🧼 Butter Swap! Great Substitutes for Cocoa Butter in Soap and Body Products

If you’ve been shopping for cocoa butter lately, you’ve probably noticed the price tag creeping up. Temporary supply chain issues are driving prices higher than usual, making it tough for soapmakers and body care formulators to stock up. But don’t worry—there are plenty of beautiful, skin-loving alternatives out there.

Whether you’re looking to keep your bar soaps firm, your body butters rich, or your balms smooth and long-lasting, here are my favorite cocoa butter substitutes and when to use them.

🧼 Soapmaking Substitutes for Cocoa Butter

When formulating soap, cocoa butter is prized for adding hardness and skin-loving properties. These swaps offer similar benefits:

1. Shea Butter

Rich, creamy, and nourishing. While it won’t harden your bars as much as cocoa butter, it adds a wonderful moisturizing boost.

2. Mango Butter

Lighter and less greasy, mango butter brings a soft, luxurious feel to soap. It’s perfect for creamy lather and conditioning.

3. Kokum Butter

Hard and brittle like cocoa butter, kokum butter is ideal if you want to maintain a firm bar. It’s also great for sensitive skin.

4. Sal Butter

This lesser-known gem adds firmness and conditioning, making it a solid cocoa butter alternative in your base recipe.

5. Palm Kernel or Babassu Oil

These oils will add more cleansing and lather to your bar while contributing to hardness. Use sparingly if you're avoiding drying ingredients.

🧴 Body Product Swaps for Cocoa Butter

In lotions, balms, and whipped butters, cocoa butter brings richness and a lovely, natural chocolate scent. Want a similar result without the chocolate notes? Try these:

1. Shea Butter

The classic go-to. Deeply hydrating, shea butter is creamy, smooth, and easy to blend into any formulation. I carry both refined and unrefined shea butters on this website.

2. Mango Butter

Mango butter is ideal for lightweight body butters or lotions. It absorbs quickly and doesn’t feel heavy on the skin.

3. Kokum Butter

Firm and non-greasy, kokum is perfect for structure. Kokum butter helps balms and whipped butters hold their shape, especially in warmer months.

4. Tucuma Butter

Creamy and high in lauric acid, tucuma butter adds a glossy, silky finish to products. Lovely in hair care too!

5. Illipe Butter (Shorea Stenoptera Butter)

This one is close in feel to cocoa butter—Illipe butter is hard, smooth, and deeply moisturizing. Great for winter balms or heavy creams. 6. Sal Butter (Shorea Butter)

Balances firmness and "spreadability," Sal (Shorea) Butter adds rich emollient properties without feeling greasy. Great in balms and creams.

🧴 Quick Comparison Table

Butter/Oil	Texture	Absorption	Best Use
Cocoa Butter	Hard	Slow	Soap hardness, rich body butters
Shea Butter	Creamy	Medium	Body butters, balms
Mango Butter	Soft-solid	Fast	Lotions, light whipped butters
Kokum Butter	Very hard	Fast	Balms, soaps, structure
Sal Butter	Hard	Medium	Bar structure, skin conditioning
Tucuma Butter	Creamy	Medium	Glossy balms, hair care
Illipe Butter	Hard	Medium	Rich creams, winter skincare

✨ Final Thoughts

Cocoa butter may be a staple, but it’s not the only option out there. These substitutes can help you fine-tune your formulas, keep your creativity flowing, and adapt to seasonal changes or customer preferences.

If you’re a maker shopping for butters, I’ve got all of these available here at Green Iguana Bath /Bubble-therapy.com —with info, tips, and sizes to match your batch needs. Questions? Feel free to reach out. I’m always happy to help you find your perfect formula.