Almost half of first-time CBD users in the US tried it to help with pain. So it’s no surprise that CBD balms for pain have gotten so popular since the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. These thicker, wax-based topicals are ideal for muscle pains and aches, forming an oily seal on the skin and allowing the CBD and other cannabinoids to work their magic for longer.
The challenge comes in finding high-quality products, and that’s where CBD Oracle comes in. We’ve rated 96 CBD balms using our expert-backed product quality evaluation framework, and these are the very best.
What makes a CBD balm effective for pain?
Full spectrum (if possible)
While broad spectrum options can work (and we’ve included some in the list), full spectrum products containing CBD, THC and other minor cannabinoids are likely to be the best for pain.
Permeation enhancers are crucial
CBD topicals generally only work on the skin unless they have something that helps them get through the barrier. Chemical permeation enhancers (such as menthol or vitamin E) or nano-emulsion formulae help the cannabinoids make their way into your blood and thereby boost the effects.
The right terpenes
Beta-caryophyllene, linalool and myrcene are three common hemp terpenes that either have an anti-inflammatory or pain-relieving effect.
Extra ingredients can be useful
Many CBD balms and salves also incorporate other pain-relieving ingredients like camphor. Camphor, in particular, is an effective pain reliever and doesn’t interact with CBD in topical products, making it a great addition.
Out of 96 balms and salves, only three brands had products that scored above 80% on our framework. These are the best CBD balms and salves for pain in 2025.
Charlotte’s Web CBD Balm
- CBD type: Full spectrum
- Potency: 450 mg CBD
- CBD:THC ratio: ~60:1 CBD to THC
- Price: $29.99 ($0.06/mg)
- Coupon: “COMEBACK30” for 30% off
Charlotte’s Web is one of the most well-known and respected brands in the industry, and their Hemp-Infused Balm with CBD is a fantastic option for people struggling with pain.
As well as 450 mg of full spectrum CBD per tin, it contains vitamin E and menthol as permeation enhancers, helping the cannabinoids absorb through your skin. It also has camphor, a proven pain-relieving ingredient to support the effects of the cannabinoids.
The hemp used in the balm is also high-quality, grown in the US at a single location using organic practices and with the whole process – seed to sale – overseen by Charlotte’s Web.
Throw in top-quality manufacturing and batch-by-batch lab testing and you can see why Charlotte’s Web is so widely recommended.
- Full spectrum of cannabinoids: THC, CBD, CBN, CBC and THCV
- Contain vitamin E and menthol to improve absorption
- Contains camphor to help with pain relief
- Clean ingredients and allergen-free
- Not tested for terpenes
- A little expensive
Aspen Green Relief Full Spectrum CBD Balm
- CBD type: Full spectrum
- Potency: 1,000 mg CBD, 33 mg THC
- CBD:THC ratio: 30:1 CBD:THC
- Price: $89.99 ($0.09/mg)
Aspen Green’s products are made from the flowers of Colorado-grown, USDA-certified organic hemp, and extracted via supercritical CO2 in an FDA-registered, GMP-certified facility.
Throw in full panel testing by a reputable lab, and you can see why their products are consistently ranked among the best in the industry.
Their Relief Full Spectrum Balm brings all of this quality to the world of topical CBD, with THC to boost the pain-relieving effects and with jojoba seed oil to boost absorption through the skin.
The result is a fantastic CBD balm that’s easy to spread and gets the job done when it comes to pain relief. The only downside is that it’s a little pricey, especially if you need continuous relief.
Our tester used the balm for a meniscus tear in his right knee, and commented that it gave some of the best relief out of all the topical products we covered.
It compares to Aspen Green’s cream version of the same product, with him noting that:
“The only difference is the balm is oilier and a little easier to apply for me personally. I like the thicker, oilier texture of the balm but the downside is I don’t get the cooling sensation the cream offers which is not a major deal breaker for me.”
The biggest downside he pointed out is that you’ll likely have to apply a few times per day, which will make any serious treatment quite expensive.
- USDA Organic hemp
- Potent for both CBD and THC
- Excellent manufacturing quality
- Easy to apply
- CBD, THC, CBG, CBDV and CBC
- Absorption-boosting ingredients
- Very effective for pain relief
- Quite expensive per mg CBD
- No additional pain-relieving or cooling ingredients
- No terpenes detected
Lazarus Naturals CBD Balm Stick Relief + Recovery
- CBD type: Full spectrum
- Potency: 3,600 mg CBD
- CBD:THC ratio: ~34:1 CBD to THC
- Price: $42 ($0.01/mg)
Lazarus Naturals’ CBD Balm Stick combines a convenient format with high-quality hemp and well-chosen ingredients to produce an effective topical treatment for pain.
The stick contains a massive 3,600 mg of CBD, and with the price at $42, it’s an almost unbeatable deal per mg of CBD.
As well as a full spectrum of cannabinoids (also including THC, CBC, CBG and CBL), the stick contains menthol to enhance absorption and capsaicin for pain relief.
Lazarus Naturals’ hemp is also top-quality, Oregon-grown and USDA certified organic, and they handle the whole production proves from seed to sale.
Everything is lab tested to ensure safety, and they offer a money-back guarantee if you aren’t completely satisfied.
- USDA certified organic hemp
- Full spectrum – CBD, THC, CBC, CBG and CBL
- Excellent value of $0.01 per mg of CBD
- The viscosity of a balm with the convenience of a roll-on
- Capsaicin and camphor for additional pain relief
- Menthol to enhance absorption
- Not tested for terpenes
Neurogan CBD Balm
- CBD type: Full spectrum
- Potency: 4,000 mg CBD
- CBD:THC ratio: ~64:1 CBD to THC
- Price: $65 ($0.02/mg)
Neurogan is another brand that anyone interested in CBD is bound to have encountered before.
They’ve been in the industry since the early days, putting out high-quality products made with US-grown hemp, extracted cleanly with CO2 and tested by high-quality third-party labs.
Their CBD Balm is also one of the strongest options on the market, with a fantastic price per mg of CBD and plenty of minor cannabinoids (including CBG, CBC, CBN and CBT) to boost the effects.
They also clearly took care over the formulation, with vitamin E to help with absorption and no unregulated supplements like Arnica Montana flower in the mix.
The full spectrum hemp is allowed to shine through. Everything is expertly balanced; clean, potent and to-the-point.
Our expert reviewer commented that the balm took effect within 15 minutes, and the relief from his knee injury lasted for around 3 hours.
He added:
“It wasn’t a knockout in terms of pain-killing, but it took the edge off and made the joint feel less locked-up. I also used this for a neck crank I had from sleeping wrong, and it definitely worked in masking the pain and healing the crank.”
However, it’s worth noting that he also used Aspen Green’s Bliss tincture at the same time, which may have boosted the effect.
Our independent lab test of Neurogan’s CBD Balm showed general agreement with their COA, but with some important differences.
Our lab report found 70.8 mg of CBD per gram, compared to 76.5 mg/g for the manufacturer COA, matching to within 10% of the total. There was also generally good agreement for CBDV, CBL and CBN.
The biggest discrepancy was in the THC results, where our test found a small amount of delta-8 THC (0.22 mg per gram vs. none), and a little bit more delta-9 (2.52 mg/g vs. 1.19 mg/g).
- Full spectrum of cannabinoids: THC, CBD, CBG, CBC, CBN and CBT
- Very potent – 4,000 mg of CBD per jar
- Takes effect quickly and spreads easily
- Excellent price
- Vitamin E to improve absorption
- Free from unregulated supplements
- Not tested for terpenes
- Could be better in terms of pain relief, but still effective
- Grown organically, but no certification
- THC content higher in independent lab test
PlusCBD Extra Strength CBD Balm
PlusCBD is another brand with a huge selection of high-quality CBD products, and their Extra Strength CBD Balm combines CO2-extracted and flower-derived CBD with willow bark extract for a natural anti-inflammatory effect.
The balm isn’t as strong as the other options on this list – with just 100 mg of CBD per container – but combines anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving ingredients with things like green tea leaf extract so it’s also great for your skin.
PlusCBD uses hemp from Kentucky and the Netherlands, blending the extract into a beeswax base with sweet almond oil and other botanicals. The result is a THC-free balm with just enough punch to soothe muscle aches and pains while still protecting and moisturizing your skin.
Our expert tester found the balm loosened the muscles around his knee injury and reduced tension, but also noted:
“I’d say it’s good for muscle relaxation and mild aches, but if your pain is deep or sharp (like mine with a meniscus tear), it won’t mask it completely.”
The COA provided by PlusCBD is a close match to CBD Oracle’s independent test, although both conflict with the “full spectrum” claim on the label and marketing.
Our independent COA shows 3.12 mg of CBD per g of balm, with the most recent manufacturer report showing 2.78 mg per g and a slightly older one showing 3.09 mg per g.
It’s important to note, though, that both reports show that this product is a CBD isolate balm, not a full spectrum option, as advertised.
- US and Netherlands-grown hemp
- Vitamin E to improve absorption
- Flower-derived extract
- Organically grown
- Effective for tension and mild aches
- Lab-confirmed THC-free
- Contains anti-inflammatory willow bark extract
- Also works to moisturize the skin
- Isolate: not full spectrum as claimed
- Not the best for sharp or strong pain
- No terpene testing
- High price per mg of CBD
Other CBD Balms We Considered
Our initial product list contained 96 CBD balms and salves marketed for pain, but most of these were not eligible for this list.
The most common reasons for this were:
- Old lab reports: 39 products had a lab report that was over 12 months old. While it’s possible that these reports are for old batches still on sale, CBD degrades over time and it’s unlikely the product on the shelves would still match the report.
- No safety testing: 35 products were not full-panel safety tested (heavy metals, pesticides, residual solvents, microbials and mycotoxins). Without this testing, customers cannot be sure that the product is safe, and so these were automatically ineligible.
- Cannabinoid problems: 3 full spectrum and 3 broad spectrum products didn’t contain four or more cannabinoids. While it’s possible they did have more cannabinoids, just at very low levels, these products could not be confirmed to be truly full or broad spectrum.
- Unconfirmed COA: Reputable labs tend to include a QR code on the report so the contents can be confirmed with the labs’ records. When these were not present, and we were unable to confirm with the lab directly, the product was deemed ineligible. Only two products were discounted purely on this basis, and one of these was likely a faked report.
Some brands made it through to scoring, but their score was below 80% (our cut-off for recommendations): Tanasi, Canna River, and Zatural. CBD Clinic scored over 80%, but is owned and operated by Charlotte’s Web, who was already included.
These brands have strong products, but often don’t include much information about their hemp production and manufacturing, or there is room for improvement in these areas.
Methodology: How We Tested and Ranked the Best CBD Balms
Expert insights: The first stage in our process is interviewing experts about both CBD topical formulations and using cannabinoids for pain more generally. These insights were used to guide the remainder of the process.
Market research: We looked through the first 15 pages of two Google searches (“CBD topicals” and “CBD topicals for pain”) to identify products and brands carrying topicals. We added some exclusion terms to remove other third-party “best of” lists (e.g. “-youtube.com” “-reddit.com”). This resulted in 96 CBD balms for pain.
Qualifying and scoring: Key factors (e.g. having a recent COA including safety tests) were used to whittle down the list of results. All remaining products were then scored based on our 55-item, expert-backed product quality evaluation framework.
Independent lab testing: Any products scoring above 80% were sent for independent lab testing at InfiniteCAL. This allows us to confirm that the manufacturer’s lab report is a fair representation of the product.
First-hand testing: Finally, the highest-scoring products were tested first-hand by members of the Oracle team, and in some cases their friends and family. This enables us to see how the products work in a real world setting and to produce the final ranking.
Our Tester’s Experience with CBD Balms for Pain Relief
Our expert tester was suffering from a meniscus tear in the right knee, causing problems walking, doing chores and getting to sleep. The balms he tried for the injury were generally effective, with his testing notes pointing out a lot of relief from tension from the balms and some additional benefits from combining them with CBD tinctures.
Overall, the balms didn’t completely remove the pain from the knee tear, but did make it more manageable. Relief from a minor neck injury was much more substantial than the relief from the serious knee pain, but balms were helpful in both cases.