The Top 7 Tamanu Oil Brands For Skincare (2024 Update)

One topical treatment which has existed for millennia but only grown popular recently is tamanu oil, and it’s a good thing it has. Tamanu oil is among the most primitive, traditional, yet richest and potentially rewarding skincare oils out there. 

This topical treatment has two key roles in the world of acne: preventing acne from forming, and keeping your skin youthful and strong.

Firstly, tamanu oil is proven to kill acne bacteria, AKA propionibacterium acnes, when applied to the skin. Tamanu oil is highly active against p.acnes, even beating the antibiotic oxfloxacin in one study. Its acne-clearing powers are unique among oils, relying on rare compounds like alaustralin and calophyllolides.

Secondly, tamanu oil is proven to accelerate the formation of collagen in human skin. Collagen is your skin’s structural protein, the protein which declines during ageing. Increasing collagen production enhances your skin’s strength, tone, and youthful glow, and it’s believed that unique compounds in tamanu oil called tamanolides and inophyllums increase it.

Tamanu oil is a secret the Polynesians have enjoyed for centuries, simply by harvesting the nuts growing on trees on the sandy shores of their islands, and luckily for acne patients, it’s now spreading to the West. 

With it though, comes a small obstacle. You’re not a Polynesian islander lying in a small wooden boat, with vast forests of raw tamanu nuts to harvest at any time. You need to buy a tamanu oil bottle, and to help you in your quest, here are the 7 best products available.

Let’s get started: 

 

One – Prime Natural

The first tamanu oil on our list is perhaps the greatest available. This oil is sourced from tamanu trees growing in Vietnam, one of the foremost countries in growing natural tamanu oil.

The oil is dark green, with a woodsy and nutty smell, the optimal characteristics for acne. The bottle is glass and dark amber, the perfect colour for keeping UV radiation out.

Most importantly, Prime Natural’s tamanu oil is cold-pressed and unrefined. The tamanu nuts are NOT extracted with factory chemicals; they are harvested, pressed and sun-dried naturally by the hardworking local villagers.

The constant rule is that most skincare oils should be cold-pressed. Different oils have specific acne-clearing compounds which you simply can’t allow to be destroyed by the heat, like vitamin E in grapeseed oil or cinnamic acid in shea butter. Tamanu oil is particularly vital, because its list of unique plant compounds is long: inophyllum P, inophyllum C, calanolide B, tamanolide D, calophyllolide, tamanolide, inophyllum D.

That’s just a sample, as tamanu oil is a particularly special oil. These fragile compounds are responsible for both clearing acne and increasing collagen, and buying cold-pressed tamanu oil guarantees that they’ll make it to your face.

Finally, Prime Natural is certified organic by the USDA. The oil is bottled in the USA, while the many reviews are excellent, speaking of the signature green colour rather than a suspicious yellow. This brand comes in a 4oz bottle with a convenient dropper preinstalled.

Prime Natural is the best tamanu oil product money can buy, fulfilling every requirement for acne and skincare.

Amazon link: Prime Natural Organic Tamanu Oil.

 

Two – Sulina Shop

Sulina Shop is another wildly successful tamanu oil. It meets the automatic requirement for acne, being cold pressed and unrefined.

This brand has tamanu oil as the sole ingredient and not a single additive: no phthalates, sulfates, parabens, synthetic preservatives, perfumes, or dyes. According to Slice Of Nature, their tamanu oil originates from the Pacific island of Vanuatu, the original heartland of tamanu oil. The trees grow in coastal areas on sandy soils, and the nuts are allowed to dry naturally for 1-2 months instead of artificially heating them, a process which results in overly black oils.

The smell, texture and colour of Sulina Shop are also natural, according to reviewers. While buying natural skincare oils, you should always know the characteristics of its raw and unprocessed form, and tamanu oil has very particular characteristics. A green colour, varying from dark forest green, to light green with a yellow tinge. A strong nutty or woodsy smell, not mild like jojoba oil’s natural scent. The smell will not necessarily be pleasant, but it won’t be foul and rancid either.

Finally, tamanu oil is a fairly thick oil compared to jojoba oil as well. Sulina Shop meets each of those vital requirements, and also has the benefit of a built in dispenser.

Sulina Shop is a world class tamanu oil for clearing acne and strengthening your skin. 

Amazon link: Sulina Shop Organic Tamanu Oil.

 

Three – HBNO

HBNO’s tamanu oil is nearly perfect, being cold-pressed like every other brand listed here. HBNO also has a dark glass bottle, and is certified organic by the USDA, as evidenced by the green-white seal.

At 4oz, you receive a decent batch of oil, and the purity factor is present, as every batch is examined using laboratory GC/MS testing. Reports on the smell and colour are almost universally positive. The smell was described as nutty, while the colour is an appropriate dark green.

This is an acne-friendly tamanu oil which is confirmed to originate in Vietnam. Originally, tamanu oil was discovered on Fiji, but tamanu oil essentially grows on the shores of any island or continent bordering the Pacific: Vietnam, India, Indonesia, and Madagascar are all sources.

It’s all down to the reproduction method. Tamanu trees grow on the sandy shores of islands. To spread and survive, the nuts drop onto the beach, are pulled into the sea by the tide, and bob up and down in the ocean for weeks or months before arriving on a new island and colonising it. Hence, tamanu oil grows everywhere.

Buy HBNO’s tamanu oil, and your days of dull and lifeless skin will be numbered. 

Amazon link: HBNO Organic Tamanu Oil.

 

Four – Cammile Q

Another top quality tamanu oil with no significant flaws. Cammile Q is 100% pure, free from any chemicals like hexane and BPA. 

It’s completely natural, with a 30 day money back guarantee. It’s sourced from Madagascar and bottled in the USA. Cammile Q is certified organic, and the USDA seal is so large that it covers most of the bottle. Reports on the smell are promising, detecting the classic nutty aroma. The colour is dark green, while most importantly, it’s cold pressed.

The cold pressing method happens like this: firstly, the nuts are picked, often using ladders to climb the 10 foot tall trees. The tamanu nuts are left in a sunny moisture-free environment for eight weeks. Eventually, a sticky black oil will appear on the oil’s skin, and finally, expeller machines will mechanically press the nuts, with no temperature increase or chemicals, to extract the oil that ends up on your face.

It takes 100kg of tamanu fruit to produce just 5 kg of tamanu oil. From the first picking to the final bottling, it takes two months to produce tamanu oil. Some companies only produce batches twice per year, as they are completely at the mercy of the tamanu tree’s natural production. Despite these steep challenges, several reputable cold-pressed products are available, and Cammile Q is one of them. While perfect in quality, this brand has a relatively small supply of 1oz.

Cammile Q tamanu oil is one of the best topical treatments for acne in the world. 

Amazon link: Cammile Q Organic Tamanu Oil.

 

Five – US Organic

From a trustworthy skincare brand we have a certified organic Tamanu Oil, which comes in a 4oz bottle. US Organic is certified by the USDA, and comes with a built in dropper. This brand is explicitly cold-pressed, applying pressure to the blonde tamanu nut kernel using no excessive heat, to yield what they call “a viscous green liquid”. Most reviews agree with this green colour, revealing a tamanu oil in its natural state, while scent reports are also positive. A handful of reviewers are displeased, but mainly because they dislike tamanu oil’s innate smell (it can be very overpowering).

Last but not least, US Organic’s bottle is appropriately dark, to keep UV radiation from penetrating the oil and damaging it. Luckily, the advantage of tamanu oil is its higher stability anyway. On average, tamanu oil contains mostly saturated and monounsaturated fats, the most stable types, whereas grapeseed oil contains unstable polyunsaturated fats.

Plus, with its darker colour, tamanu oil may have natural protection. Tamanu oil has even been found to increase UV light radiation when applied to the skin; does this mysterious power protect the oil itself? It’s possible. Regardless, tamanu oil has a lengthy shelf life of 2 years on average, and can last as long as 5 years.

US Organic’s tamanu oil is no exception, and otherwise, it’s high quality in almost every way. 

Amazon link: US Organic Tamanu Oil.

 

Six – Etherva

One of the best tamanu oils in existence. Etherva’s tamanu oil is sourced from the scenic, hilly coasts of southeast India, specifically from Maharashtra state. 

This tamanu oil is as natural as it gets, being cold-pressed and unrefined, produced naturally with care over many weeks by Indian locals, whose local economies are now benefitting massively from demand for this oil by overseas acne-clearing enthusiasts.

You only have to visit the Amazon page to see how green Etherva’s tamanu oil is. Reviews bear this out, and the smell is described as herbaceous, mossy, or even like a nutty cigar. This brand comes in two options: a sturdy glass bottle or a sturdy aluminium bottle. According to Etherva, their tamanu oil is “crafted for users of “chemical free” DIY formulations”. This tamanu oil originates from small and medium-sized tamanu plantations. Although there’s no USDA organic certification (which can be time-consuming to aquire), Etherva pledges that they use no pesticides.

What would my recommended recipe be? A good idea is to combine tamanu oil with cinnamon, either the powder or essential oil. Cinnamon contains a compound called cinnamaldehyde, which locally increases the hormone IGF-1 when applied to the skin. The result? A surge in collagen. Combine tamanu oil with cinnamon and you’ll get a double dose of youthfulness and glow, and the fats will enhance cinnamon’s penetration too.

Whatever you choose, Etherva is easily one of the best tamanu oils on the market. 

Amazon link: Etherva Cold Pressed Tamanu Oil.

 

Seven – Shea Terra

Shea Terra is another brand with just one ingredient: organic Calophyllum inophyllum (tamanu) oil. Its user reviews are particularly superb, praising the “rich smell”, which is “earthy” and “nutty”. The main word used in colour descriptions is green, indicating minimal processing. While Shea Terra lacks official USDA organic certification, it’s superior to many that do have it.

Shea Terra’s oil originates from Madagascar, and the team has spent the last 20 years travelling from village to village to find the ultimate trees. The oil is cold pressed and virgin, with a fairly thick texture, and that’s the standard for all tamanu oils. With its higher saturated fat content compared to grapeseed oil, tamanu oil may even turn to a cream-like consistency if you store it in the fridge. At room temperature, meanwhile, it’s moderately thicker than other skincare oils.

Shea Terra comes in a 2oz bottle, with a dark amber shade to minimise any UV light penetration. There’s a dispenser for mindlessly simple application and a guarantee that no excessive heat is used in the production process, causing no destruction of the vital acne-clearing nutrients.

If its greenness and freshness you want, Shea Terra’s tamanu oil delivers. 

Amazon link: Shea Terra Madagascan Tamanu Oil.

 

Conclusion

You are now officially an expert on the top 7 tamanu oil brands for skincare. Should you stumble across another brand, however, always keep in mind the signature signs: forest green, an earthy and nutty smell, and a reasonably thick texture.

How much does location matter for tamanu oil? For acne, only slightly. One study on 5 samples found that Indonesian tamanu oil killed p.acnes bacteria most effectively. The Indonesian and Tahiti samples increased collagen most powerfully, whereas New Caledonian was the weakest. However the differences were only minimal, not sufficient to hunt down different regional varieties.

The tamanu oil market is pretty healthy, free from chemically blasted and cheap products, mainly because the local villagers won’t allow it. A bigger problem is formerly pure and natural tamanu oil diluted with another oil, like a cheap and ineffective cooking oil.

Nevertheless, buying the correct tamanu oil is an easy task with a modicum of effort. 

NEXT: get the complete strategy for clearing acne naturally

 

Thanks for reading!