Which sandalwood incense should I buy?

Buy sandalwood incense by its smell and by how it's made: choose a hand-rolled stick, not a dipped one, from a maker who tells you plainly how it smells. Looshi makes artisanal incense, rolled by hand with real ingredients, with grounding scents from across the world. Try Looshi Clarify, where creamy sandalwood is brightened by jasmine, with a golden edge of saffron.

What sandalwood smells like

Sandalwood smells smooth, creamy and woody: a soft warmth with no sharp edge, closer to warm wood than to smoke.

Incvee, an incense seller, says in its guide that sandalwood incense has a distinct, rich aroma that can vary from sweet to creamy and woody, depending on its origin and quality.

Hold every sandalwood stick to Incvee's range of sweet, creamy and woody. If a stick sold as sandalwood smells sharp, very synthetic, or like a smoke shop, it falls outside that range, and that's your cue to keep looking.

Why two sandalwood sticks smell different

Two sandalwood sticks can smell different: Incvee's guide says the fragrance can vary depending on the source of the wood and how it's processed.

The same guide says that not all sandalwood incense smells the same, and that sandalwood trees are slow growing and can take decades to mature, which contributes to their rarity and high value.

So when a pack labelled sandalwood sells for a dollar or two, it's fair to ask what's giving it the smell. Craft adds to the gap. As incense making industrialises, fewer people practise hand rolling each year, which is part of why hand-rolled incense costs more.

What to look for on the box

Look for three things on the box: a hand-rolled stick, not a dipped one, the materials named, and the smell described in plain words.

Hand-rolled, not dipped, comes first. Hand-rolled or dipped incense, what's the difference has the detail.

Then read what the stick is made of. A maker who names the materials, such as wild honey, natural resins and aromatic woods, and who says no synthetic fragrance, is telling you what you'll smell.

Finally, the smell should be named in words you'd use yourself: creamy, woody, sweet, crisp. A box that offers only a mood or a promise leaves you guessing whether the stick will smell the way it reads.

How sandalwood smells in Clarify

Clarify is sandalwood made clear and crisp, never heavy: the room smells of creamy sandalwood, brightened by jasmine, a fresh white flower, with a golden edge of saffron, a warm, golden spice.

Each stick is rolled by hand by women artisans in Karnataka, India, nothing dipped, made with wild honey, natural resins and aromatic woods and no synthetic fragrance, and it burns on upcycled coconut shell, not coal. A verified customer wrote: "I received clarify as a sample and the smell is absolutely encapsulating."

Compare Clarify with every scent in the All Incense collection, or read this guide to warm and woody scents.

If creamy sandalwood is the smell you're after, see Clarify and its notes.

Frequently asked questions

What is sandalwood incense good for?

Sandalwood incense is good for giving a room a soft, warm, woody smell. A room with a grounding scent feels different, and it changes how you move through it, so a stick suits the evening friends come over or the moment the laptop closes.

Is sandalwood a female scent?

Sandalwood is neither a female nor a male scent: it's a soft, creamy wood that anyone who likes warm smells can enjoy. A smell has no gender of its own, so judge a sandalwood stick by how it smells to you. If creamy, woody and soft appeals to your nose, sandalwood is yours.

Who should not use sandalwood incense?

Skip sandalwood incense if you're very sensitive to home fragrances or want a scent as faint as a reed diffuser's; Looshi's incense isn't made for either. Around pets, burn incense in a well-ventilated room, keep pets out of the immediate area, stop if a pet shows any sign of irritation, and don't burn incense around birds.

Is sandalwood the same as agarwood?

Sandalwood and agarwood aren't the same, Incvee's guide to sandalwood incense says, and they smell different too: agarwood has a richer, more complex scent, often used in luxury incense, whereas sandalwood has a smoother, softer fragrance. Choose sandalwood when you want soft and creamy, and agarwood when you want something richer and more complex.

How do you burn a stick of sandalwood incense?

Burn a sandalwood stick in an open, well-ventilated room, set in a corner, and let the scent come to you instead of sitting beside it. Always secure the stick in a holder, such as Looshi's hand-thrown ceramic Ring of Serenity, or upright in something heatproof with a plate under it to catch the ash.