How Long Do Scented Wax Cubes Last? (5 Brand Examples)


Candles come in a variety of styles and one of these styles is in little cubes for wax warmers. These small cubes are made of aromatic wax that you place inside the warmer. It then gets heated up by the machine and fills the room with pleasant scents as it melts.

So how long do scented wax cubes last? A cube of candle wax in a wax warmer will last for anywhere from six to ten hours. How long the scent from a cube of wax will last depends on the following four factors:

  • Your wax warmer (You may also want to check our Best Electric Wax Warmers reviews)
  • The wax to oil ratio of the cube
  • The type of oil used to scent the wax
  • How you store your wax

If six to ten hours doesn’t seem like a long time, you may wonder if there is anything you can do to prolong the scent. In this article, you will learn what affects your wax warmer’s scent and how you can make it last longer.

Wax Warmer Scent Lifespan

The lifespan of your candle wax will vary based on how much wax you put into your warmer. If you put multiple cubes or an entire bar of wax in your warmer, the scent will last much longer. Using an entire bar of wax can make the scent last almost three whole days and two nights!

The lifespan of the scent of your wax also depends on how often you use it. For example, if you only burned a wax cube for a few hours a day, you could potentially have the scent for an entire week.

Here’s a list of things that can affect the scent in your wax warmer’s life span:

1. Your Wax Warmer Itself

If you’re wondering how long your wax scent will last on your warmer, you should check what type of warmer you have in the first place. When you get a warmer that heats up to a hotter temperature, you get a stronger scent from your wax. However, it will melt faster this way too making it not last as long.

With a warmer that doesn’t heat up as high, your scent and wax will last longer but it will be a softer scent with less intensity. Additionally, if you turn your warmer on too high you can burn the wax, and the fragrance in it will disappear quickly.

A good rule of thumb is to pair the brand of wax scents you use with the same brand of wax warmer. Different companies use different recipes for their wax, so the wax warmers they sell are made with their particular types of wax in mind.

Some wax cubes will smell different in one warmer versus another and last for different lengths of time. Your warmer might also come with a timer so you don’t waste the scent of your candle.

2. The Wax to Oil Ratio of the Cube

The ratio of wax to oil in your cube will determine the temperature it should be melted at for the maximum length of scent. There is usually a preset on your warmer for this. The usual wax to oil ratio is 1 ounce of scent to 1 pound of wax. If you do the math that means that the fragrance in your wax cube is only about 6%.

The amount of oil in your wax cube will affect how long the scent lasts. Different types of oil can combine with various waxes in other ratios, as well. For example, while Yankee Candle has a 6% fragrance in its wax, Happy Wax has 12.5%.

You can also determine which wax to oil ratio you need by considering how the wax is shaped and how big your wax cube is. There are many different sizes of wax melts that come in a number of shapes as well; some are much denser than others.

3. The Type of Oil Used to Scent the Wax

There are two main types of oil used in the wax for your warmer: essential oils and fragrance oils. How each oil combines with the wax determines the lifespan of the scent.

If you have essential oils, you are working with oils that are derived naturally from all the different parts of plants. You need lots of plants to make essential oil, which results in a higher-priced oil.

Essential oil scents; however, have benefits in aromatherapy. When essential oils are in the air, their scent lasts longer because of your memory’s association and its calming aromatherapy benefits.

The other type of oil is fragrance oil, which is made from chemicals. They are specific blends of perfumes that are the fragrance base of wax cube scents. They tend to last longer than essential oils on your warmer because they aren’t made from materials that evaporate as easy.

4. How You Store Your Wax

How long your wax cubes’ scent will last on your warmer is also affected by the way you are storing your wax cubes. You want to be sure that you store them in a cool, dry place that is completely out of direct sunlight. A cabinet or in a desk drawer is a good choice.

Exposing your wax to sunlight causes it to heat up and begin released fragrance. This results in the scent lasting a much shorter amount of time because some of the scent is lost before it even touches your wax warmer.

How to Make the Scent Last Longer

One thing to be sure to do when changing out your wax cube for a new scent, or adding more scent, is to take out the old wax first. This is because the old wax has lost its smell and can dilute the new one, making the scent last for a shorter amount of time. Picking good brands of wax cubes will also make them last longer on the warmer.

Here is a list of we suggest the best brands of wax cubes for your warmer with a description about each one:

Wax Cube BrandDescription
ScentsyEach Scentsy Bar has 8 cubes that you can break off the main bar and use individually in any warmer.
Happy WaxHappy Wax melts are made out of all-natural soy wax, and they use only essential oils, making this a great option for all people who prefer a more naturally scented product. They sell their gummy bear-shaped wax melts in 2, 3.6, and 8-ounce bags and tins.
Bonita CandlesBonita Candles offers a wide array of beautifully shaped wax melts: You’ll find small and wide flowers and large circles and cubes, among other shapes.
Yankee CandlesYankee Candles offers small tart-shaped wax melts crafted from premium-grade paraffin wax and essential oils, costing around $2 and lasting around 8 hours each.
Nag Champa Wax MeltsThese soy wax melts burn cleaner than other brands. You can even wash your warmer with just soap and water to clean this wax out!

Also read:

Final Thoughts

So, when it comes to how long your wax cubes’ scent will last on your wax warmer, the main things to consider are the type of warmer you’re using, how much oil is in your wax cube, what type of scent is in your wax cube, how you store your wax cube, and the brand of wax that you use.

With all this in mind and some experimentation, you should be able to figure out how long your scent lasts and if you need to take measures to help it last longer.

Grace Young

I love candles! I have personally tried over 100 brands of candles. The total burn time of these candles is over 5000 hours. I also talk about essential oil diffusers and reed diffusers. Essential oil diffusers and diffusers are also an important part of the scent in my home.

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