Are Plastic Bottles Safe for Essential Oils?
Get your free copy of 100+ Amazing Diffuser Recipes today!
No matter what life brings your way, there's a diffuser blend for that! My short, practical ebook is packed with 100+ recipes to diffuse for immune support, sleep & relaxation, energy & good mood, focus & concentration, holiday & seasonal aromas, and more!
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.
See my full disclosure here.
Is it safe to store essential oils in plastic containers? Â It depends.
While glass is always the best choice, it may surprise you to learn that certain plastics are typically considered suitable for essential oils.
Are Plastic Bottles Safe for Essential Oils?
Generally speaking, essential oils are best stored in dark glass containers. Certain metals are fine for essential oils usage as well, such as stainless steel water bottles.
However, in some cases it’s impossible, impractical, or downright inconvenient to use glass or metal containers for your essential oil concoctions.
For example…
- I prefer the sturdy plastic mini-sprayers pictured above for my DIY Hand Sanitizer.
- A sturdy, recycled plastic jar stores my sugar scrub in the shower, where hard tiles + children showering could lead to a dangerous situation with broken glass.
- We also use a plastic dispenser for foaming hand soap (pictured below), in another bathroom where broken glass is a concern.
Plastics Generally Considered Safe for Essential Oils
Again, glass and stainless steel are always the best option when it comes to essential oils.  But if necessary, the plastics listed below should work just fine.
Keep in mind that essential oils should always be diluted when using plastic.
- HDPE plastic (High Density Polyethylene)
- #1 plastic
- #2 plastic
- Thick, food grade plastic
Keep Essential Oils Away from these Plastics
Never use essential oils with these types of plastic!
- Water bottles
- Solo cups and their equivalents
- Plastic drinking straws
- Plastic kitchenware
- Thin plastic containers
- (Styrofoam)
Citrus and Other Hot Oils
One more thing to keep in mind is that certain oils, especially citrus, are more caustic towards plastic.  Other hot oils include Cinnamon, Thyme and Oregano.
It’s always a good idea to use a little extra caution when dealing with these oils.
 Try it yourself: fill a plastic Solo cup with water.  Add a few drops of citrus oil such as Lemon.  Let it sit there for a while, and then watch what happens.
Hint: It will eat away the lining of the cup. Â Guess where that lining goes? Â Right–into the water. Â Never drink your EOs from a plastic cup or bottle!
When it comes to essential oils: always use common sense; choose glass or stainless steel when possible; and when plastics are necessary, be sure to choose the safe kind. Â
Sign up NOW for my best tips delivered weekly to your inbox!
You’ll also get instant access to my library of free ebooks and resources.
You might also like...
What if the water bottle is #1? Aquafina says their water bottles are made from polyethylene terephtahalate (PET). PET bottles (marked as Recycling #1). Would these be safe to add a couple drops of essential oil (lemon) and drink from?
Thanks!
Chris
Chris–You definitely want to avoid adding essential oils to #1 water bottles.
Thought so, just wanted to make sure.. thanks for the fast reply!
I’m confused – above it says that #1 bottles are safe. But they aren’t? (I wouldn’t use them with oils anyway – I try not to use them period – just as easy to fill a glass with water at work as to grab a bottle of water. 🙂 )
You’re right, Melissa–that IS confusing! Sorry!
doTERRA’s Dr. Hill speaks here about plastics and EOs: http://doterrablog.com/ask-dr-hill-carrier-oils-plastic-and-essential-oils-interacting-with-our-bodies/.
Here’s a link to explanations of the different types of plastics: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/which-plastics-are-safe.html
Regardless of whether certain plastics are considered “safe” for EO usage, I personally would never drink EOs from a plastic container. Hope that helps! 🙂
Are they safe for the piping if you use eos in the toilet or bath? I know they’d be quite diluted, but worry about the piping getting eaten..
I use EOs in our toilets all the time. You’re right–they’re so diluted that I really don’t see an issue. One caution: you might want to be careful with a whirlpool tub. We don’t have one, but I believe the tubing for the jets might be more vulnerable to damage from EOs. If you use EOs in a whirlpool tub, it’s probably best not to use the jets.
Can I make a bug spray concoction using a HDPE bottle and put some citrus Essential oils in it? In other words, can citrus be put inside a HDPE spray bottle?
Sturdy plastic bottles are generally considered safe for diluted essential oils. We’ve used a very thick plastic spray bottle for our bug spray, although I haven’t added citrus oils.
will check on plastic bottles (2 or 4oz) you mentioned on ebay. My facial and hair oils come in 16 to 24 oz bottles from a vitamin co. I mail order from. I have smaller 4 oz glass bottles I transfer the oils to, some given as gifts. I use safflower oil for a hair cond. and sometimes on legs after shaving. Argan oil (Sallys supply) comes in cobalt blue one ounce with dropper (face oil) which is ok. Kukui comes in 4 oz.- hair/ face, Almond oil w/E is used on face (I rotate oils), use sunflower in larger container. Large containers stay under sink and small 4oz ones are out and used daily. I have used essential oils in hair cond for the scent like lavender or lemon. I am a retiree so now you know why I have all these oil varieties to combat wrinkles and cond. hair.
So if I added a couple drops to a plastic water bottle, copolyester hardplastic, should I know throw away the bottle? I didn’t know and had it in there with water and was drinking it for 2 days before a friend told me. I have cleaned it out with soap but do not want to continue to drink out of it if it is going to continue to get plastic in the water.
Would an ABS plastic jar for bath salt with EO be ok??
I want to degrease the plastic sides of my popcorn maker. I am worried it may ruin the plastic. Lemon or orange EO dilluted. Any suggestions?
Danielle, if it’s a thick, sturdy, food grade plastic, you might be okay. It’s not like you’ll be storing essential oils in the plastic for a long period of time. For a one-time cleaning of sturdy plastic, it should be fine. Just be sure to rinse it well afterwards.
Hi. I put rosemary oil in my shampoo bottle… Is that safe?
Its No. 01 pet
Hello! I used the recipe for foaming soap (in plastic bpa free containers I bought in bulk on Amazon) but occasionally have been using citrus oils to scent them and add to the germ killing properties. Would this not be a big deal since we are just using it on our hands? Would you avoid all citrus in the plastic hand foamers?
Hi Jodie, Technically it’s best to use glass, but glass is so breakable in the bathroom! I’ve used citrus oils in plastic foaming soap dispensers.
Hi Violet, I use Melaleuca in my shampoo every time I wash my hair, but I’ve chose to keep a bottle of the oil in the shower and add a few drops to my hand rather than adding the EO to the shampoo bottle. It may not be a big deal, but I try to avoid using EOs with plastic whenever possible.
Hello, We were just wondering if glass were not an option, would stainless steel be acceptable for long term storage for most/all essential oils? Would the stainless cause any issue with the oil?
Thank you
Stainless steel should be fine. 🙂
Hello. I typically use 1 drop of either lime, lemon or peppermint doTerra essential oil in my glass (not plastic) of water almost every day. Is it safe to ingest that much oil on a regular basis. I have been reading various stories of how oils ingested are harmful to liver and kidneys and yet my representative said that they are perfectly safe. Thank you.
I can’t find stainless steel spray bottles with nozzles to put my thieves cleaner in. I’m looking for 8, 16 or 32 oz. size. Any suggestions?
I haven’t come across any stainless steel spray bottles. For cleaners, I use glass spray bottles or sometimes recycle the super sturdy plastic refill bottles from my On Guard Foaming Hand Wash.
I found some stainless steel spray bottles on Ali Express by searching for stainless steel sprayer. I’ve gotten several things from Ali and been happy. Shipping is usually low or free, but it does take about a month to get here from China. There’s so many sellers on there, be leery of ones that haven’t sold anything yet or have no star rating. Here’s a link for one bottle I found:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32774508037/32774508037.html
My expensive diffuser is plastic. Thoughts on that?
Yep, Jenna, almost all diffusers are plastic. The thicker and sturdier the plastic, the better.
If the diffuser says it’s made from medical grade plastic you should be fine.
I’m looking to make some On Guard hand sanitizer. What plastic bottles would you recommend? I found some PET BPA free ones on Amazon.
Wegmans sells stainless steel spray bottles and amber glass perfume roller bottles. Spray is $1.99 and amber perfume roll-on is $3.99. I’ve found some on amazon 6 bottles for 5 bucks. Aromatherapy – Amber Glass Bottle with Roll On Applicator and Black Cap – 10 ml – Package of 6 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MHZRQ94/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_064NBbF42FKXM
I’m going to make eye lash enhancer with castor oil, rosemary & lavender essential oils will it be safe to store in l: PETG/ ABS/ PP, clear and durable containers?
Is tritan BPA free plastic contigo tumblers safe to use with essential oils?
Hello ,
The trunk of my motorcycle is made of ABS plastic. I want to put a metal can with 3 drops of peppermint oil in cotton, and just leave it in there until I can’t smell peppermint, then do it again to keep my trunk smelling pleasant.