Do you suddenly want to hibernate when winter rolls around? As soon as the first cold snap shows up, I want cozy throw blankets, a crackling fire in the fireplace, twinkling lights, and of course, winter essential oil diffuser blends bringing all the diffuser magic!
There are all kinds of reasons to love your oils during the winter, including:
- Cheer and comfort (winter can be awfully bleak)
- Festive fun (some of the best holidays happen in the winter!)
- Balance stress and emotions (when the holidays get a little too… fun)
- Immunity support (essential oils can help your family avoid illness in the winter)
Is a Diffuser Good for Winter?
Yes!! There’s nothing better for winter, IMO (unless it’s a Christmas tree with sparkly lights!). Diffusers with essential oils help lift your mood, boost your immune system to help prevent illness, and create the kind of cozy, festive home we all LOVE during the winter.
Plus, essential oils and diffusers are safer than candles, and 100% nontoxic, unlike many home fragrances.
What are Winter Essential Oils?
Some of the best essential oils to diffuse in the winter are:
- Allspice
- Anise
- Cardamom
- Cinnamon
- Clove
- Coriander
- Frankincense
- Nutmeg
- Peppermint
- Spearmint
- Tree oils like fir, spruce, cedar, cypress, etc.
- Vanilla
- Vetiver
- Wintergreen
Many of these oils (especially cinnamon, clove, and peppermint) are warming oils, which mean they increase your energy and your sense of vitality and comfort.
This is why they’re so popular during the holidays, which are traditionally very cold and dark times of the year. These oils bring us comfort; they’re food for your soul!
We’ve included 18 ready-for-you diffuser blends below. These make great gifts (make up a bulk blend and gift in a gorgeous winter dropper bottle).
But you can also feel free to experiment to make your own blends. You can even try different oils on pieces of cardstock to find out what you like!
Other Diffuser Recipes We Love
If you love diffuser recipes, we’ve got lots of other incredible recipes for you to try. Here are some of our most loved:
- Essential oils and crystals for grief and trauma
- Ylang ylang diffuser recipes
- Sleep blends for the diffuser
- Essential oils for anxiety (episode 35)
- 21 cedarwood diffuser blends
- 9 essential oils for sleep and anxiety
- 10 essential oil diffuser recipes for cough/cold/flu
18 Winter Diffuser Blends
1. Candy Cane Lane
This recipe is from Meg, the host of our Whimsy podcast! It’s very sweet thanks to the vanilla, but it also has just the right amount of crispness from the peppermint to balance everything out. If you don’t have vanilla essential oil, feel free to use vanilla extract!
- 6 drops vanilla
- 2 drops peppermint
Add to a 300ml diffuser, top with water, and enjoy all day long.
2. Walkin’ in a Whimsy Wonderland
Another Meg favorite, this one combines a winter classic (black spruce) with spicy, warming oils like cinnamon and clove.
- 4 drops black spruce (or any kind of tree oil)
- 3 drops cinnamon
- 2 drops orange
- 1 drop clove
Add to your 300ml diffuser and fill with water.
3. Jingle All the Way
An Instagram crowd favorite! Pro tip: 10x this recipe and store in a dropper bottle near your diffuser so you’re ready to start diffusing at a moment’s notice!
- 6 drops orange
- 4 drops sandalwood
- 3 drops clove
- 2 drops cinnamon
- 1 drop patchouli
Fill your diffuser to the fill line, add your oils, and enjoy all winter long!
4. Crisp Mountain Wind
This recipe was first published in our cedarwood diffuser blends roundup. It’s a really great mix of woodsy tree scents and just a touch of peppermint. Warning: don’t be surprised if you find a moose on your porch.
- 4 drops cedarwood
- 3 drops peppermint
- 3 drops siberian fir
Add drops to 300ml diffuser and top with water. Adjust as desired.
5. Apple Pie
Guaranteed to make you smile (and to make you hungry #sorrynotsorry).
- 4 drops cinnamon
- 3 drops nutmeg
- 3 drops lemon
- 3 drops cedarwood
Add to your diffuser, then top with water. Yum!
6. Winter Mint
Ylang ylang adds an unexpected lift to this otherwise very traditional winter diffuser blend! Ylang ylang is also an amazing mood stabilizer and balancer (and great for anxiety), so reach for this recipe whenever you need a little extra support this holiday.
- 7 drops peppermint
- 3 drops ylang ylang
Add to your 300ml diffuser and top with water. Add more or less oil as desired. Enjoy!
7. Three Wise Men
This deep, spiritual blend is a heart opener. It’s really lovely on long, dark days. Frankincense and myrrh are both extremely grounding and strengthening oils. They’ll help you find courage you didn’t know you had!
- 3 drops frankincense
- 3 drops myrrh
- 3 drops sweet orange or tangerine
8. Sweet Winter Dreams
Originally featured in our 21 Favorite Deep Sleep Diffuser Blends post, this blend is earthy and grounding. Cedarwood, lavender, and vetiver are all known for their ability to calm your nervous system, ease pain, and help you sleep like a baby. On a winter night, this is the perfect diffuser blend!
- 7 drops lavender
- 3 drops cedarwood
- 3 drops vetiver
Start a few hours before bed and let it diffuse all night long for amazing sleep.
9. Mountain Calm Morning
This winter diffuser blend is cool and calm. It combines scents you might not think of as wintery together to bring a sense of focus and cheer to your day.
I love diffusing this first thing in the morning while I drink my coffee; it’s the perfect way to wake up on a winter day!
- 4 drops cedarwood
- 3 drops lemon
- 2 drops grapefruit
- 2 drops rosemary
This recipe is just right for a 300ml diffuser. Add your oils, then add water.
Pro tip: prep your diffuser and oils the night before, so all you have to do in the morning is turn on the diffuser!
10. Sleep All Night
To help you take advantage of those long winter nights, turn to this winter diffuser blend. It has a more masculine, musky profile, and utilizes oils that are natural de-stressors.
- 6 drops cedarwood
- 6 drops patchouli
- 4 drops Roman chamomile
Add drops to 300ml diffuser and top with water. Diffuse as needed.
11. The Ultimate Cough & Congestion Diffuser Blend
We originally featured this winter recipe in our coughs, congestion, and colds post.
Unfortunately, winter is often the season of coughs, colds, and congestion… thankfully, we have essential oils! This blend is the ultimate diffuser blend for helping to open your airways so you can breathe again.
- 3 drops eucalyptus
- 3 drops oregano
- 3 drops peppermint
- 3 drops lavender
Add oils to your diffuser, top with water, and diffuse as needed.
12. Moms Don’t Get Sick
This recipe was originally featured in Beyond Lavender, but we had to include it in this winter diffuser blends roundup because it’s so great at boosting immunity. I run this preventatively all winter long… ain’t nobody got time for being sick!
- 7 drops frankincense
- 5 drops lemon
- 2 drops oregano
Add to your 300ml diffuser and run all. the. time.
13. What’s That Lovely Smell?
This is such a unique blend! Warming clove oil acts like a warm blanket, vanilla adds joy (use vanilla extract if you don’t have vanilla essential oil), and neroli is a surprisingly uplifting and balancing addition!
- 5 drops cloves
- 5 drops vanilla
- 5 drops neroli
Add your oils to your diffuser, then top with water.
14. Sleigh Ride Through the Woods
Sleigh bells ring, are you listening? This woodsy recipe will transport you straight to a sleigh ride through a snowy forest!
- 5 drops cypress
- 3 drops fir
- 3 drops juniper
Add oils to a 300ml diffuser and top with winter. Don’t forget to take your mittens on your sleigh ride!
15. O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
A sophisticated, classic winter blend, perfect for diffusing while you decorate the tree.
- 5 drops fir
- 5 drops spruce
- 3 drops bergamot
- 2 drops eucalyptus
After adding the oils to your diffuser, fill it with water and diffuse.
16. Blues Be Gone
If you’re feeling blue this winter, reach for this cheerful, mood-boosting winter diffuser blend. Citrus is known for increasing energy and motivation, and bergamot can help calm anxiety. Tree oils are grounding; perfect for the winter, as well.
- 3 drops orange or tangerine
- 3 drops grapefruit
- 3 drops lime
- 2 drops fir or spruce
Add this cheerful blend to your diffuser (10x each oil to make a bulk diffuser blend; store in a dropper bottle), and top with water.
17. Winter Solstice
Winter solstice is the darkest night of the year, but it’s also a time to celebrate the courage and rest that’s to be found in the dark. Celebrate the hush of a dark winter night with this beautiful blend.
- 4 drops fir or spruce
- 3 drops peppermint
- 1 drop lime
Add the oils to your diffuser, top with water, and diffuse on winter solstice (Tuesday, December 21 in the Northern Hemisphere).
18. The Most Joyful Winter Ever
All the best winter oils are in this blend; the minty-freshness of wintergreen, the warming coziness of cinnamon, and the cheering presence of orange!
- 6 drops wintergreen
- 5 drops cinnamon
- 4 drops orange
Adjust the recipe ratios as desired; add your oils to your diffuser, top with water, and enjoy!
