The best candles: tea lights, gift sets, flameless and luxury choices to add some ambience to your home

Lighting a candle can create the perfect ambiance, whether you’re in the bath, reading a book, working at your desk, or chilling out on the sofa. From their fragrant scents to their atmospheric lighting, they can instantly add atmosphere to your home.

Whether looking for a sweet-smelling candle to freshen up your room, a relaxing candle to help you unwind and sleep, or even a flameless candle for safety reasons, there is a style and scent for everyone.

We at The Recommended have done our research and have put together a selection of the best candles you can buy online to help you along the way. See our favourites below.

The best candles at-a-glance:

• Best large candle: Yankee Candle Cinnamon Stick Scented Candle
• Best atmospheric candle: Woodwick Ellipse Scented Candle with Crackling Wick
• Best candle gift set: The Gift Box Scented Candles
• Best sleep candles: TRINIDa Aromatherapy Scented Sleep Candles
• Best colourful candles: Yinuo Mirror Candles Gift Set
• Best mini candles: Yankee Candle Mini Scented Candles
• Best luxury candle: NEOM Perfect Night’s Sleep Scented Candle
• Best flameless candle: Homemory Battery Operated Flameless LED tea lights
• Best affordable candle: Shearer Candles Amber Noir Scented Jar Candle
• Best tea lights: Zuvo 8-Hour Tea Light Candles

The best candles

Best large candle: Yankee Candle Cinnamon Stick Scented Candle

With a classically sweet aroma

This large candle has a burn time of up to 150 hours and is presented in a transparent glass jar for a contemporary look.

This candle’s 100% natural fibre cotton wick is easy to light up for a long-lasting flickering flame, and its cinnamon with cloves fragrance will bring a sweet-smelling, relaxing aroma to your home.

Best atmospheric candle: Woodwick Ellipse Scented Candle with Crackling Wick

Dancing flames

Create a fireside experience with this sophisticated soy wax blend candle, featuring a burn time of up to 50 hours.

This candle’s oval shape design with a wooden lid has a warming natural fire scent, ideal for cosy evenings. Its Hearthwick Flame technology provides a long fluttering flame with a crackling noise to emulate an open fire.

Best candle gift set: The Gift Box Scented Candles

A floral trio

This set of three floral-scented candles is presented in a luxury box and tied with a bow, making a great gift for friends, family, colleagues (or yourself!)

Each candle has a uniquely designed tin, with different retro-style prints, and its own individual scents. Including plush berries, pink peony, and sweet pea, the floral fragrances will give your home a light and fresh aroma. Plastic-free and vegan-friendly.

Best sleep candles: TRINIDa Aromatherapy Scented Sleep Candles

Slow down and unwind

This set of two organic candles promises to improve the quality of your sleep and wake you up feeling more alert and refreshed.

Made using pure essential oils, these candles have soothing properties which can help you relax. Lavender, geranium, and ylang-ylang scents can calm your body and mind, while chamomile and lemongrass can relieve tension and anxiety. The candles come in sweet pharmacist jars, perfect for your bedside table.

Best colourful candles: Yinuo Mirror Candles Gift Set

Freshen up your room

These four mini candles are made using 100% soy wax and give off scents of lavender, fig, lemon, and spring.

Packaged in a gift box, they make a great treat for someone special and will add a touch of freshness to the air. Each tin is beautifully designed and can be upcycled once the candle is finished, from holding your trinkets to your plants.

Yankee Candle Mini Scented Candles

Small and sweet

This trio pack comes in a selection of scents, including clean cotton, black cherry, and lemon lavender.

Ideal for your living room, bedroom, and bathroom, pop these candles around your home for a calming and sweet-smelling ambiance. These candles are made from a soy blend wax mix, are long-lasting (don’t let their size fool you), and also make great gifts.

Best luxury candle: NEOM Perfect Night’s Sleep Scented Candle

For a tranquil night’s sleep

This hand-poured candle, made from 100% natural wax, is designed to help you relax with its calming aroma.

English lavender, sweet basil, and jasmine scents will fill the air, creating a peaceful and zen setting, ideal for encouraging a restful night’s sleep. Its wick has a burn time of up to 35 hours.

Best flameless candle: Homemory Battery Operated Flameless LED tea Lights

Noone will ever know

These battery-operated candles provide a lifelike flickering flame without the danger of a real fire - a great, safe option for people with kids.

This set contains 12 individual candles, each shining a warm white glow, ideal for mood lighting. They are easy to function using the on/off switch and have a battery life of more than 100 hours.

Best affordable candle: Shearer Candles Amber Noir Scented Jar Candle

No breaking the bank

This candle will burn for up to 30 hours, bringing a fragrant mix of tuberose, violet, and amber to your home.

Made in the UK and presented in a stylish glass jar with a gold lid, this wax candle works to stimulate the senses with floral aromas. An ideal gift or great for those looking to treat themselves on a budget.

Best tea lights: Zuvo 8-Hour Tea Light Candles

A household staple

This pack of 50 tealights is bound to come in handy around your home, whether filling your tea light holders, lanterns, or luminaires.

These pure wax candles are unscented with cotton wicks and lead-free for a smokeless burn of up to eight hours each. Ideal for brightening up your rooms and creating a relaxing ambiance.

If you would like to read more expert-recommended household round-ups, check out our Household page for a full list of recommendations, including the best pillows, the best electric toothbrushes, and the best air fryers.