £0.70 — a £0.39 saving per candle.
2. Negotiate supplier pricing. Fragrance oil and containers have the highest unit costs and the most price variation. Buying in bulk (1L+ fragrance, 100+ containers) typically saves 15-25% compared to small quantities.
3. Reduce packaging cost. A kraft bag (£0.08) and a branded sticker (£0.05) is £0.13 per candle. A custom printed box might be £1.50. The box looks better, but does it drive enough extra sales to justify the £1.37 difference across every candle you sell?
4. Shift channel mix. Every sale moved from Etsy to your own website saves roughly £1.50-2.00 in fees. Building your own audience is slow, but the margin improvement is significant.
5. Test fragrance loads. If your candle throws well at 7% instead of 10%, you save £0.28 per candle on fragrance alone. Test systematically: pour identical candles at 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, and 10%, cure them equally, and compare scent throw honestly.
Use our Candle Fragrance Calculator to calculate exact fragrance quantities and material costs per candle for your specific recipes.
This guide uses UK supplier prices current as of early 2026. Prices vary by supplier, quantity, and specific product. For the full costing method including overhead allocation, see The Complete Guide to Recipe Costing for Artisan Makers. This article applies to UK candle makers — for CLP labelling requirements on candles, check HSE guidance on CLP labelling for chemical product requirements.