Essential Oil Diffuser- Which one to use?

My journey with essential oils has gone really well.  We've used them for a lot of things, and pinterest is filled with a million more ideas if something comes up.



One of my favorite ways to use oils is diffuse them in a room.  But a quick google search will give you a million different brands, and all of the diffusers on Amazon have good and bad reviews.

Here are the three that I own.

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The first is by Smiley Daisy and was bought off Amazon for about $50.  Oil diffusers aren't cheap, even the "cheap" ones.  I actually like this one decently.  But I hate the humongous, ugly logo on the front.  I've read that you can get it to come off by scrubbing with oil and sugar, but it voids the warranty.

This is a decent diffuser.  It works better in terms of output than the Samyo listed below, meaning the vapors come out stronger and farther into the room.  When you purchase off Amazon, the company sends you occasional emails on how to use the diffuser with different oils for different situations.  I actually quite like it because being new to this, I need ideas.


The second is by Samyo also bought off amazon.  This one doesn't have a  logo on it like the one in the picture.  And both this and the Smiley Daisy have a bunch of different colored lights if you'd like to have those on.  My kids think they're cool, I am indifferent.

This one works not quite as well as the above Smiley Daisy.  But with this one, it is much more pleasing to they eye with no crazy logo.

Both the Samyo and the Smiley Daisy seem to do better if placed up high on a shelf or even elevated on your counter.  The vapor shoots out the top but at the side and has a tendency to fall down towards the ground immediately.

Both of the first two diffusers work fantastic in a small bedroom or kitchen.  Any place that is relatively closed-off and not cavernous.



The third one is by Young Living. It retails for $96.  I ended up joining and becoming a member even though I am not going to sell the oils (I don't think they are exclusively the best, nor are they the cheapest for good quality), however, I really wanted to be able to smell some of their oils.  I have bought some full size oils (the ones that come in the Young Living kit are 5ml vs. the fullsize 15ml) without smelling them and several are quite terrible- my kids would literally have to be the sickest they have ever been to get over my aversion of them.  Buying Young Living's kit was a good way to get a bunch of oils, plus a diffuser "relatively" inexpensively.

I haven't had this diffuser very long but here are my thoughts.  The vapors come out the top of this diffuser (mine is slightly different in the middle, purple and less flowery if you can imagine).  They also come out at a much stronger force than either of the other two diffusers.

It does a better job of getting the oils up and into the air immediately.  And breathing them in, is of course, how the benefits of a diffuser are done.  So in terms of that, this one is superior.

However, Young Living suggest 8-12 drops of essential oil in their tank which holds approximately 100mls of water.  In the other two diffusers they hold a max of 120mls, and suggest 4-6 drops of oils.  The Young Living diffuser only stays on for about 1 hour and it pumps out all the water in that timeline.  With the other two diffusers, you can set how much it comes out with the Smiley Daisy, either slow- cycle every 30 seconds of diffusing, then not, or with the Samyo you can set how much time to diffuse, up to 3 hours.  You don't have any of those options with the Young Living diffuser.

You also are going to use more oils much faster with the Young Living if you stick with 8-12 drops, but even if you don't, it spits out the same amount of water as the other two a lot faster, so even if you don't use the drop number they suggest, in the end you will still use more oil.

The biggest issue with the Young Living diffuser is the price.  I ended up not paying $96 because it came in my kit with 10 different oils, but at that price you could by both of the other diffusers, and have a couple for different rooms.  Which you are going to want.  Right now Owen is asleep in his room with Peppermint diffusing to help his fever, and Truitt has one in his room pumping out oils for respiratory issues.

If you are looking at a bigger room, then I would suggest the Young Living diffuser.  It made the oils go through our living room, which is decent sized much quicker than the other two.

My advice is to think hard about where you are going to put your diffuser, your price point, and how you want the oils to come out.  Maybe your plan is to put it on a shelf somewhere, and then I would definitely say buy a cheaper one, but if you are thinking about putting the diffuser in a relatively large room, I would probably go with the Young Living if you can afford it.