Presented by The Weed News Company
CBD is everywhere these days. You can find it at your local health food shop or buy it online from one of the many online vendors.
Today, most people get their CBD directly from the manufacturer. Recent advancements in the ecommerce space have made it easy to get CBD oils delivered direct to your door at a low cost.
The problem is that not all CBD vendors are selling CBD oils that are worth the money. A recent study found that more than half the CBD oils tested contained only a fraction of the CBD advertised on the bottle.
Here, we’ll cover three of the top-rated CBD manufacturers on the market and explain why they made the list. We’ll also offer some insight into what to look for when buying CBD products to make sure you get the best value for your money — and find products that are actually going to work.
Best CBD products to buy in 2020
- Royal CBD – Award Winning, best CBD oil overall
- Gold Bee – Runner Up, quality product at a good price
- Blessed CBD – Potent CBD, but only ships to the U.K.
1. Royal CBD — Best Overall
Royal CBD is a kingpin in the CBD industry at the moment. They were one of the first brands to establish mandatory third-party testing on every batch of product listed on the website. This means a sample from every batch of the company’s products — CBD oils, CBD gummies, CBD capsules, CBD topicals, and CBD pet oils — is sent to an independent lab for analysis.
Once the sample arrives at the lab, it’s tested to reveal its true cannabinoid content, terpene profile, and checked for traces of contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, solvent residues, and more.
This brand makes some seriously top-notch CBD products — they’ve received numerous awards for value, quality, and potency from dozens of publications, including LA Weekly, Isum, We Be High, City Beat, Riverfront Times, SF Weekly, and Cleveland Scene — just to name a few.
Pros:
- Wide range of premium CBD products to choose from
- Award-winning CBD brand
- All products sent to independent lab for testing
Cons:
- Not available in store (online CBD brand only)
2. Gold Bee — Runner-Up
Gold Bee is another reputable CBD brand that’s been consistently churning out high-grade products.
This brand is listed as our number two recommendation because of how new they are as a company. As a newer company, Gold Bee has a much smaller product lineup, and there are fewer reviews and recommendations for the brand online.
With that said, Gold Bee is on track to becoming one of the most well-known CBD brands in the U.S. They’ve already been mentioned among the top CBD brands for five different categories — best CBD topicals, best CBD oils, best CBD gummies, best CBD pet oils, and best CBD capsules. You can find mentions of Gold Bee on publications such as CFAH, Weed News, Orlando Weekly, Observer, Metro Times, SF Examiner, and San Antonio Current.
What really makes Gold Bee stand out is its use of organic hemp, elegant branding, and the sheer quality of its CBD oil.
Let’s define what quality means in this context.
A quality CBD product has the following characteristics:
- High concentration of CBD
- Rich diversity of other cannabinoids (such as CBC, CBG, CBN, and THCV)
- High concentration of terpenes (such as myrcene, caryophyllene, humulene, and more)
- Uses a pure carrier oil (no impurities or rancid oils)
- All batches have clear evidence of third-party testing
Gold Bee ticks all the boxes for what makes for a quality CBD product — yet the price is well within the industry average (in some cases even lower).
Overall the products this brand carries are well worth the money. Gold Bee is expected to become a household name in the CBD space within the next few years if they continue growing at their current rate.
Pros:
- Exceptional cost to potency ratio
- Offered in unique honey flavor
- Wide range of quality CBD product types
Cons:
- High-demand means these CBD product sell out fast
- Only available online
3. Blessed CBD — The U.K.’s Best CBD Brand
Blessed CBD is a U.K.-based CBD brand. We’ve included this brand on this list as an option for readers living outside the U.S. who want to order CBD directly from the source (neither Royal CBD nor Gold Bee ship internationally).
This company stands out for two reasons — they’re one of the only CBD brands in the U.K. doing complete third-party testing, and they offer a rich CBD product at below-market prices.
Blessed CBD primarily sells full-spectrum extracts. This means these oils contain the entire array of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other hemp-derived compounds — above and beyond just CBD. All of these compounds work together to improve the effectiveness of the oil. This gives Blessed CBD oils a more robust set of effects than simple CBD isolates (which are common in the U.K.). It also makes these products more versatile (full-spectrum products have a longer list of benefits than CBD isolate).
The only exception here is the Blessed CBD gummies — which use a CBD isolate in order to preserve the integrity of the gummy mix.
Blessed CBD sells CBD oils, CBD gummies, CBD capsules, and CBD topicals — all of which offer excellent value in their class.
For the best value, go for the 1800 mg CBD oil or the double pack of CBD gummies.
Pros:
- Award-winning UK-based CBD brand
- Very high-potency products
- Independently tested for quality assurance
Cons:
- Only available within the U.K.
What to look for when buying CBD
Buying CBD is simple — finding CBD that offers good value for the money is a little more complicated.
Here’s how to do it.
A) CBD product audits: How to define value
When shopping for CBD products, it’s helpful to know how to compare the value from one product to another.
CBD companies are good at making their products seem special, using nice branding and misleading sales pitches. But when you look under the hood, a lot of these products are shockingly low value.
The best way to quantify a CBD product’s value is to find the “cost per milligram of CBD.” This is a metric that tells you exactly how much money you’re spending for every milligram of CBD in the product. It allows you to compare CBD products of all different types, all different potencies, and all different sizes.
To find this number, divide the total cost of the CBD product by the total amount of CBD.
Here’s what to expect in terms of cost for different CBD products:
- CBD Oils — $0.10 – $0.18
- CBD Gummies — $0.13 – $0.19
- CBD Capsules — $0.10 – $0.18
- CBD Topicals — $0.15 – $0.25
B) Third-party testing (transparency)
While there are definitely trustworthy CBD companies — it’s wise to go with the axiom, “trust but verify.”
This is what independent (third-party) testing is designed to offer.
Third-party testing involves sending a sample of CBD products from a company to an independent lab. Here, the lab can analyze the contents of the product to check the total CBD concentration and the levels of other cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals.
These labs can also check for the presence of contaminants in the product — such as pesticides leftover from the growing process, solvent residues picked up during extraction, or more sinister contaminants like lead or arsenic.
These tests are more trustworthy than the CBD company’s in-house testing because the independent lab has no reason to fake the numbers — in fact, they would quickly go out of business if they were caught lying on these tests.
Any CBD company that doesn’t provide clear evidence of third-party testing for every batch of CBD extract should be avoided. The cost to test is negligible, and the process itself is simple and straightforward — so there’s no excuse for not providing these results.
If a CBD brand isn’t listing these test results publicly, it probably means they’ve got something to hide.
C) Determine the potency
Once you’ve found a company that offers products at a good value and provides third-party test results — the next step is to decide on a potency.
CBD oils come in all different ranges, from very low-potency (150 mg) to ultra-high potency (4000 mg) CBD oils. CBD capsules and gummies usually come in potencies of 10 mg, 25 mg, or 50 mg per serving.
In general, the best potency for CBD oils is between 1000 and 2000 mg per 1 ounce bottle, and 25 mg per gummy. These potencies are strong enough for hitting higher doses if needed, but not too strong to make it hard to hit the lower doses as well. You can simply count the drops with a CBD oil to get the right amount, or split gummies into halves or quarters for a milder dose.
Very low potency CBD oils (300 mg or less) are only recommended for people who are sensitive to CBD. They’re also the best option for use with children or pets.
On the flip side, the ultra-high (2500 mg or above) CBD oils are only recommended for experienced individuals.
Is CBD legal where I live?
Before you order any CBD products, you should become familiar with your local laws and regulations.
CBD is legal in the United States on the federal level as long as they’re made from hemp plants and contain no more than 0.3% THC by weight. You can order CBD oils online and have them delivered to your door entirely legally.
Outside the U.S., laws can vary substantially. In most of Europe, CBD is legal as long as the THC content doesn’t exceed 0.2%, but a few countries require 0% THC or ban CBD oils altogether. The U.K. has some specific rules regarding the sale of CBD oils.
In South America, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, the laws are unique for virtually every country. CBD products can fall anywhere on the spectrum of being banned and punishable by jail time, to completely legal. Always check up on whether or not CBD is legal near you before you place an order.
Why you should look for full-spectrum CBD products
When shopping for CBD products, there are three different types of CBD extracts — CBD isolates (pure CBD), full-spectrum extracts (contains all hemp derivatives), or broad-spectrum extracts (contains everything except THC).
The main reason most experts recommend going for a full-spectrum hemp extract over CBD isolates is because of the added benefits of a group of chemicals called terpenes.
Terpenes have a lot to offer in terms of health benefits. They increase the absorption of CBD itself — leading to a faster onset of effects. They also help slow the breakdown of CBD and other cannabinoids to produce longer-lasting benefits, and some even offer their own therapeutic benefits towards relieving anxiety, improving sleep, and numbing pain.
You can order full-spectrum products outright, or use terpene extracts from companies like Finest Labs to give your CBD oil an added boost.
Final thoughts: Where to buy CBD nearby
CBD products are readily available in the United States and many other countries around the world.
You can buy CBD products at local health food shops or dispensaries — however, it’s recommended you go directly to the manufacturer by ordering from its website. Buying direct will give you the best price and ensures the products you’re getting are fresh and haven’t been sitting on store shelves for too long (causing them to become weaker).
The best place to get CBD products in 2020 is from companies like Royal CBD and Gold Bee in the United States, or brands like Blessed CBD if you live on the other side of the Atlantic.
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