Finding an affordable candle line that is consistent, offers a wide range of scents, and provides a long-lasting scent throw can be a tough mission. I have found, as I’m sure you have too, that many candles only live up to one of these standards. However, after some trial and error over the years, I’ve finally landed on a brand that meets all of the criteria that I look for in a dependable, affordable candle. The brand that I decided on is Walmart’s Mainstays candle collection.
Mainstays candles offer a huge selection of scents like garden rain, hazelnut cream, and mulled cider that you can enjoy before, during, and after you burn the candle. These candles are affordable to anyone who wants to enjoy a candle in their home and are made in the USA. I believe that these qualities make Mainstays candles a great option for everyday use around the house.
To help you get a deeper look at the Mainstays candle collection, I’ll be reviewing six of my favorite Mainstays candle scents and giving you a breakdown of the pros and cons of each option. I’ll also touch on the Mainstay brand’s mission and why their pledge to sell “Made-in-the-USA” products makes them unique.
The Mainstays Brand
Mainstays is one of the flagship brand’s sold by Walmart in its many stores across the country. The brand label goes on all types of items in the stores – pots, dishes, cups, pillows, blankets, curtains, candles – all of which cater to the brand’s namesake. The name Mainstay refers to essential items that one cannot live without, and indeed the items sold under the Mainstay label are staples that almost everyone needs in their home.
The brand started in 1996 and referred to Walmart’s storage bins, but it has expanded over the past two and half decades to include the wide range of home decor and lifestyle products listed above. The items are manufactured by subcontracted companies and sold under the Mainstay label. The direct link to the manufacturer of the Mainstays candle collection is hard to come by, but the line does claim to be made in the USA with 90% or more parts.
The Draw of Mainstays Candles and Homegoods
What makes Mainstays candles and other home goods attractive to customers are the affordable prices and relatively good quality materials. For about the cost of a fancy coffee drink, you can buy a coffee-scented candle that will last you an entire week (if you burn it every day) or longer.
While other brands tout “hand-poured” candles in designer containers or use 100% soy wax with only essential oil blends for scent, they are often priced in a range that makes them unaffordable, especially if you like to light your candles more than once a week.
Mainstays candles also come in a variety of wax colors. This makes it super easy to grab a candle that matches your decor or to fit it in with your seasonal accessories around the house. You can grab anything from white to black or blue, to purple, pink, and even green, yellow, or orange.
Although the ingredient list of Mainstays candles isn’t directly listed, I am using an educated guess to determine that they use a paraffin wax blend, cotton wicks, and synthetic fragrance oils to craft their luminaries. This allows the candles to be priced more affordably, boast a longer burn time, and a farther-reaching throw scent that is better than some high-end candles.
A Review of 6 Mainstays Candles
1. Mainstays 11.5oz Scented Candle, Garden Rain 4-pack
The Mainstays Garden Rain candle comes in an open beveled glass container. The label features a few green leaves with water droplets hanging on to their surface. The wax is a nice deep teal blue, which matches the refreshing scent. I really enjoy this candle because of its fresh, complex smell. I noticed hints of grass, rose, water lily, and even an aquatic element.
There is 11.5 oz of wax in the container, and the candle contains 3 cotton wicks. I got about 72 hours of burn time from this one candle, so for me, that was just about five days of lighting the candle every evening. This is a nice clean smelling candle, and I burned it without needing to trim its wicks.
Pros
- Clean, strong scent
- Easy peel label so I could use the candle without the sticker
- Gorgeous teal blue color
- Very affordable
Cons
- Took a little longer than preferred to light each wick
2. Mainstays 11.5oz Scented Candle, Lilac Breeze 4-Pack
The Lilac Breeze Mainstays candle is one of their floral scents options. This candle features lovely light purple wax that looked great in my teenager’s purple bedroom. She liked the fragrance it emitted even before we lit the three wicks. The candle smells of lilac flowers, with a hint of apple and aromatic greens. There is also an undertone of woodiness and musk. It reminded me of walking through a colorful garden on a pleasant summer day.
I loved how the smell lingered long after we had put the flame out for the afternoon. We only lit this candle about twice a week, so it lasted us over two weeks. The candle was so affordable we are excited to try additional floral scents from Mainstays. It came in the same 11.5 oz glass container as the rest of the Mainstay candles of the same size.
Pros
- Lovely, floral garden scent
- Beautiful wax color
- 3-wicks gave off a nice light in the evening
- Extremely cost-effective
Cons
- If you don’t like floral scents, you may dislike this candle’s aroma
3. Mainstay Scented Candles, Hazelnut Cream, 20 oz
The Mainstays Hazelnut Cream candle smells as delicious as it sounds. This version comes in a large, 20 oz glass jar and is the color of coffee and cream. This candle smells of almonds, cinnamon, coconut, and honey, along with a touch of vanilla and maple syrup. The richness of the scent added to the cozy ambiance of the space.
I put this candle on my tiny kitchen table and lit it as I prepared a cup of coffee. As I sat sipping my drink, my entire experience was enhanced by the delicious aromas of the candle. The large size meant that I was able to burn the candle for about 120 hours, so I alternated between my bedroom and the kitchen – I just couldn’t decide where I enjoyed it more.
Pros
- Attractive color that matches anything
- The delicious aroma of creamy, nutty coffee
- Created a cozy atmosphere
- Enhanced my morning “me” time
Cons
- I might have liked the 3-wick option rather than the tall 1-wick size
4. Mainstays Candle Vanilla 20 OZ
In my opinion, you can’t go wrong with a Mainstays Vanilla candle. Vanilla is one of those scents that calms everything down and makes me feel at home, and that’s just what this candle accomplished. The off-white colored wax and gentle scent worked perfectly in my cream-toned home office. The vanilla is slightly complex, with notes of buttercream, white cocoa, and a touch of anise, which created a lovely fragrance in my space.
This vanilla candle comes in a 20 oz glass jar with one cotton wick. The candle burned easily and I was able to gain about 115 hours of burn time from this option. I truly felt that I was sitting in a bakery, waiting on sugar cookies to come out of the oven when I lit this candle. I especially liked that I could peel off the label so that it fit into my minimalist office decor.
Pros
- Clean, off-white vanilla color
- Created a baker-scented atmosphere
- Worked with my minimalist design
- Great price for such a big candle
Cons
- Vanilla can become boring, so I did take breaks and burn a more “exciting” scent
5. Mainstays Mulled Cider, 20 Oz
Mainstays Mulled Cider candle has to be one of my personal top scents of any candle I’ve ever used. It is truly a Fall-centered experienced and features a rich combination of aromas that I can’t wait to smell every September. This candle comes in a 20 Oz glass jar filled with amber-colored wax.
The wax is scented with notes of golden apple, clove buds, orange, spicey cinnamon – it literally smells like Fall. I buy this candle every year when the season comes around and I keep a steady supply of this scent in both candle and wax melt form. It personally makes me feel warm, cozy as the days get colder and the leaves begin to fall.
Pros
- Rich “Fall” scent
- 110-120 hour burn time
- Creates a warm, cozy atmosphere
- Easy to light
- Amber color fits perfectly with an Autumn color-scheme
Cons
- The wick needed trimming to keep a clean burn
6. Mainstays 11.5oz Scented Candle, Warm Apple Pie 4-Pack
Mainstays Warm Apple Pie candle comes in an 11.5 oz glass jar and holds three cotton wicks in its center. The candy red apple color of the wax hints at the burst of apple fragrance that you receive when you take off the candle’s outer covering.
This candle’s scent boasts a lively combination of cranberry, apple, and pear, blended with clove, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, and vanilla. It truly smells like a delicious home-baked apple pie straight from the oven. I particularly like to add this candle to my Autumn rotation, as the color and smells fit perfectly with my orange, red, and golden fall decor. To me, there’s just something comforting about the smell of apple pie, so this candle is a favorite in my home. This one burns for about 80 hours total, so depending on how often you light it and how long you let it burn, it can last a few days to a few weeks.
Pros
- Realistic apple pie scent
- Fits nicely with Fall aromas and aesthetics
- Good price-point and burn time
- It Burns cleanly and has a nice scent throw
Cons
- It has a very rich scent, if you are sensitive to strong smells, you may opt for a scent with less spice
Additional Customer Reviews
Whenever I’m investigating a candle product, I like to take stock of what other customers have to say about them. Below are some of the main things that customers liked and disliked about Mainstays candles.
What’s Great About Mainstays
- Price – customers loved the affordable prices
- Scents – customers thought the candles were richly scented and there was a nice variety
- Colors – a wide variety of candle colors that match with any type of design scheme
- Product variation – Mainstays use the same fragrances in other products. Customers appreciated that they could buy a candle and additional products in a scent they love
- Consistent – the candles have consistent quality, appearance, and aroma. Customers know what to expect.
Things to Look Out For
The only real customer complaint I discovered was related to fire safety hazards experienced by a few customers. Although the vast majority reported that their candles worked wonderfully and never presented problems, there have been a few reports of the glass breaking on some candles.
Mainstays prints detailed instructions on the bottom of their candles that tell customers how to safely operate the candle, so as long as you read and follow these directions you are not likely to experience problems. I have personally used these candles for over five years and none of the candles has caused me negative issues in my home.
Final Opinion on Mainstays Candles
My final opinion of Mainstay’s candle selection is overall positive. I’m a simple lady who likes a candle that lasts, smells amazing and doesn’t cost me my entire paycheck. Mainstays is not the most luxurious brand on the market, nor is it the most eco-conscious in terms of ingredients, but what I like about the candles is that I can easily grab several scents for a reasonable price and use them in the evenings to relax and unwind.
I always enjoy the strong scents that these candles put off, and in all of my years using this brand, I’ve never experienced a fire hazard or burn problem. I think Mainstays are great candles for those of you who love candles and are looking for a great price and great scent variety.
Read more: