By Jeff Gallagher, founder of Made By Hemp. Helping people find real hemp since 2013.
It’s true that CBD has amazing properties, but it can’t defy the rules of time. If you’re wondering, “does CBD oil expire?”, the answer is that CBD is just like any natural product: the shelf life depends on three things: formulation, packaging, and storage.
In most cases, properly stored CBD oil stays good for about 12 to 18 months, which is more than enough time to use most CBD supplements. Shelf-life claims across the industry range from one to two years.
That 1-to-2-year range is a good rule of thumb, but there are a few essential things to know if you want to get the most out of your CBD oil.
Does CBD Oil Expire? What Affects the Shelf Life?
When it comes to shelf life for CBD oil, there are many factors at play. Here are the three most important things to know.
CBD Should Be Packaged to Block Light
Pretty packaging is nice to look at, but functionality should trump aesthetics when it comes to CBD oil. What makes packaging so important?
Exposure to light can make CBD oil go bad faster and degrade the CBD content quicker. So you want your products packaged in a way that blocks out light.
A prime example is CBD tinctures, which come in a rainbow of colors and materials. We recommend avoiding clear or white containers and anything in plastic. The best way to package a tincture to block out light is in a dark, frosted glass container.
Exact Shelf Life Varies by Formulation
As you know, the expiration date of a product depends on the ingredients, all of the ingredients. There’s a large variety of product formulations out there, which makes it impossible to pinpoint a single shelf life.
Even CBD concentrates, which are pure hemp extract with zero added ingredients, are not all the same. It’s likely that full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, isolate, and other types of hemp oil will vary in longevity.
Related: Full Spectrum vs. Broad Spectrum vs. Isolate vs. PCR
Store CBD Oil Right if You Want It to Last
Arguably the most important part of the equation when it comes to the expiration date of CBD oil is how you store it.
Overall, your goal is to keep it away from light, heat, and humidity. This becomes more and more important depending on how long it takes you to use the product.
- DO store your CBD oil in a cupboard.
- DO keep air exposure to a minimum (cap and seal it promptly after use).
- DO NOT store CBD near hot appliances.
- DO NOT keep CBD oil on the counter, in your car, or in your purse during the summer for long periods of time.
How Long Does CBD Last by Product Type?
Shelf life isn’t one-size-fits-all. It depends on the kind of product. Here’s a general guide:
- CBD oils and tinctures: about 12 to 18 months when stored properly.
- CBD topicals (like our Cooling Muscle Rub): roughly 18 to 24 months.
- CBD gummies and edibles: usually shorter, since the food ingredients age faster than the hemp extract itself, so check any printed best-by date.
- Raw hemp concentrate: doesn’t really spoil. Over time it may crystallize or thicken, which is normal and not a sign it has gone bad.
To Refrigerate or Not to Refrigerate?
While it’s not necessary to store your CBD oil in the fridge, it’s a good idea to do so if you buy in bulk or don’t use it every day. Essentially, if you don’t expect to use up the product within a few months, consider storing it in the fridge.
Keep in mind, storing CBD hemp oil in the fridge thickens it up. For tinctures, oils, or other liquidy CBD products, that may make it harder to dispense.
Keep CBD Out of the Reach of Children
It’s always a good idea to keep supplements away from children, and CBD is no exception. Taking excessive amounts of hemp oil may result in a stomachache or lethargy, so store it out of reach just as you would any other supplement.
How Can You Tell When CBD Oil Has Gone Bad?
The telltale sign that your CBD oil has gone bad is the smell. Like milk, CBD oil develops a rancid smell when it goes bad that’s hard to miss. If you’ve had your CBD product for several months and are worried whether it’s still good, the first thing you should do is smell it.
Appearance can be misleading, so don’t rely on it alone. CBD oil naturally changes color over time, and it can turn cloudy or thicken when it gets cold because the lipids fall out of suspension. That usually clears up once the oil returns to room temperature and is not a sign it has gone bad. The reliable tell is smell: a rancid or offensive odor means it’s time to toss it. It’s a good idea to shake CBD tinctures before use and check whether the texture has changed.
Watch for these signs your CBD oil has gone bad:
- A rancid, sour, or offensive smell (the most reliable sign)
- A bitter or unpleasant taste
- Oil that stays cloudy or separated at room temperature and won’t remix when shaken
Is It Safe to Take Expired CBD Oil?
If your CBD oil is past its prime but doesn’t smell or taste rancid, it’s generally not harmful. The main change is that the cannabinoid content slowly weakens over time, so the product is less potent than it was when fresh. If it smells sour or tastes off, throw it out rather than use it. When in doubt, treat it like any other natural oil in your kitchen and trust your senses.
Does CBD Content Degrade Over Time?
Even if your CBD oil isn’t expired, keep in mind that the CBD content may still degrade over time. If you lab test a CBD product after production and again one year later, you’ll most likely see a lower amount of CBD in the product.
So if you’re purchasing CBD oil in bulk amounts, you might consider freezing whatever portion you don’t expect to use for 5+ months to keep it as potent as possible.
A 2016 study from the Centre for Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy in London looked at how cannabis tinctures held up in the fridge versus out on a shelf. The shelf samples were left at room temperature and exposed to daylight, and they lost about 20% of their total cannabinoids in three months. Kept cold and dark in the fridge, the losses stayed under 10% out to nine months.
The lesson isn’t that room temperature ruins CBD oil. It’s that light and heat are what drive the losses. A finished product kept in a dark, sealed container at room temperature holds its cannabinoids for a long time, which is exactly why packaging and a cool, dark cupboard matter so much. Refrigeration mostly helps when you’re storing oil in bulk or won’t finish it for many months. The researchers concluded that proper storage gives a tincture “possibilities for a reasonable shelf life,” though they noted more research is still needed.
The Importance of Thoughtful Manufacturing
At Made By Hemp, we manufacture in small batches and store our products in a cool environment before shipping to maximize the longevity of our CBD oil.
When it comes to our manufacturing facility, we store our raw CBD oil in a commercial refrigerator at a controlled temperature to maintain a consistent cannabinoid profile over the months it can take to go through each harvest and batch of oil.
Why Doesn’t My CBD Oil Have an Expiration Date?
New regulations on CBD in some states have required an expiration date on products. This is a bit of a catch-22 because, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, an expiration date is a claim that must be backed up with data.
Shelf life testing is a long process that would take 1 to 2 years for a CBD product. Since the CBD industry is so new, we’re constantly finding new and better ways to formulate our products, and a new formulation means a new 1-to-2-year test.
To show you how that can hold back improvements, consider this. Made By Hemp tinctures are made with rice bran oil rather than palm-derived MCT oil, a change we made to keep our products free of the palm oil industry’s impact on the Amazon rainforest. A formulation change like that resets the shelf-life testing clock, which is part of why a firm printed expiration date is so hard to commit to.
CBD companies are still figuring out how to navigate new CBD rules and accommodate them without breaking other rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can expired CBD oil make you sick?
Expired CBD oil isn’t usually dangerous, but oil that has gone rancid can taste unpleasant and may upset your stomach. If it smells or tastes off, discard it instead of using it.
Does CBD oil need to be refrigerated?
It’s not required. Refrigerating CBD oil can help it last longer if you buy in bulk or use it slowly, though it may thicken the oil and make it a little harder to dispense.
How long does CBD oil last once opened?
Most CBD oil stays good for about 12 to 18 months when kept away from light, heat, and air. Cap it tightly after each use to help it last.
Do CBD gummies expire faster than CBD oil?
Often, yes. The food ingredients in gummies and other edibles tend to age faster than the hemp extract itself, so check any printed best-by date on the package.
Final Thoughts on CBD Expiration Dates
Whether or not there’s an expiration date listed on your product, you now know that CBD oil does expire, and there are a few simple tricks for maximizing the product’s longevity and detecting when it’s gone bad.
Made By Hemp has been in business since early 2013 and is dedicated to quality and transparency. If you have any questions and would like to talk to an expert, you can visit our store, call, email, or live chat with us by clicking the message icon on the bottom right of your screen.
If you’re new to CBD and interested to see how it can benefit you, be sure to shop Made By Hemp.
