Edens Garden vs doTERRA | What's The Difference?
Bella Martinez
Shopping for essential oils is unlike shopping for groceries or other daily necessities. Essential oils are powerful tools that can radically transform your well-being. From aiding mood and emotions to improving immunity and sleep, there’s little aromatherapy can’t do.
But this is only possible when using pure, high-quality essential oil. On top of that, it helps if you’re purchasing from a responsible company that’s committed to sustainability and ethical sourcing.
To put it simply, narrowing down the right pure essential oil company takes research. To help you, we’ve created a chart that compares Edens Garden to other aromatherapy companies and shows you what separates us from the rest. Let’s dive in.
Edens Garden vs doTERRA: Everything You Need To Know
In this short guide, we’re comparing and contrasting Edens Garden to doTERRA. Read on for our full analysis.
#1 Production
Most essential oil companies today use machines to pour and bottle their oils because it’s fast and efficient. However, this method comes with a few setbacks like cross-contamination and often fewer quality control checks. Here’s why.
Unless you have separate pouring and bottling machinery for every oil (an unlikely feat), you’re using the same machinery to bottle multiple oils which leads to cross-contamination. And unless you’re checking every bottle that comes off the conveyor belt, the quality of most bottles of oil goes unchecked.
Edens Garden’s oils are hand-poured to prevent cross-contamination. This ensures that the therapeutic values and purity of our oils are precisely how nature intended. It also ensures accurate volumes are poured. Our pouring beakers and equipment are meticulously cleaned and sanitized using natural cleaners between oils. Furthermore, protective equipment is always worn, so each bottle that comes in contact with a human touch is free from contaminants.
doTERRA essential oils are bottled by machines.
#2 Direct To Consumer Pricing
Since our inception, Edens Garden’s desire has been to offer our high-quality essential oils at affordable prices. Because we believe everyone deserves the healing and restorative benefits that aromatherapy provides. And we’ve achieved this by adopting a direct-to-consumer business model that doesn’t have distributors or middlemen, brick-and-mortar stores or wholesale.
While we understand the benefits that MLMs provide, we’ve decided to offer wholesale pricing for everyone while still rewarding you on your purchases in the form of big discounts on future orders and huge sales throughout the year. We also introduced discounted bulk sizes on our most popular products to give those who purchase in large quantities a price break.
doTERRA is a multi-level marketing company that pads its prices in order to pay its top distributors and middlemen. Compare our pricing on Peppermint oil.
#3 Women-Owned & Operated
Edens Garden Essential Oils was founded in 2009 by Grace Martin with a desire to make affordable, quality essential oils more accessible. In her words,
“When I founded Edens Garden, I didn’t have a big investor or huge staff but my goal was to share high-quality, affordable essential oils. The medicinal and healing qualities of essential oils can beautifully transform lives, and I wanted more people to experience that. Providing affordable access to wholesome, safe and toxic-free aromatherapy options is my way of sharing my passion for nature with others.”
Today, Grace is at the helm of a close-knit team of strong, remarkable women who share that same passion. We’ve stayed committed to that original vision, and it’s at the cornerstone of all that we do.
What we do at Edens Garden would not be possible without an incredible team. From our in-house aromatherapists to our dedicated bottling and shipping team, to our graphic designers and accountants, each member helps bring nature’s benefits to your fingertips.
Several of the founders of doTERRA had previously held executive roles at Young Living.[1]
#4 Small Business
Since our inception in 2009, we’ve stayed true to our small business status and we’re proud of that. Rather than take on investors, we’ve maintained original ownership and self-funding, allowing us to stick to our end goal of offering quality oils, putting people over profit and doing it all without cutting corners.
doTERRA earns nearly a billion dollars in revenue annually.[2]
#5 Product Offerings
Edens Garden is an essential oil company first and foremost. We offer a much smaller and more curated selection of aromatherapy products, with an emphasis on our pure essential oils and blends. Each item that is formulated, selected and approved is born out of research and a dedication to providing our family of customers with the very best.
We are endlessly working to provide the best selection of oils and blends. Staying true to our original mission of being the best essential oil company possible, Edens Garden stays committed to offering pure, quality single essential oils and purposeful blends.
doTERRA has reached far beyond essential oils to offer a wider array of products. From vitamins, supplements, gum and apparel to laundry detergent, dish soap and wool dryer balls, their offerings continue to grow.
#6 Quality & Testing
Edens Garden was one of the first essential oil companies to offer transparent, third-party GC/MS test results on every batch of single essential oil we offer. These reports are made available at all times, directly on every single oil’s product page.
Additional testing is also performed on every batch of oil we offer to ensure purity and quality. These tests include:
- Refractive index
- Specific gravity
- Optical rotation
- Organoleptic
Each test is then reviewed by third-party essential oil chemists and our in-house team of aromatherapists for purity and quality.
doTERRA began offering GC/MS reports within the past few years and does not make their GC/MS reports available directly on their website to view before purchase. Rather, their reports are made available when you input an oil’s lot number (found on their essential oil bottles) on a separate website.
#7 Return Policy
We offer a 30-day (no questions asked) return policy. If it is within 30 days, we will happily accept any return for you, no matter the reason. Once we receive the product back, we’ll issue a refund to the original payment method.
doTERRA offers a 30-day return policy for unopened and unused products. In order for returns to be fully refunded, the product must still be “marketable,” meaning its packaging is intact, it has current doTERRA labeling and it cannot be past expiration. If the product is no longer marketable, a 90% refund is issued, minus shipping costs and paid bonuses.[3]
#8 Ingestion
One of the primary comparisons essential oil users note about Edens Garden is that we emphasize topical use and inhalation over casual ingestion. Studies and research have proven that essential oils are quite effective when inhaled and applied topically. Aromatherapy experts have also found that there are far more safety precautions to take when ingesting essential oils, as opposed to inhaling or applying them topically.
We believe there are times when essential oils can safely and effectively be taken internally, but we suggest this be done under the counsel and advice of a certified aromatherapist.
doTERRA and its distributors often recommend casual ingestion of essential oils for health and flavoring food and drinks. This has been linked to many occasions of adverse side effects.
#9 Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade
At Edens Garden, we’ve been asked countless times throughout the years if our oils are Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade (CPTG). And each time we’ve answered “no,” oftentimes there’s a sense of doubt on the other end.
However, we (and all essential oil companies) are unable to use this registered term because it is owned by doTERRA. This does not mean that our oils are not rigorously tested and of the highest quality and purity available – they are all of these things – but that we risk legal action if we use this term.
Comparable Blends to doTERRA
Edens Garden’s team of experts spent years formulating and perfecting our exclusive blends. doTERRA has a number of popular proprietary blends with similar benefits and aromas to Edens Garden. Here are some of our most comparable blends.
 |
doTERRA® |
| Allure | Whisper® |
| Bliss | Cheer® |
| Bug Bite Relief | TerraShield® |
| Calming The Mind | Console® |
| Citrus & Cream | Citrus Bliss® |
| Deep Breath | Breathe® |
| Gal Pal | ClaryCalm® |
| Good Morning | Motivate® |
| Guardian | On Guard® |
| Massage Therapy | Deep Blue® |
| Sore Muscles & Pain Ease | AromaTouch® |
| Tranquility | Serenity® |
| Voted Best Smelling | Elevation® |
| Worry Less | Peace® |
| XOXO | Passion® |
Choosing An Essential Oil Brand
Many aromatherapy companies are offering good quality oils like, diffuser options, and carrier oil selections that smell nice. And we’re grateful that essential oils are so readily available for people to enjoy. But at Edens Garden, we’ve raised the bar and set new standards year-in-and-year-out. Every essential oil blend and single oil we offer, like Fighting Five and Lavender, is analyzed and approved by a certified aromatherapist and team of essential oil chemists to ensure purity from harmful chemicals. So you can rest assured your Edens Garden oils are the very best with every batch. Learn more about our standards here.
We are grateful that we still hold the same passion and commitment to the purity of our essential oils that we did when we started in 2009. Thank you for walking with us along this journey!
SOURCES:
- Difference between Young Living and Doterra. https://www.tutorialspoint.com/difference-between-young-living-and-doterra
- DŌTERRA REVENUE. https://www.zippia.com/doterra-international-careers-21683/revenue/
- Section 6: Product Return Policy. https://www.doterra.com/US/en/policy-manual/product-returns
45 comments
Thank you so much for this article. I found it very informative and helpful. I have chosen Eden’s Garden over DoTerra for many years now, and will continue to do so. Thank you for keeping your standards high and your prices low!
I started my oils journey with DoTerra back in 2016, I’ve been using Edens Garden since about 2018/2019. I didn’t want the MLM gimick, so I did a lot of internet research (being aware of sources, looking for quality at better prices), and I found EG. I love MANY things about EG over the mlms, one major one being that I am able to chooses such a variety of sizes. Some oils I use daily, some I use semi-regularly, some I use on occasion. I love having the full oz sizes of my Gal Pal, the ones I use to make my own anxiety blend, the ones I use to make my own sinus/allergy blend, the ones I use in my homemade soaps, room and body sprays, lip balms, and hair care, etc (you get the point). I also love the variety in the singles (because I do make a lot of my own blends), and their Gal Pal blend is a god send (and one I tried after DoTerra’s cramp blend did wonders for me).
Anyway. I could write several blog posts over about what I use EG oils for and why I switched to Edens Garden from DoTerra, and why I’ve gotten others to make the switch as well. I truly do love the company and appreciate the new knowledge I’ve gained through this blog only verifying my decision further.
Excellent article. Makes me love Edens Garden even more!
Good morning,
As a former Do Terra customer who has been an Edens Garden customer for many years, I have appreciated the quality of your oils without the extra costs Do Terra required. I became a Do Terra customer in October of 2011 when my Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The oils were not a cure, but I felt helped so much in keeping her calm. I found Edens Garden when I began searching for high quality oils without the high cost. I have shared my oils with my son and daughter, over the years, however, I learned a few months ago that my children (grown and are parents, as well) do not like Edens Garden oils. They tell me the oils are “sticky” and not like Do Terra, so they prefer purchasing Do Terra oils. I never really noticed it until my daughter mentioned it, but they’re right. What ingrediet(s) does Edens Garden use that causes the oils to feel sticky? I no longer purchase the oils as gifts. They especially feel On Guard is superior to Guardian. I will appreciate your feedback. Thanks.
Wow. I love this post. I typically buy from DoTerra because I didn’t think much about it and assumed that they cost more, so must be better.. dumb I know. I am completely switching to Eden’s Garden.. this post was so well written, and answered every question I would’ve had. Kudos to Bella!