Differences Between CBD Oil and CBD Vape Juice E-Liquid

There’s a ton of confusion and misconceptions out there around cannabidiol terminology.

One of the most confusing things about CBD products is the difference between CBD oil and CBD vape E-liquid.

When it comes to using these terms, the majority of people use them interchangeably — which is incorrect.

What’s worse is that a lot of CBD businesses don’t really seem to care about the differences between those two products.

With few regulations on CBD goods, the whole industry is like the Wild West, and if we’re being honest, that’s not the direction we’d like to see the industry move in.

Hopefully, this guide on the differences between CBD oil and CBD vape E-liquids will clear up the fog of confusion.

After reading the article, you’ll never use the terms CBD oil, CBD tinctures, and CBD vape E-liquids wrong again.

Class, open your CBD dictionaries, please.

Is CBD Oil the Same As Hemp Oil?

Like we said, CBD oil may seem like an easy topic, but when you try to delve into the details, you’ll understand how wrong you’ve been for your entire life.

It all starts with one umbrella term: cannabis oil

Here’s a quick breakdown of how the terminology overlaps:

Cannabis oil is used to describe all oils from the cannabis family plants.

That being said, cannabis oil can refer either to both marijuana oil or hemp oil.

Further, marijuana oil can mean THC oil, CBD oil, or THC/CBD oil (often just summarized as marijuana oil) where these two cannabinoids appear in an even ratio.

The term “hemp oil”, on the other hand, can be used to refer to CBD hemp oil or hemp seed oil.

CBD hemp oil is extracted from the flowers of mature hemp plants, while hemp seed oil is made from seeds as the name suggests.

CBD Oil vs. CBD Vape E-Liquid: What’s the Difference?

We’ll try to keep it as simple as possible.

CBD oil is basically a CBD extract from cannabis plants, suspended in a carrier oil solution.

People use CBD oil for medical purposes, using it as sublingual drops, capsules, or as a food additive.

The extraction is commonly performed with the use of CO2 to isolate the CBD molecules along with other cannabinoids and terpenes from the plant matter.

This method ensures a pure, distilled form of CBD which can be suspended in a carrier oil such as olive oil, hemp seed oil, or MCT oil.

CBD vape E-liquids use the same extract (with a different kind of carrier oil), which is then thinned with agents like propylene glycol (PG) or vegetable glycerin (VG).

Without adding these two compounds to the CBD mixture, the oil will be too viscous to undergo the vaporization process correctly.

This, in turn, brings us to another question.

Can I Vape CBD Oil?

As mentioned, CBD oils are concentrated extracts that are specifically made to be taken orally (e.g. beneath the tongue). They haven’t been designed to be vaporized with a vape pen.

That’s because CBD oil is too thick to be vaporized in the coil.

And what about eating CBD vape E-liquids? Can you use it this way?

Absolutely not.

Propylene Glycol and Vegetable Glycerin are not meant for oral consumption, and even vaping the CBD liquid for an extended period of time isn’t as safe as some companies are trying to convince you.

To cut a long story short, no, you can’t vape CBD oil and vice versa — you can’t eat CBD vape E-liquids.

Distinguishing Between CBD E-Liquids & Vape Juice

We know what you’re thinking right now.

“This is madness… Please, not another subcategory!”

Madness?

THIS IS CBD LINGO!

Fear not, we’re not going to cause any more anxiety.

CBD E-liquids and vape juices are basically the same things… for the most part.

CBD E-liquid is the term to describe any CBD fluid that has been made specifically for a vape pen, whereas vape juices refer to pre-filled cartridges you can load your vaporizer with.

CBD juices can be refilled with any CBD E-liquid if you run out of your current batch.

Before we proceed to choose between CBD oil and CBD vape E-liquid, we need to clear up one last thing.

What About CBD Tinctures?

While CBD tinctures look very much like CBD oil — especially when bottled — there are slight differences between these two products.

The word tincture itself means any medicine kept in an alcohol solution.

The undeniable advantage of suspending your CBD in alcohol is the ease of use. You can conveniently administer it into food or take it straight under the tongue. However, we don’t recommend adding PG or VG to the mixture, as the alcohol is not designed to vaporize the same way that the vape oil does.

RELATED: Best CBD Vape Oils, Juice, and E-liquids of 2023

CBD Oil vs. CBD Vape E-Liquid: Which One Should I Use?

Regardless of the product you choose, all forms of CBD serve one purpose: to let you experience the health benefits of cannabidiol.

CBD oil is the most popular form of administration because it’s easy to use, offers decent bioavailability and precise dosing.

However, with the rising demand for CBD products, there is a myriad of CBD goods to deliver the same effects, but vape E-liquids have recently jumped on everyone’s tongue as being superior to CBD oil in many aspects.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the pros and cons of both consumption methods:

1. Vaping is More Bioavailable Than Hemp Oils

What is bioavailability?

We’ve used this term a couple of times in the article, but we haven’t explained it yet.

Let’s make up for it.

Bioavailability is measured by the amount of CBD actually reaching the bloodstream.

The bioavailability of CBD oil varies between 25% and 40%, whereas vaping has been shown to provide 50%–60% bioavailability, with some studies suggesting even 80%.

Simply put, this means you need less CBD to get the expected effects when you vape it than using it orally, which is also cost-effective.

2. Vaping is More Convenient than CBD Oils

Nothing can match the convenience of using a vape pen.

Whenever you need to take CBD, you just turn on the pen, heat the liquid to the desired temperature, and inhale the therapeutic cannabinoids.

It’s much easier than measuring out the dosage with the dropper and putting the oil under your tongue.

3. Dosing is Easier with CBD Oils

If you want to dose CBD oil effectively, you need to answer three questions:

1. How much CBD is in the bottle?
2. How much CBD does the oil contain per mL?
3. How much CBD oil can the dropper hold?

This way, you can calculate the dosage based on your body weight, and adjust the number of milliliters in the dropper so they match your dosage guidelines.

With CBD vape E-liquids, dosing is a different story.

Let’s say you’ve been advised to take 10 mg of CBD per day. Most companies provide dosing guidelines for their CBD vape pens. They will often tell you how much CBD is in one puff of their pen. If a single puff contains 2.25mg of CBD, then you will need to inhale four times to meet your dosage.

4. Vapes Have a Faster Onset of Effects

People often wonder how long it takes for the CBD to kick in.

In order to produce its effects, CBD oil must be absorbed sublingually before making it to the bloodstream.

Although CBD oil applied sublingually can act faster than its edible forms (capsules, gummies, etc.), you still need to wait anywhere between 15 and 30 minutes to start experiencing the health benefits of cannabidiol.

Vaping, on the other hand, causes you to absorb CBD through the lungs, which gives CBD E-liquids a shorter onset time.

You can feel the calming effects of CBD almost immediately after the last puff from your vape pen. This can prove invaluable if you need fast relief from your ailments.

5. CBD Oils are Likely to Have Fewer Health Risks

The World Health Organization (WHO) has claimed CBD oil as a safe, natural compound with no potential for abuse.

This means CBD oil can’t pose threat to one’s health and thus is entirely safe for human consumption.

CBD vape E-liquids, however, are not risk-free.

First, the temperature of your vaporizer, as well as the amount of liquid you’re inhaling at one time, can get hard on your lungs; not as hard as smoking, of course, but it still can affect people with pre-existing lung conditions.

Also, over-inhalation of CBD liquids can lead to excessive coughing and nausea.

Another health risk associated with vaping CBD is the use of toxic thinning agents such as propylene glycol.

While PG allows the liquid to vaporize evenly, it can potentially break down into carcinogens when they are treated with extremely high temperatures.

According to a study from the International Journal of Environmental Research, inhaling even low amounts of propylene glycol caused respiratory issues like asthma and allergic responses.

If you want to avoid the dangers caused by propylene glycol, we suggest that you switch to vaping dry flowers or E-liquids made with 100% vegetable glycerin.

Final Thoughts on the Differences Between CBD Oil vs. CBD Vape E-Liquids

We hope that we’ve managed to clear up any confusion and misunderstandings you may have faced when browsing different CBD products.

The differences between CBD oil vs. CBD vape E-liquids are subtle yet significant.

Here’s a recap:

1. CBD oil is an umbrella term that can basically describe any oil which contains cannabidiol.
2. Most CBD oil products are used orally or sublingually (under the tongue).
3. CBD oil and CBD tinctures are two terms often used interchangeably. While they look very much alike, tinctures involve using alcohol instead of oil to suspend the cannabinoids..
4. CBD vape E-liquid is a CBD extract contained in substances like propylene glycol or vegetable glycerin. These two compounds help the liquid vaporize more efficiently and produce thick clouds of vapor.
5. You can’t vape CBD oil, just like you can’t eat CBD E-liquid.
6. If you ever come across a company advertising their products as “vape oils”, they mean “vape liquid”.

Whichever of these products you’re about to use, just make sure you always get your CBD from a reputable source. The CBD market is still loosely regulated, to say the least, so the current legal limbo creates ripe opportunities for sketchy companies to rip unaware customers off their hard-earned money.

Don’t be one of those customers!