You’ve probably heard of CBD. But have you heard of Charlotte’s Web?
What do you associate with the name Charlotte’s Web? If you are a fan of children’s literature, you might be thinking about the famous novel by E. B. White. However, if you have been following the CBD industry, you are likely thinking about one of the most well-known brands in this business.
Quick Look: My Favorite Charlotte’s Web Products, Which ones do I recommend? (and why?)
My Favorite Charlotte’s Web Products
CBD OIL: 60MG CBD/1ML
Pros
- Potent concentration (so I feel like I am getting value for my money- but remember, I have a high tolerance for CBD products and can handle them quite well. If you are a novice, I suggest the 25mg products)
- The dropper bottle is easy enough for me to measure the dose because I know that I am getting 60 mg of CBD with every ml of oil.
- Three flavors to choose from (lemon, choc mint, orange)
- Certified organic (so I am certain there are no harmful ingredients)
- Full-spectrum extract (so I am getting the full range of benefits from the hemp plant, including the full range of cannabinoids and other beneficial plant compounds)
- Wide range of benefits, including stress relief, supporting overall wellness, managing inflammation, and even helping to maintain sleep
Cons
- I don’t have any gripes with this product. However, some people might find the 60mg per ml a tad bit potent.
- No flavorless option (I am really hunting for cons with this point, but I do enjoy flavorless possibilities for the most part and find it odd that there is no option like that)
CBD GUMMIES (for calm) 10MG CBD and 75MG LEMON BALM
Pros
- Supports a sense of calm and stress relief
- Very well priced (starting at less than $25 for 30 gummies)
- Formulated with lemon balm (one of my favorite herbs)
- Maintains a calm sense without the drowsiness that often comes with relaxing products
- Made with hemp grown in the USA
- Slow-release (because it is an edible), which makes it perfect for winding down in the evenings
Cons
- The product listing does not say that it is certified organic
HEMP-INFUSED CREAM WITH CBD
Pros
- Helps to ease inflamed skin
- Topical application (so it provides a target sense of relief to my skin)
- Mild and soothing for sensitive skin
- Gets the US Hemp Authority stamp of approval
- Free of common allergens
- Not tested on animals
- Vegan friendly
- Free from synthetics or parabens
- Not tested on animals
- It smells awesome!
Cons
- I really love this cream! So it’s tough for me to find a con. But something I can say is that it won’t be a good choice for people looking to feel the mental stress relief from CBD products
About the Company: Charlotte’s Web
Charlotte’s Web is a hemp-based product line that includes oils, gummies, capsules, and more. Offering the highest quality CBD on the market, this company was founded by the Stanley brothers, who have been in the cannabis business since 2012.
The Stanley Brothers were seven farmers who lived in Colorado. Back in 2012, the Stanley brothers developed a strain of hemp called CW1AS1. This strain was high in CBD but low in THC—meaning it didn’t have the psychoactive effects of THC-heavy strains of marijuana.
It all started with Charlotte. When the Stanley brothers developed a strain of hemp high in CBD, they had no idea how it would change their lives. Sharing it with a young girl named Charlotte Figi, who was suffering from Dravet syndrome, sparked an outpouring of attention from media organizations around the world. And that’s how Charlotte’s Web began—with a little girl suffering from a terrible disease who found relief from a ‘new’ type of cannabis plant.
Charlotte’s story, and the Stanley brothers’ work, were widely covered in international media, highlighting the medical potential of cannabis. From there, the Stanley brothers founded a company named Charlotte’s Web, which sells CBD products derived from the same initial hemp strain that helped Charlotte so much.
Although Charlotte’s Web helped bring some relief to the Figi family, the story had a sad ending, and the world said goodbye to the little girl who inspired a movement in 2020.
Let’s take a look at the company and the products they offer us.
Features
Pros
- Premium quality botanical extracts at competitive rates
- Highly rated taste and flavor
- Save with free ground shipping on orders of $74 and higher
- Order a 10ml sampler to try the oils first
- USA-grown, USA-made products with full traceability
Cons
- while they do offer COAs, you can only locate them with the batch number
- FDA has issued the company with a warning letter
- there are a couple of reviewers that have complained their customer service is not up to scratch
- they have two class-action lawsuits pending against them
- lacking organic certification
Quality
Charlotte’s Web uses US-grown hemp plants naturally grown without the use of pesticides or herbicides and never add anything artificial to their products. They’re all gluten-free, non-GMO, and vegan. Although their plants aren’t certified organic right now, they claim they are in the process of getting that certification.
Aside from their lack of organic status, Charlotte’s Web set a quality precedent for CBD products.
Let’s take a look at the practices they still follow:
They make sure all their products are backed by third-party testing, although their product COA’s are only available by the batch. Regardless, Charlotte’s Web has been a leader in the industry since its inception and continues to produce high-quality items today—their continued commitment to transparency really sets them apart from other brands on the market.
I typically have plenty of support for the underdogs and small businesses on the market, but I have plenty of personal support for this brand. I feel they started off doing what they do for the right reasons- and have blossomed into one of the best CBD companies in a market they were a part of initiating.
Reputation
In 2017, the FDA sent Charlotte’s Web a warning letter regarding their labels, which stated that some of their products should not be labeled as dietary supplements.
The FDA also said that some of Charlotte’s Web’s products had unproven health claims on their labels. After investigation, the FDA did not find any impurities in their products.
However, the FDA has not conducted any additional investigations since 2017 and has not issued any further warnings to the company.
This story is about the oldest, most well-known brand of CBD and how it was scrutinized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for labeling some of their products as “dietary supplements” and for making unproven health claims.
However, I also found the company has two lawsuits still in progress. In both cases, Charlotte’s Web is the defendant, which involves mislabeled products and CBD creams that reports showed had more hemp than the label suggested.
When I scoured Trust Pilot’s reviews, there were more negative reviews than I could ignore. However, the reviews are complaints against the company’s poor customer service and shipping rather than their product quality.
Still, Charlotte’s Web is widely known in the industry, and they have an excellent reputation. Their quality control measures are strict, and they’ve worked hard to ensure that their products are pure and potent.
I should note that many established CBD companies have come under the spotlight from the FDA, and Charlotte’s Web is not alone in this. The good thing to come out of it is that the FDA found nothing in the products that shouldn’t be there. By this, I mean the cannabinoid profiles matched the label, and there are no residual solvents or potentially harmful substances (pesticides, etc.). So ultimately, this acted as a positive for Charlotte’s Web and their reputation.
Manufacturing Process
Charlotte’s Web has a whole blog post dedicated to educating people on their manufacturing processes and how they grow the plant used for their products. You can check out this post right here, where they delve into detail about their processes. Each year before the new planting season, the company takes stock of the previous year and assesses what they did right and what they could have improved.
Then, they delve into the new planting season and apply everything they learned from the previous year. Before they begin planting on a new farm, they take the time to assess the soil and make sure the previous farmers did not leave traces of pesticides or heavy metals in the soil.
Charlotte’s Web goes through an extensive and almost tedious process before sowing new seeds, and it shows in the clean lab reports.
There is a lot more to the manufacturing process, which you can read about in detail right here.
Once the plants have reached maturity, it is time to prepare the newly harvested plants to become products. The extraction process is done in two ways:
- CO2 extraction
- Alcohol distillation and blending
Charlotte’s Web Original Formula oil is made using alcohol distillation, whereas all other products are made using a CO2 extraction.
Once the extract is made, it is tested again for potency and chemical composition, then labeled by batch number before the dilution process begins. Once the process is complete and bottles are labeled, you would be forgiven for thinking they get sent straight to the shelf. But that is not the case. Once the bottle is labeled, it is sent for a last round of testing to make absolutely sure it is free from all heavy metals, pesticides, or other potentially harmful chemicals.
Overall, my favorite thing about all of this is that they make their process so transparent and fun to read about.
Product Types
- CBD oils
- Edibles (including gummies)
- Capsules
- topicals
- Pet products
- CBD Sprays
You will notice their website conveniently sorts the ‘shop’ by three categories:
- Product category (in other words, product type)
- Benefit
- Price
All of Charlotte’s Web products contain the proprietary genetics synonymous with the Charlotte’s Web brand, and they all include the following cannabinoids (unless otherwise stated):
- CBD
- CBG
- CBC
- And other minor cannabinoids
Pricing
Charlotte’s Web is considered a reasonably priced brand (although some argue they are more expensive than most brands), similar to Goldilocks’ just right’ temperature porridge. They are neither a boutique brand with outrageous pricing nor do they come in as the cheapest option.
Their website categorizes the products as follows
- 2 product listings above $200
- 8 product listings between $100 and $199
- 52 product listings no more than $99
Their most affordable products start at their ACNE NATURAL FOAMING FACIAL CLEANSER (starting at $14.99).
How to Choose the Right Charlotte’s Web Products
Before you know which product is the right one for you to choose, you need to identify what you want to get out of the product.
To make things easy, Charlotte’s Web has a handy quiz on their website that helps you figure this out.
Kicking things off, they iterate that every person uses CBD for a different reason. So, what’s your reason?
- Exercise-induced inflammation?
- Everyday stress?
- General wellness?
- Healthy-looking skin?
- Increased focus?
- Better sleep?
- Other concerns?
Based on your answer, you need to identify how much this concern affects your life. The concern you identify allows them to sort through their product range and offer the products best suited for your needs. The amount it affects you (minor/major) will help identify the potency and further crystalize the exact product types that will suit you best.
Isn’t that handy?
Now, if you don’t want to go through the quiz on the website, you can ask yourself a few questions:
- Do I want a slow onset of effects, or do you want immediate relief?
If you want a slower release of effects, perhaps you should opt for a capsule. If you prefer immediate effects, then opt for a capsule or a gummy instead.
- Do I want a topical cream for my muscles for localized pain, or do I want to feel the effects within my body?
If you want to target a specific muscle or specific painful area, then a topical might be your best bet.
- Do I want to have an easy-to-dose product or something that I can choose how much to take myself?
If you want something that you don’t have to dose too easily, then a capsule (with a pre-measured dose) would be your best bet. If you are comfortable with dosing, then a tincture could work well.
How to Use
All Charlotte’s Web products are clearly labeled for easy dosing, and detailed directions are available on the packaging and the company website. However, it can take some time to find the proper dosage of CBD, as every person responds differently.
Start with a lower dose and work your way up. With our products, it’s easy to adjust how much CBD you’re getting to fit your needs.
What Other CBD Brands are Good Alternatives?
There are so many CBD brands out there, and besides making it challenging to choose the right brand to support, it also means there are plenty of options to choose from. It also helps brands push themselves to be the best in the business.
Which brings me to the answer to the question: what other CBD oil brands do I recommend?
Pure Kana
- Full-spectrum extract
- Tested by third-party labs
- Free from harmful solvent residue, pesticides, and other potentially harmful substances
MedTerra
- Every single product offers a COA
- Offers free shipping (on orders over $99)
- They manage all aspects of their production – from seed straight through to the bottle you buy
Joy Organics
- 0% THC
- Certified Organic (USDA certified)
- 30-day money-back guarantee
FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions
Question: Are Charlotte’s Web CBD Products Full Spectrum?
Answer: Yes, their product range does include full-spectrum products. Charlotte’s Web’s oils contain all of the compounds from the plants, not just an isolate of CBD. Whole-plant products are said to work better because of the entourage effect, in which all the compounds work together.
Question: Is Charlotte’s Web FDA Approved?
Answer: Charlotte’s Web produces their products in an FDA-registered facility.
Question: Is Charlotte’s Web Overpriced?
Answer: Charlotte’s Web CBD oils come in on the higher end of the pricing spectrum, and as such many consider this to be a more expensive option. Whether the higher price tag has more to do with its notorious reputation or speaks more of its quality is something each person has to decide for themselves. I think that Charlotte’s Web has put many years of effort into their products and strains. They have delivered consistent quality over these years and set the precedent for other brands to follow- and as such, I reckon their products are priced well for the quality they offer. Sure, the average CBD oil is priced lower, but that’s the thing about Charlotte’s Web- they are not your average CBD brand.
Bottom Line
Overall, it is clear that Charlotte’s Web remains one of the world’s most respected CBD brands. It continues to expand in a bid to spread the message about hemp and cannabidiol as far as it can. CW continues in memory of Charlotte Figi, the young girl who inspired a company and helped bring cannabidiol to international attention.
Thanks to the seven Stanley brothers, you can purchase tinctures and oils of varying potencies and sizes, as well as gummies and capsules. The company also offers pet products for dogs and cats, allowing owners to give their furry friends some CBD as well!
Charlotte’s Web remains one of the world’s most prominent CBD brands. It spreads awareness by expanding its reach and attracting as many people as possible in the process. It celebrates the legacy of young Charlotte Figi, whose story inspired major change in the hemp and CBD industry. Charlotte’s Web hemp company strives for excellence with each product, as evidenced by its success and proliferation.
Charlotte’s Web continues to provide the world with quality CBD products in the hope of providing relief to others that need an extra helping hand with the combination of nature and science.
Find more quality CBD products by readings these guides below:
