Where to Buy MCT Oil and How to Use It (2024)

MCT oil has become incredibly popular as a weight loss tool and as a healthy fat overall. But, to truly take advantage of it, you have to find a decent product.

This means that you have to work out where to buy MCT oil and also choose the best option out of the available products.

How do you do that?

Well, you don’t have to make the choice alone. Instead, this post shows you which MCT oils are worth considering and exactly where you can get them from.

I also talk about why you might want to use MCT oil to begin with. After all, there is still some controversy that surrounds the products.

Don’t need the pitch?Skip straight to the products!

MCT Oil, Coconut Oil and Health

The name MCT stands for medium-chain triglycerides, which is a specific type of fatty acid. The body treats MCTs differently than other types of fat and they are rapidly absorbed into the body.

For this reason, MCTs are sometimes used for patients with digestion problems. Likewise, MCTs are common in ketogenic diets and can help people reach ketosis faster (1).

The ease of digestion also makes MCT a good source of energy overall. Wellness Mama also reports that the oil is powerful for promoting immune and gut health, while also supporting a good balance of hormones.

MCT oil also has many of the benefits that coconut oil offers, especially if you choose MCT oil high in lauric acid.

Now, coconut oil and MCT oil aren’t revolutionary for health. Instead, they’re simply examples of healthy fats. This makes them very relevant for anyone trying to decrease their carb intake.

Likewise, they are a much healthier alternative than options like canola oil, which has a poor fatty acid profile and are often heavily processed.

Related Article: Why Using MCT Oil is a Good Idea on a Ketogenic Diet

MCT Oil Uses and Recipes

MCT oil may sound unfamiliar but it is easy to include in your diet. Many recipes that rely on coconut oil can also be made with MCT oil instead.

In a Smoothie

MCT oil is a surprisingly powerful smoothie addition. It works well as an extra source of energy and helps your smoothie to keep you fuller longer.

There are also many different recipes that use MCT oil in smoothies, including the following:

• Digestion Boost Green Smoothie

• Cocoa Coconut Low Carb Shake

• Chocolate Keto Smoothie

• Keto Strawberry Lime Smoothie

​Of course, you don’t have to follow a recipe. It’s often easy to just add MCT oil to a regular smoothie.

In Coffee

Have you heard about Bulletproof coffee? This is a brand and also a style of drink.

The official guidelines involve using Bulletproof branded coffee beans, along with Brain Octane Oil and grass-fed butter or ghee. Brain Octane Oil is a specific brand of MCT oil, where all of the MCTs are Caprylic acid (C8).

Many people also use other types of MCT oil or even just coconut oil to make the coffee (such variations are sometimes called keto cofee).

There are many proposed advantages of Bulletproof coffee, including the idea that it offers rapid energy and helps with ketone development.

Some people also use it as a weight loss tool, following a variation of intermittent fasting. Doing so often involves having a Bulletproof coffee first thing in the morning, rather than having breakfast. The MCT oil and butter/ghee help reduce hunger and provide energy, while you’re still consuming fewer calories than with a normal meal.

In theory, the idea can work well, although you are still breaking your fast. As such, you wouldn’t see the same autophagy benefits that you get from intermittent fasting.

Related Article: Ghee vs Butter – Which Should You Use and Why?

As an Ingredient

MCT oil can also be used as an ingredient in many dishes. Some MCT oil recipes are included below.

• MCT Oil Mayonnaise- from Inside Out Wellness and Weight Loss

• Fat Burning Salad Dressing - from Keto Adapted

• Healthy Homemade Mayonnaise - from Intoxicated on Life

• Caesar Salad Dressing - from Healthful Pursuit

• MCT Oil Coffee Gummies - from Thrive Market

Additionally, many keto snacks will take advantage of MCT oil, as will keto fat bombs.

However, MCT oil is best used at lower temperatures. This is because it has a relatively low smoke point (around 320 degrees). Additionally, multiple sources state that you shouldn’t fry with MCT oil for this reason, including discussions on the Bulletproof forums.

This makes it best to use MCT oil after cooking, while the dish is resting. Plus, there are other healthy oils that you can rely on for high-temperature frying and even for deep frying.

MCT is also a poor choice for high-temperature cooking because of the cost. Even if it were safe, many other oils (like ghee) offer health benefits as well and are more stable at high temperatures.

On its Own

You can also simply take MCT oil straight, on a spoon. This is, by far, the simplest way to consume the oil – although it won’t suit everyone.

MCT oil has become incredibly popular – and there is no shortage of places to buy it from. For example, health food stores stock it, as do many specialty online sites. Some companies even produce and sell their own MCT oils, such as Bulletproof.

Nevertheless, one of the best places to purchase is Amazon.

Amazon is powerful – as it offers a wide range of different products, with all of the information you need in one place. This makes it easy to compare items and to get the best prices.

Plus, Amazon is reliable and it heavily favors the customer. So, you don’t have to worry about hidden fees and you know exactly what you’re getting for your money. If you do get the wrong product, for any reason, it’s often fairly easy to get a refund.

The catch is that there are so many different products to choose from – even if you just focus on the popular ones. How do you choose?

That’s where the list in the next section comes in (jump to it now). But first, how do you know whether a product is any good?

Related Article: The Best MCT Oil, Powders and Capsules: An In-Depth Guide

Many of the criteria for good MCT brands will be obvious. For example, you want brands that use as little processing as possible, along with few additives. Likewise, the oil should be completely sourced from coconuts.

The best MCT oils will also be odorless and unflavored. This makes them easier to include in recipes. It’s also worth looking for organic and non-GMO brands. These will tend to be healthier overall.

Companies that follow these approaches also tend to have a greater focus on quality overall, which often leads to better products.

One final consideration is MCT composition. The four main types of MCT are as follows:

• C6: Caproic acid

• C8: Caprylic acid

• C10: Capric acid

• C12: Lauric acid

The ‘C’ here refers to the number of carbon atoms in the fatty acid chain. Shorter chains mean that the MCT is absorbed faster, potentially offering more benefits.

MCT oils use a combination of the last three, partly because Caproic avid (C6) has an intense and unpleasant taste.

In contrast, coconut oil itself relies primarily on lauric acid.

Lauric acid behaves differently than the rest and is sometimes considered less powerful as an MCT. For example, Bulletproof talks about how lauric acid isn’t a true MCT oil at all.

Nevertheless, lauric acid isn’t all bad. In fact, it offers significant advantages of its own – and is a key reason for the health benefits of coconut oil. Lauric acid may also promote more sustained ketosis, even though it isn’t as effective for getting people into ketosis initially (2,3).

The end result is that a higher concentration of C8 and C10 fatty acids will give more MCT health benefits, such as advantages for ketosis and potentially weight loss. In contrast, a higher concentration of lauric acid (C12) will give you similar benefits to coconut oil.

Ultimately the choice is yours. The best solution will depend on the specific benefits that you want to see. This is why the list of best brands includes a range of MCT distributions, so that you can pick the best for you personally.

The Best MCT Oils You Can Buy Online

So then, with all that in mind, let’s take a look at the best choices for MCT oils. These are in no particular order.

Brain Octane Oil

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MCT Composition: 100% Caprylic acid (C8)

The first selling point of Brain Octane Oil is simply the brand, as Bulletproof is a key player in the MCT field. The company also has a high focus on quality, meaning that Brain Octane Oil goes through triple distillation and doesn’t use ‘harsh chemicals and solvents’.

It also consists only of C8 MCTs, which is highly unusual. According to the company, this composition offers dramatic benefits for mental performance and overall energy.

If you specifically want C8 MCTs only, then this is the brand to choose.

However, unlike other companies, there doesn’t appear to be any non-GMO or organic labeling.

Related Article: MCT Oil vs Brain Octane Oil - What's the Difference?

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MCT Composition: Roughly 38% Caprylic acid (C8), 31% Capric acid (C10), 31% Lauric acid (C12).

Like many brands, this MCT oil uses a combination of the three main MCTs.

Additionally, the coconuts used are sustainably sourced and palm oil is not used. The product is also verified as being non-GMO, paleo and vegan – a combination that is relatively uncommon.

The product also receives consistently good reviews and is one of the go-to choices for MCT oil. As such, it is one of the best choices if you want the benefits from all three main MCTs.

The same company also offers an emulsified MCT oil, which is designed to mix in easily with any liquid. That alternative can work well for people on the go.

Viva Naturals MCT Oil

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MCT Composition: 60% Caprylic acid (C8), 40% Capric acid (C10)

This is another brand that focuses on quality and has the same paleo, vegan and non-GMO claims as the previous example. It is also another popular one that gets good reviews overall.

Aside from brands, the main difference between the two is that Viva Naturals contains C8 and C10 MCTs only, while the Sports Research product also has lauric acid. As discussed previously, each approach has its advantages. But, for people wanting MCT benefits specifically, this brand may be the better choice.

Left Coast Performance

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MCT Composition: Roughly 56% Caprylic acid (C8), 44% Capric acid (C10)

Once again, this company focuses on quality, including the claim that they are 100% Pure. While the term is marketing-focused, the oil is produced using a low-heat process and tested to ensure that quality standards are met.

The product is also made in the USA and uses a BPA-free food grade container.

Keppi Keto MCT Oil

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MCT Composition: Roughly 55% Caprylic acid (C8), 45% Capric acid (C10)

This final brand is less well-known and has roughly the same MCT composition as the previous example. Once again, the oil is entirely sourced from coconuts and the MCT composition makes it powerful for energy.

It is also a non-GMO product and the bottles are BPA free.

Final Thoughts

Even though these MCT oils can seem similar to each other – they are all much better than the countless poor quality brands on the market.

When buying MCT oil, paying close attention to the brands and the reviews is a critical process. After all, you don’t have any way to prove what chain lengths are present. Instead, you have to trust the claims that the companies make.

All five of these brands are highly reliable and are consistently rated as offering a quality product. As such, they’re the perfect place to try out the benefits of the oil for yourself.