My favorite way to think about the cost of my candle addiction is to look at the burn time and crunch the numbers to see how much money I’m spending to burn that candle every hour. Less than $1.50 per hour is my sweet spot. Anything above that is harder to justify.
I keep a spreadsheet of popular candle brands and this “cost per hour” calculation so I thought I would share it on the blog. Hopefully this is helpful for other candle addicts! These numbers are current as of August 28, 2024. For brands that offer candles in multiple sizes, I picked the size I was most likely to purchase. There are also brands with multiple candle lines (like the Jonathan Adler Pop candles versus Muse candles) so I try to specify which one I’m using in my calculation.
Most candle companies indicate burn time on their website. That is where these numbers came from. If a company included a range, I used the median (e.g. 50-60 hours becomes 55 hours). I am aware that burn times can vary widely depending on things like how long you burn a candle in one session, whether you trim your wicks, etc. That said, I still find this spreadsheet useful and I hope you do too!
With no further ado, here is a totally ridiculous, but hopefully useful guide to candle cost per hour:
| Candle Brand | Size (ounces) | Price | Burn Time | Cost Per Hour |
| Trader Joe’s | 5.7 | $3.99 | 20 | $0.20 |
| Target (Opal House 3 Wick) | 28 | $20.00 | 60 | $0.33 |
| Voluspa | 5.5 | $22.00 | 50 | $0.44 |
| Paddywax | 8 | $26.00 | 52 | $0.50 |
| PF Candle Co | 7.2 | $24.00 | 45 | $0.53 |
| Illume (Tin) | 11.8 | $28.00 | 50 | $0.56 |
| Capri Blue | 8 | $24.00 | 40 | $0.60 |
| Brooklyn Candle Studio | 10 | $42.00 | 70 | $0.60 |
| Apotheke | 10.5 | $46.00 | 65 | $0.71 |
| Otherland | 8 | $40.00 | 55 | $0.73 |
| Illume (Ceramic) | 6.3 | $24.00 | 30 | $0.80 |
| Nest | 8.1 | $48.00 | 55 | $0.87 |
| Hotel Lobby | 9.75 | $58.00 | 65 | $0.89 |
| Boy Smells | 8.5 | $48.00 | 50 | $0.96 |
| LAFCO | 6.5 | $50.00 | 50 | $1.00 |
| Glossier | 8 | $45.00 | 45 | $1.00 |
| Overose | 8.4 | $58.00 | 57.5 | $1.01 |
| Illume (Statement Glass) | 20.8 | $62.00 | 60 | $1.03 |
| Malin + Goetz | 9 | $64.00 | 60 | $1.07 |
| Le Labo | 8.6 | $87.00 | 80 | $1.09 |
| DS & Durga | 7 | $70.00 | 60 | $1.17 |
| Jonathan Adler (Pop) | 7.5 | $48.00 | 40 | $1.20 |
| Diptyque | 6.5 | $74.00 | 50 | $1.48 |
| Nette | 11 | $82.00 | 55 | $1.49 |
| Byredo | 8.4 | $99.00 | 60 | $1.65 |
| Celine | 8.4 | $110.00 | 65 | $1.69 |
| Jonathan Adler (Muse) | 13 | $88.00 | 51 | $1.73 |
| Maison Margela | 5.8 | $70.00 | 40 | $1.75 |
| Jo Malone | 7 | $82.00 | 45 | $1.82 |
| L’Objet (Nose Candle) | 14 | $150.00 | 70 | $2.14 |
| Trudon | 9.5 | $125.00 | 57.5 | $2.17 |
| Tom Ford | 7 | $140.00 | 40 | $3.50 |
| Loewe | 5.8 | $120.00 | 30 | $4.00 |
