CBD creams can provide some of the most precise healing of any CBD product. 

Since you can lather on a CBD cream wherever you need to — whether you’re experiencing sore muscles, joint pain or skin health — creams are one of the best ways to get pin-pointed treatment quickly.

While consumable CBD oil can be a great way to deal with a number of health issues, CBD topicals deal with specific issues and are a great solution for localized problems. Not only is CBD cream for pain and dermatology concerns, but it is also one of the safest methods of using CBD.

But not every CBD company is created equally, and there are plenty of CBD creams that are a waste of time and money. Since choosing the best CBD cream can be a challenge that can require hours of research, we’ve decided to help you out and do the work for you. 

Our team has spent time analyzing a number of CBD products that can be used for relieving pain or upgrading your skincare routine — so here are some of our favorites:

CBD Cream for Pain Relief and Skincare

1. Best Broad Spectrum CBD Cream to Relieve Pain: CBDfx CBD Cream for Muscle & Joint

2. Best CBD Body Balm for Pain Relief: Aspen Green Relief Balm

3. Best of the Skincare CBD Topicals: CBDistillery CBDefine Skin Care Cream

4. Most Diverse CBD Cream for Pain: Green Roads Pain Relief CBD Cream

5. Most Calming CBD Cream: Batch CBD Cream

Benefits of CBD Creams

A CBD topical has a fair amount of research supporting its use for a variety of pain and skin-related issues, including: 

• Relieving muscle pain
• Reducing inflammation
• Assisting with blistering and irritated skin
• Providing relief from skin conditions like psoriasis, acne, and eczema. 

Anecdotally, CBD users have claimed that topical CBD can also provide a calming sensation, relaxing the body and mind. 

Topical CBD products will generally work not just on the surface of the skin, but will also seep into the deeper parts of the muscle to provide relief to nerves and joints.

1. Best Broad Spectrum CBD Cream to Relieve Pain: CBDfx CBD Cream for Muscle & Joint

What we like

CBDfx brings a broad spectrum CBD to the market that is great for pain relief. This isn’t just because of the anti-inflammatory qualities of CBD oil, though that is one of the reasons, but the number of ingredients that interplay with the CBD to alleviate pain and discomfort. 

Caffeine, when applied to the skin, has anti-inflammatory properties that can help relieve pain. Menthol is known to have a cooling effect that can soothe muscle pain and joint aches as well. This cooling sensation, usually followed by a warming one, comes from Menthol being a counter-irritant, meaning that it creates a mild irritation that makes whatever is currently hurting you feel reduced in pain.

The CBDfx Cooling CBD Cream also uses white willow bark, which has salicin, the same pain-relieving ingredient that aspirin has. All of these ingredients combined create a powerful synergy to help relieve pain in the joints, muscles, and even headaches. 

Furthermore, CBDfx’s Cooling CBD topical uses a water-based formula that helps the cream absorb into the skin and the muscles faster, giving your body the relief it needs quickly.

All of this is accomplished without any harm to animals. The CBDfx Cooling CBD Cream is vegan, so no animals are harmed or used in the making of the product, and CBDfx is a PETA “Beauty Without Bunnies” certified company, which means they do not do any testing on animals. CBDfx verifies the safety, potency, and purity of its CBD cream with independent, third-party lab testing. All products are manufactured in America.

Pros:

• CBDfx’s Cooling CBD Cream takes advantage of the anti-inflammatory qualities of CBD mixed with the pain-relieving benefits that caffeine, menthol, and white willow bark offer
• Products are third-party tested to ensure that they are free of solvents, pesticides, contaminants, and heavy metals
• CBDfx is a cruelty-free company and its CBD cream is completely vegan
• This CBD Cream uses a water-based formula for fast-acting relief

Cons:

• Full spectrum CBD creams may provide more benefits due to their increased amount of cannabinoids

Specs:

• Size: 50 mL
• Strength: 1,000 mg or 3,000 mg CBD/tub

Customer Reviews

Customers rave about how fast-acting the CBDfx Cooling CBD Cream is. Athletes and fitness enthusiasts say the product works great after a hard game or workout session to soothe muscle and joint aches and pains. 

Some customers say the cooling effect of the menthol is not only great for pain but also provides a soothing sensation that they find relaxing. 

Some customers claim that the combination of the CBDfx Cooling CBD Cream pairs well with their Heating CBD Cream, providing your muscles with the cooling and heating qualities needed to heal injuries and torn muscles.

Check out CBDfx here

2. Best CBD Body Balm for Pain Relief: Aspen Green Relief Balm

What we like

Before hemp becomes CBD creams, topicals, oils, or any number of products, we first want to make sure the plant is grown naturally and without pesticides. Aspen Green provides some of the purest hemp derived CBD products on the market. They make one of the best full spectrum CBD creams not only because of the natural ingredients but also because of how they work together to soothe the body. 

The Aspen Green Pain Relief Body Balm sources their hemp from Colorado. Their CBD creams are free of toxins, pesticides, gluten, and GMOs while also providing full spectrum CBD creams that are cruelty-free.

The body balm uses the power of CBD mixed with premium ingredients like mango butter, which not only moisturizes the skin but also feeds it with Vitamins C and E. It also contains beeswax, which not only provides a protective layer over the skin to keep it from harm and irritants but also has mild anti-inflammatory qualities and can be used to reduce swelling. 

Jojoba oil is also in the body balm, which also has anti-inflammatory qualities and feeds the skin with Vitamins B and E. All of these ingredients, from the hemp to all the rest, are USDA-certified organic.

Aspen Green uses third-party lab testing to ensure that the products it sells are safe and high quality.

Pros:

• The Aspen Green Body Balm uses full spectrum CBD, which has the most ingredients for pain relief than other forms of CBD
• Ingredients like beeswax, jojoba oil, and mango butter are not only good for pain relief but are also good for the skin
• Aspen Green uses organic, non-GMO ingredients that are free of pesticides, toxins, and gluten
• Aspen Green uses third-party lab testing to make sure its products are pure but they do not test their products on animals

Cons:

• The Aspen Green Body Balm only comes in one size and one CBD potency

Specs:

• Size: 2 oz.
• Strength: 1,000 mg CBD/tub

Customer Reviews

Vegan customers love having access to an effective CBD product. Customers praise the potent 1000-milligram dose of CBD, saying that it provides soothing relief of pain from chronic pain, sprains, and an assortment of conditions and injuries. Some customers also use this body balm for skin care because of ingredients like mango butter and beeswax. 

Customers have also claimed to use this product for allergic reactions in combination with antihistamines, noting that the product can help the swelling from irritants.

See more of Aspen Green here

3. Best of the Skincare CBD Topicals: CBDistillery CBDefine Skin Care Cream

What we like

There is more to CBD cream than just pain relief. The American Academy of Dermatology notes that research indicates that CBD cream can be a great way to treat psoriasis and acne. 

This is where CBDistillery comes in. 

They offer a full spectrum CBD cream that provides great skincare benefits. The CBDefine Skin Care CBD Cream uses a combination of coconut, sunflower, olive, almond, and CBD oil for a number of benefits for beauty and skincare regimens. Along with the benefits of CBD cream being useful for damaged skin, coconut, sunflower, and olive oil make great moisturizers. 

Moisturization also helps the skin absorb the healing ingredients, which is great when you consider that almond oil has a number of minerals and vitamins that are good for the skin, like protein, zinc, Vitamin E, and potassium.

While this combination of hemp seed and CBD oil make this a great CBD cream to treat dry skin, psoriasis, acne, and eczema, CBDistillery is also just a great company. They have a team of botanists that are constantly verifying the quality of the hemp they use and all of their products, including the CBDefine Skin Care CBD Cream, are non-GMO and organic. 

CBDistillery is certified by the US Hemp Authority and uses third-party testing to guarantee a safe and quality CBD experience.

Pros:

• Full spectrum CBD cream has been shown to be useful in treating acne and psoriasis
• Coconut, olive, and sunflower oil make great moisturizers, while almond oil provides a number of useful vitamins and minerals
• CBDefine is made from non-GMO, organic ingredients
• CBDistillery can promise a safe product because of its third-party testing and its association with the US Hemp Authority

Cons:

• Almond and Coconut oils are common allergens

Specs:

• Size: 1 oz.
• Strength: 500 mg CBD/tub

Customer Reviews

Many customers praise the ‘glow’ that the CBDefine Skin Care CBD Cream provides. Many customers love using this CBD cream over other CBD Creams because of how effective it is at dealing with dry skin and acne. 

Customers don’t just praise how the product makes them look, but how it makes them feel, with many customers raving about how moisturized their skin feels after a few treatments. 

Customers also praise the mild calming qualities that the CBDefine CBD Cream provides, saying it makes a great addition to their evening skin routine.

Learn more about CBDistillery here

4. Most Diverse CBD Cream for Pain: Green Roads Pain Relief CBD Cream

What we like

CBD creams may have recommended doses, but CBD is commonly a very personal experience that can be altered based on individual preference. Green Roads is a company that fully understands, generally providing a number of potency variations with their CBD products, with their CBD pain cream being no different. This over-the-counter strength CBD cream for pain comes in three different CBD potencies per ounce. 

For beginners, the 150 milligrams per ounce container may be right for them, but for more veteran CBD users, a 350 and 750 milligrams per ounce container is also available. 

Combining broad spectrum CBD oil with Vitamin E, avocado oil, and cucumber fruit extract, you can use this CBD cream for pain, moisturization, or general skin care.

Green Roads CBD Cream for pain relief contains menthol and methyl salicylate. These ingredients are essentially providing the same benefit, but amplifying one another. Methyl salicylate is commonly described as ‘minty’, providing a similar cooling quality to menthol. 

This CBD cream is great for joint pain, arthritis, muscle pain and strain, sprains, and backaches.

Green Roads Pain Relief CBD Cream is made with all-natural, non-GMO ingredients. It verifies the lack of contaminants and heavy metals in all of its products with third-party, independent lab testing. 

Green Roads is also a certified cruelty-free company, so you can use this product while appreciating that no animals were harmed to make this CBD pain cream.

Pros:

• Green Roads Pain Relief CBD Cream provides over-the-counter strength by combining broad spectrum CBD oil with menthol and methyl salicylate
• This CBD cream is also good for the skin, providing moisturizers like avocado oil and cucumber fruit extract
• Green Roads CBD cream is all-natural, non-GMO, and cruelty-free

Cons:

• Full spectrum CBD may be better for pain relief

Specs:

• Size: 1 oz.
• Strength: 750 mg CBD/tub

Customer Reviews

Customers love the variety of Green Roads products, and their CBD cream is no different.

 Beginning CBD users love that the pain relief cream comes in a lighter CBD strength, but veteran users love having the option of using a more intense CBD cream for more severe or chronic pains. 

Customers love the minty scent of the product, claiming it makes them feel relaxed and soothed. A number of reviews also claim that the Green Roads CBD cream for pain makes them feel more moisturized than other pain relief CBD creams.

See if Green Roads is right for you

5. Most Calming CBD Cream: Batch CBD Cream

What we like

If we are going to talk about why Batch makes such a good full spectrum CBD, we have to talk about their farming process. Their hemp is sourced from a small town in Wisconsin with incredibly fertile soil. The farm uses natural farming processes that go back over three generations. 

They use the Umpqua hemp strain, which is regarded as one of the best hemp strains for full spectrum CBD because of its outstanding terpene and cannabinoid counts.

So, Batch uses a great strain of hemp that is grown completely organically, but why should you consider them over other CBD creams? Like other CBD creams, Batch’s uses a number of ingredients like jojoba oil, Vitamin E, and peppermint oil to provide a cream that moisturizes, relieves pain, and protects skin, but there is more to this product than just pain relief and skin care. 

Unlike other CBD creams, Batch provides a cream that is designed to be soothing. Using lavender oil and aloe vera, not only will this CBD product provide you with pain relief and moisturized skin, but it will also soothe you with pleasant odors and calming ingredients.

Batch can certify that its products are safe and non-GMO because of its independent, third-party lab testing. Batch also provides a potent cream, as this 2-ounce jar contains 1500 milligrams of CBD.

Pros:

• Batch sources all of its hemp from an organic, three generations owned farm in Neillsville, Wisconsin
• Batch uses the Umpqua hemp strain, which is considered one of the best strains because of its terpene and cannabinoid counts
• Batch’s hemp oil cream has unique ingredients that provide a soothing, calming effect in a potent dosage
• Batch uses independent lab testing to verify the purity and safety of its products

Cons:

• Batch has one of the more expensive creams of this list

Specs:

• Size: 2 oz.
• Strength: 1500 mg CBD/tub

Customer Reviews

Customers love the soothing qualities of this cream, with many customers claiming that using this particular product makes them feel like they are having a spa day. Some customers have claimed that this is one of the only CBD creams that has provided them with relief from nerve pain. 

Customers have also claimed that the product can be applied to the body at night to help prevent nighttime muscle pain and cramping. ‘Moisturizing’ appears in many of the reviews, and several customers have praised the fast process and shipping that Batch offers.

Click here for more information on Batch

How We Picked the Best CBD Cream

Our team firmly believes in the healing qualities of CBD, and since CBD cream is the safest way to use CBD, we wanted to provide our readers with companies that provided the best CBD cream. However, we recognize that our readers need to know why we believe these companies are the best, so we are going to provide the criteria we used to make our assessments. Listed below are our 4 methods that we used to establish which companies had quality CBD.

We reviewed the lab results

Legitimate CBD companies will provide their Certification of Analysis. Each company we reviewed provided their lab results very transparently, and we combed through each lab result to make sure that these products were as safe and potent as they claimed to be.

We searched the internet for customer reviews

We didn’t simply look at the curated customer reviews that the CBD websites provided. We searched independent review sites and social media posts to see what actual customers had to say. Every product we reviewed had generally good reviews on various third-party review sites, and while customer reviews are not completely unbiased, they do paint a good picture of what a customer can expect from a product.

We talked to real dermatologists

We went to the experts to see what they had to say about these CBD products. Topical CBD products can make a lot of claims about what their CBD or other ingredients provide, so we talked to actual dermatologists to see if these claims had any scientific basis or if these claims had been backed by any research.

We tested the products

Our team ordered these products and tried them for a few days. While we may not be able to say what months of use provides, we did at least verify that the products would arrive in a timely manner and that the initial advertised effects were authentic.

How to Pick the Best CBD Cream for You

While we have provided you with 5 topical CBD products that are leaders in their industry, we understand that our readers may want the knowledge to do their own effective research. For this reason, we are going to take some time to talk about what makes a good CBD cream and how you can verify this.

Research farming and extraction methods

For starters, the best hemp products in general are going to be all-natural and organically grown. Find out where a company sources its hemp from and if they are growing the hemp without pesticides. Knowing what extraction methods are being used is also important. The best type of CBD extraction is CO2 Extraction, as it maintains the most terpenes and cannabinoids than other extraction methods.

Review the Certificate of Analysis

This will reveal all the lab results for the CBD product, which will not only tell you how much CBD is in the product, but should also reveal other factors like the number of heavy metals, microbiological contaminants, and toxins that are present in the CBD.

Check out their other certificates

It is also worth seeing what certifications a CBD company holds. Being USDA-certified organic can be a great start, as this means the ingredients used are non-GMO and all-natural. 

There are hemp organizations that are dedicated to ensuring that CBD products are safe, so see if the company is certified with any of them. An example of these organizations is the US Hemp Authority.

Understand the different types of CBD

There are three variations of hemp-extracted CBD, broad spectrum, full spectrum, and CBD isolate. 

CBD isolate is the purest form as only CBD is extracted from the hemp. When using a product that contains CBD isolate, you don’t get any of the additional cannabinoids or terpenes that are found in the other forms of CBD. 

Broad spectrum and full spectrum CBD extract more cannabinoids and terpenes, with the difference being that broad spectrum removes the THC while full spectrum will keep trace amounts of THC (less than 0.3%, which is what is considered federally legal). 

The American Academy of Dermatology has noted that, when applied to the skin, CBD will not cause any kind of high, even if there are trace amounts of THC.

Review additional ingredients

Finally, see what kind of ingredients the product is using. Menthol is a great product to see in pain-relieving creams, as the analgesic properties of topical menthol are well-researched. 

Just be certain that all the extra ingredients, both active and inactive, are organic.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I use CBD cream?

The way a CBD topical is used is going to differ between products and potencies. Unlike other CBD products, the goal of topical CBD is to provide direct relief to affected areas. 

Wherever you are feeling pain or irritation, rub the CBD completely into the skin until you can no longer see the cream (as much as possible, depending on the type of product). Start with recommended doses or even smaller amounts and increase as needed, making sure to give your body time to feel the effects before using more cream, balm, or salve.

How long does it take for CBD creams to work?

One of the benefits of topical CBD is that it works fairly instantly. Users can expect to feel results within 15 to 20 minutes with effects lasting up to 6 hours. Results may vary depending on whether the product is a water-based or oil-based cream, as some water-based products tend to absorb into the skin faster than other products. 

Potency may also affect the rate at which CBD products take effect.

Potential side effects of CBD topicals

One of the advantages of topical CBD over other forms of CBD is that it has very few potential side effects as long as the products are not overused. The American Academy of Dermatology points out that dermatitis is possible when using topical CBD, but this is the case for any skin cream, balm, or salve and is not unique to CBD in any way.

The most common side effects of CBD products in general are fatigue, diarrhea, and reduced appetite, but these are most commonly associated with consumable CBDs that are either eaten or smoked.

CBD products may interfere with medications, so it is worth consulting with your physician before starting any kind of CBD skincare routine or using topical CBD for pain.

Best CBD Creams in 2023

Topical CBD can provide users with a number of benefits, both in the realms of alleviating pain and helping users with skin conditions and care. CBD creams are some of the safest possible ways to take CBD, so as long as you are verifying that the products you are using are organic and lab tested, you are likely to use CBD topicals without fear of any adverse side effects. 

However, since CBD can interfere with medications it is still worth talking to your doctor before beginning a CBD regimen.

The 5 products we reviewed today meet all our criteria. 

If you are looking to get into the world of the best CBD creams, or if you are a veteran of the industry, we recommend checking out any of these companies and their topicals, as they all provide organic, high-quality experiences that can be beneficial to many people.

Best CBD Creams for Pain Relief and Skincare

1. CBDfx: Best Broad Spectrum CBD Cream to Relieve Pain

2. CBDistillery: Best of the Skincare CBD Topicals

3. Green Roads: Most Diverse CBD Cream for Pain

4. Aspen Green: Best CBD Body Balm for Pain Relief

5. Batch: Most Calming CBD Cream