How to Substitute an Oil in a Soap Recipe (Cold Process Soap) (2024)

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So you’ve found a recipe that you love, or you’ve found a recipe that you’d like to try…but you don’t have one of the oils listed. Can you substitute it for something else? It depends on the oil…but yes, usually you can!

Coconut Oil – Coconut oil gives our soap lather. If you don’t have coconut oil, you can substitute in babassu oil or palm kernel oil. Babassu and palm kernel are great if you want to to make a coconut oil free soap (for those allergic). Both lather up like coconut oil and contribute to the hardness of a bar.

Liquid Oils – Most liquid oils are interchangeable. Liquid oils that can be substituted for other liquid oils are avocado oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, rice bran oil, hemp seed oil, soybean oil, apricot kernel oil, grapeseed oil and sweet almond oil (see castor oil and olive oil below).

Butters – Most butters are interchangeable. If a recipe calls for shea butter, you can substitute in cocoa butter, mango butter, sal butter, kokum butter or any other cosmetic butter or vice versa.

Oils and butters have different properties in soap. Safflower varies from avocado and grapeseed varies from sweet almond. So your resulting recipe will be slightly different than the original. Will you be able to tell a big difference? Probably not. Soap it and see!

Castor Oil – Castor oil is a unique duck and doesn’t have a good substitute. It is unique in it’s makeup and unique in what it contributes to a soap. If you don’t have any castor, you can usually just replace it with a liquid oil. It will change the feel of the soap, but it won’t be bad.

Olive Oil – Olive oil is another unique duck. It starts out soft but hardens up quite hard (have you tried a castile soap?). So you don’t want to substitute olive oil with another liquid oil such as rice bran or sweet almond oil or your soap won’t harden up as much as soap with olive oil. You can replace a portion of the olive oil in your recipe with another liquid oil. So if your recipe calls for 35% olive oil and you want to add some avocado oil to your recipe, use 30% olive oil and 5% avocado oil. There really isn’t a 1 for 1 substitute for olive oil.

Let’s modify this recipe.

Cold Process Soap Recipe

• Coconut oil – 44%
• Olive oil – 35%
• Castor oil – 4%
• Rice Bran oil – 5%
• Shea butter – 5%
• Sunflower oil – 7%

Mod 1: You don’t have sunflower, but you do have avocado oil and apricot kernel oil.

Cold Process Soap Recipe Mod 1

• Coconut oil – 44%
• Olive oil – 35%
• Castor oil – 4%
• Rice Bran oil – 5%
• Shea butter – 5%
• Avocado oil – 7% (You could also use 7% apricot kernel. Or you could even use 3.5% avocado and 3.5% apricot kernel)

Mod 2: You don’t have shea butter but you do have cocoa butter.

Cold Process Soap Recipe Mod 2

• Coconut oil – 44%
• Olive oil – 35%
• Castor oil – 4%
• Rice Bran oil – 5%
• Cocoa butter – 5%
• Sunflower oil – 7%

Mod 3: You don’t have castor oil.

Cold Process Soap Recipe Mod 3

• Coconut oil – 44%
• Olive oil – 35%
• Avocado oil – 4%
• Rice Bran oil – 5%
• Shea butter – 5%
• Sunflower oil – 7%

Don’t be afraid to experiment!

Because each oil has it’s own SAP value, you must run your new recipe through a lye calc to get the new lye amount.

Be sure to check out our Soapmaking Oil Chart and Single Oil Soap Experiment to learn more about oils and their properties. Learn how to modify a recipe here.

Do you need help? Post in the comments with what you’re trying to accomplish.

Happy Soaping!

Amanda Gail

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1. 

   Susan HueckJanuary 1, 2022 at 3:38 pm - Reply

   Hi, I don’t have rice bran so I’m struggling a little since the majority of your recipes include it. (I’ve put it on my list for my next order!) In the meantime, I’ve read about swapping out oils. It seems I can replace the RB oil with more olive and avocado, but I don’t know enough to figure out what the best percentages would be. Replace the RB oil with all olive? All avocado? Half and half? Sneak some castor oil in there? Thank you.

   Base Oils
   Coconut Oil – 306 grams (34%)
   Olive Oil – 306 grams (34%)
   Avocado Oil – 72 grams (8%)
   Rice Bran Oil – 126 grams (14%)
   Shea Butter – 90 grams (10%)

2. 

   MeganApril 20, 2021 at 3:32 pm - Reply

   I’m new to soap making and made a batch using palm oil instead of palm kernel oil (which the recipe asked for.) I had thought that they were the same, lesson learned. I was wondering if my soap bars will be any good or if I should just toss them? Thanks so much!

3. 

   Kristeen T HernandezMarch 7, 2021 at 3:29 pm - Reply

   Can Black Castor Oil and Castor Oil be exchanged in equal proportions? In other words are they exactly the same in Iodine, Ricinoleic, Oleic, Linoleic, etc. values? Thank you

4. 

   Anne KingJuly 9, 2018 at 2:10 pm - Reply

   Hi, I am making a shampoo bar which requires 170 gms of Palm Oil – what can I use instead of this. Many thanks.

5. 

   JuniJuly 3, 2018 at 6:09 pm - Reply

   Can these substitutions be used in hot process as well?

6. 

   Pam BortzJune 27, 2018 at 2:27 pm - Reply

   I have erroneously combined the following oils and realized it was not the recipe I thought.can you tell me how to fix the amount of oils and then the lye/water ratio? I don’t want to waste these oils!!!HELP!!
   6.5 oz palm pil
   6.5 oz coconut oil
   7.5 oz olive oit
   1.3 oz castor oil!
   I hope you can help…thank you so much.

   • 

     BiancaJuly 14, 2021 at 11:18 am - Reply

     Put it through soapcalc and adjust as needed

7. 

   AnneMay 10, 2018 at 6:23 pm - Reply

   Substitute for Palm oil, please.

8. 

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   JudithApril 23, 2018 at 9:13 am - Reply

   Hi what can I use to replace wheatgerm oil and germanium oil for cold press soap?

9. 

   MarlaOctober 1, 2017 at 1:54 pm - Reply

   I need a substitute for palm kernel oil….

10. 

    BrendaAugust 20, 2017 at 7:34 am - Reply

    A lot of recipes are in percentage how are these calculated to ounces

    • 

      ColleenJuly 31, 2021 at 6:53 pm - Reply

      You have to determine the oil in ounces based on the mold you use. The percentage remains the same whether the total oil amount is 16 ounces or 200 ounces.

    • 

      teresa adamsNovember 29, 2021 at 12:32 pm - Reply

      Depends on your batch size

    • 

      Carla SilvaJanuary 30, 2022 at 2:38 pm - Reply

      I googled. that’s how I did mine .

11. 

    Eveline MoralesFebruary 7, 2017 at 8:17 am - Reply

    The first batches of soap I’ve made consisted of olive oil, coconut oil and palm oil. I really love the way they came out. The hardness of bar and great lather with lots of suds. Upon further research, I found out about the environmental issues linked to palm oil and have decided not to use it in my soaps. I want to substitute the palm oil for either Shea butter, or babassu oil but not sure which one will go best with olive and coconut oil to give me a similar bar of soap with hardness and lots of lather. Any advice?

12. 

    KimDecember 16, 2016 at 9:56 pm - Reply

    I’m making a body mousse and it calls for Argan oil and I don’t have any. What can I use instead?

13. 

    MarySeptember 16, 2016 at 4:17 pm - Reply

    Amanda, What would be the best type soap to use for extended self life. For example, something that could be stored indefinitely in a survival kit. Also, could you vacuum seal the soap once it has thoroughly cured? Thanks mary

14. 

    Lisa SmallSeptember 6, 2016 at 4:14 pm - Reply

    Like to receive new letter

15. 

    JoanneAugust 16, 2016 at 6:32 pm - Reply

    I am just starting out, my recipe uses olive oil and castor oil. Can I replace 5% of the olive oil with Argan oil? Or how can I incorporate Argan oil in my recipe? Any suggestions welcome.

16. 

    AngelaJuly 29, 2016 at 1:06 pm - Reply

    Hi Amanda,

    I would love to make your almond & orange scented soap but am having trouble finding bitter almond essential oil. Do you have any suggestions on where I can purchase? Or perhaps there is another EO blend I can substitute? Thanks for any help you can offer!

17. 

    mr.mkisApril 9, 2016 at 4:17 am - Reply

    thanks for information i need to know lye and palm oil ratio

18. 

    ShereeDecember 25, 2015 at 12:34 pm - Reply

    Great information. Thank you. It came right at the time I need to make a batch without coconut oil. Keep up the good work.

19. 

    KarlaDecember 20, 2015 at 2:44 pm - Reply

    Thanks for all the great info! I have a question: My recipe calls for olive oil. I have a large bottle of extra light olive oil. Can I substitute that? Thanks in advance. Karla

    • 

      Amanda GailDecember 26, 2015 at 7:27 pm - Reply

      Yes, that should work just fine.

20. 

    A. NewbyDecember 13, 2015 at 11:56 pm - Reply

    Thank you so much for this! I just had a friend ask about soap without coconut oil because she is allergic! Thanks

    • 

      Amanda GailDecember 14, 2015 at 7:41 am - Reply

      Awesome! This is a good recipe too. Super nourishing and gentle because of the high olive. http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/cold-process-soap/baby-soap-buttermilk-bastille-baby-bar/

21. 

    BarbaraDecember 13, 2015 at 4:59 pm - Reply

    My soap, even after fully cured, has a grainy feel. Someone said I heated the Shea butter to too high of a temperature? My recipe consists of:coconut oil, olive oil,palm oil, caster oil, almond oil, Shea butter, and Argan oil. It turned out to be beautiful bars of soap, but I don’t want the grainy feeling.I did also add kaolin clay and colloidal oatmeal,at a ratio of 1 tsp per pound. do you have any suggestions for me. I like my recipe and really don’t want to change it, unless absolutely necessary. Thank you I always look forward to your posts, as they are so helpful. BTW,this was my first attempt at soap, of any kind, and made 14- 2# batches. Thought they be wonderful Christmas gifts, for friends and family.

    • 

      Amanda GailDecember 13, 2015 at 5:24 pm - Reply

      Hi Barbara!

      Shea butter is not grainy in soap. It can be grainy in balm – lip balm, body butter, etc.

      Kaolin clay and colloidal oatmeal can be a bit grainy/exfoliating. Have you tried making the recipe without the clay and oatmeal to see how the base feels without additives?

      -Amanda Gail

22. 

    Renato NovasDecember 13, 2015 at 4:55 pm - Reply

    You are amazing! Amanda, I love your work is inspiring. Thank you for tips and posts!

    • 

      Amanda GailDecember 13, 2015 at 5:22 pm - Reply

      Thank you for reading, Renato! 🙂

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