Right off the bat, let me just say that a list of the best raw honey brands is pretty difficult to construct.
It’s like trying to decide the best type of spice. Everyone has a preference when it comes to the different flavors of the various types of honey.
Some like it hot, others enjoy it a little sour, and some prefer to go for the tingling sensation without the heat of peppers.
With that in mind, it is difficult to come up with a universal list of the best real (raw) honey brands. Nevertheless, what’s life without its challenges?
AT A GLANCE (SEE ON AMAZON):
- Best Overall: Raw Texas Honey by Desert Creek Honey Store
- Runner Up: 100% Raw, Unfiltered Honey by Nature Nate's Store
- Also Great: Organic Honey by YS Organic Eco Bee Farms
- Also Great: Unfiltered Wildflower Honey by Crockett Honey Co.
- Also Great: Raw Manuka Honey by the Wedderspoon Store
A List of the Best Real & Raw Honey Brands at a Glance
- Desert Creek Raw Texas Honey
- Nature Nate’s 100% Pure Raw and Unfiltered Honey
- Honest Raw Honey
- YS Eco Bee Farms Raw Honey
- Crockett Wildflower Honey
- Raw Manuka Honey
- Wholesome Organic Raw Unfiltered Honey
The Best Raw Honey Brands Reviewed
Let’s dive into some of the best natural and raw honey brands in the world. These are premium, pure, or organic honey.
As we countdown our favorite raw honey brands we understand that their unique qualities make them difficult to rank, so we’ll leave the numbering to you.
Here are the top 7 honey brands that you need to taste immediately.
Desert Creek Raw Texas Honey
If you have an insatiable appetite for honey, like me, then more is better. Fortunately, with Desert Creek Raw Texas Honey, you can get it in larger quantities than most of the other brands (1 gallon).
That’s great news for those of us that use honey daily. The flowers that grow uncultivated in Texas, including Indian Blanket, Scabiosa, and Clover, greatly influence the flavor of this honey.
As a result of this cocktail, the raw honey is a darker color than golden brands, but it doesn’t make it less tasty. More importantly, it is free from pesticides, herbicides, and other forms of harmful chemicals.
Since it is true to its raw form, it contains all the vital vitamins, amino acids, and other nutritional elements that have given honey its medicinal properties.
Since it comes in such large quantities, the price makes it very affordable. You definitely can’t go wrong with this brand.
Nature Nate’s 100% Pure Raw and Unfiltered Honey
The one thing I’ve found about beekeepers is that they prefer to tell it as it is. Look at the name of this brand of honey. It tells you everything you need to know.
Nature Nate's 100% Pure Raw and Unfiltered Honey is an exquisite source of natural honey that you can stock while on a budget. They source most of their honey from the U.S but their organic line comes from Brazil.
This guarantees that you can access great flavors from the flowers in the homeland and experience the floral world of South America.
They fulfill their promise of keeping the honey unpasteurized and unfiltered only warming it slightly thereby preserving all the vitamins and minerals such as iron in the honey.
Being a completely natural product, it is Kosher certified and definitely gluten-free. The same raw honey brand also offers honey with comb which is an experience better tasted than told.
If all gum tasted like a honey-filled comb, I don’t think we’d ever stop chewing.
It is available in a 32-ounce squeeze bottle which makes it the best choice for drizzling honey on pastries and adding some to your tea.
Honest Raw Honey
Once again, nothing flashy about the brand, just stating it as it is. Pasteurizing honey delays crystallization. As a result, many uninformed people believe that real honey doesn’t solidify.
Honest Raw Honey is a fantastic way of breaking that myth. Presented in its crystallized form, it looks a little like butter, making it great for spreads. Its texture also makes it a great substitute for sugar in baking.
Guaranteeing that a product is free from herbicides and pesticides can be pretty bold since most commercial farms use these products liberally. These chemicals then find their way back to the hive through the pollen and nectar, and finally on your table.
Fortunately, the farmers that supply the raw honey are located more than 10 miles away from commercial farms known to use these products.
With bees foraging within a 3-mile radius, this is a sufficient buffer to ensure that the final product is completely free of any harmful chemicals.
This raw honey brand comes from the great state of Texas and is deliciously flavored by the wildflowers from the area.
They also have honey infused with cinnamon which is heavenly on the taste buds. As you make your way through your honey choices, this is one that deserves an audience on your table.
Ys Eco Bee Organic Honey
Introduce your body to this rich honey from Illinois. Ys Eco Bee Organic Honey is another great raw honey brand available in its crystallized form giving it a creamy texture, ideal on toast, and all sorts of pastries.
The brand’s promise is that the hives are chemical-free. Most of the pesticides used in beekeeping are inserted by the beekeepers.
Overuse of miticides has led to chemical resistance in pests such as varroa mites, which unfortunately led to even more use of some harmful chemicals inside the hive.
Furthermore, different chemicals target specific pests, and the residue cocktail after treatment lingers in the hive and infiltrates the comb and even the honey.
With so little control over the level of pesticides, herbicides, and antibiotics you ingest on a day-to-day basis, you can be sure that the folks at YS Eco Bee Farms are doing all they can to give you a much healthier alternative for your sweet tooth.
Some reviewers have also identified it as great for home facial cleansing remedies.
Last but not least, this real honey comes in packs of up to 6 pieces making it one of the most affordable options with regard to raw honey. Two thumbs up for this one.
Crockett Wildflower Honey
The secrets of nature are preserved best in places that we find inhospitable. So it’s no secret that one of the best brands of raw honey would come from the desert.
Crockett Wildflower Honey comes from the Sonoran Desert, a place with a vast diversity of flora and fauna.
The bees source their nectar from plants such as the Saw Palmetto, Gallberry, White Holly, Palo Verde, Cactus, Cat Claw, and Mesquite.
Many of these shrubs and trees are known for their medicinal value, making honey a rich source of vital vitamins and minerals.
The roots of the cat’s claw plant are used to treat inflammation and stimulate the immune system.
You can imagine what treasures are contained in the nectar cocktail of these desert flowers. You can now enjoy this precious gift right at your table by adding this honey to your collection of condiments.
As the honey is unpasteurized and unfiltered, all the wild attributes are accessible to you in every tablespoon. It is available in a 48-ounce container, making it a good value for your money.
Since it comes in its liquid form, you can easily pour the raw honey into smaller containers and that makes it easier to handle on a day-to-day basis. Once you’ve had a taste of this Crockett Wildflower Honey, raw honey will be the only taste your tongue will accept.
Raw Manuka Honey
For this particular type of honey, the brands may be different but the content is the Cadillac of the honey world. This honey is known to have the highest antibacterial and antiviral properties of all the raw honey varieties available. The UMF rating is what you look out for. This indicates the amount of Manuka pollen contained in the honey.
The Manuka plant thrives in New Zealand, which is why you will notice that this honey costs a little more than the local brands.
This honey is in great demand worldwide because many people use it as an immune booster, particularly for their children. Wedderspoon Raw Premium Manuka honey is even certified as a non-GMO product.
That means that the source of nectar has not been tampered with genetically. This honey will be one of the purest and most natural brands that you have the pleasure of ingesting.
The more pollen contained in the honey, the more suitable the honey is for apitherapy purposes. Kiva Manuka raw honey, for instance, has a rating of UMF 15+.
Any rating above 10+ means that the honey has high antibiotic qualities, making it ideal for antiseptic use. The KFactor rating used by Wedderspoon is unique and is used to indicate the percentage of Manuka Pollen contained in the honey.
This ensures that the honey can be labeled as Manuka honey. This rating is not used by other brands so it’s difficult to interpret it outside of the pollen count.
Manuka honey is highly sought out globally, especially those with a high UMF rating.
You will find it makes for a great sweetener and spread as well as a great addition to your medicine cabinet for your skincare. The extra cost is secondary to the benefits it offers.
Wholesome Organic Raw Unfiltered Honey
Wholesome Organic Raw Unfiltered Honey, another top raw honey brand, comes from across the border and offers so much more than just honey. It is certified as organic and non-GMO. In the US, local brands cannot attain organic certification because you can’t monitor where each bee chooses to forage.
In the land of Mexico, however, the colonies that manufacture this liquid gold are situated far enough from commercial land activity that it is possible to guarantee that the nectar sources are completely free from chemicals.
Being away from commercial farms also ensures that the plant life hasn’t been genetically altered making this honey one of the purest forms of bee-processed nectar that you will have the pleasure of savoring.
If that wasn’t enough, it is also traded under the fair trade certification. The Mayans who harvest the honey are adequately compensated for their products and their efforts. This is a brand that nourishes both the body and the soul. That’s quite the combo.
The creamy texture of the honey makes it ideal for spreading on pastries. The butterscotch flavor is perfect for your tea, toast, or baguette.
Finally, to put a bow on this wholesome goodness, this honey comes in as an affordable pack of six. It’s the hat-trick of the honey world. This is a purchase you won’t regret.
Need Convincing that a Good Raw Honey Brand is the Way to Go? Here’s Why You Should Choose Raw Honey…
Isn’t honey just…well honey? Unfortunately, it isn’t.
Commercial honey, though not necessarily adulterated, is less nutritious than raw honey.
This is because honey is quite viscous and can be difficult to bottle especially in cool temperatures.
Some brands of raw honey are already crystallized by the time they get to your table. Others are creamy like butter.
As a result, many commercial brands heat the honey to reduce its viscosity and make it easier to bottle.
Unfortunately, this action reduces the nutritional value of the honey, destroying some of the enzymes that boost our health.
Now raw honey is the whole package. Nectar gives it its sweetness. It contains bits of pollen, propolis, wax, etc. that got caught up during the harvest.
The result is a rich combination of minerals, vitamins, amino acids, and other components. It, thus, turns this natural sweetener into a superfood.
So, which brand of raw honey is the best? Well, it depends.
In essence, as long as you can trust that what has been packaged is indeed raw honey, then you’ll be safe with most brands. Making the choice comes down to your pallet preference and your primary need for the honey.
If all you’re looking for is an alternative to processed sugar and pasteurized honey, then you have dozens of raw honey brands to choose from.
If you’re looking at honey as a form of apitherapy, then there may be some brands that are more suitable than others. This is because the nectar source determines some of the unique qualities of honey.
For instance, honey from the Manuka blossoms has been known to contain the highest antimicrobial qualities of all other types of honey. That makes it ideal for fighting some infections and even as an antiseptic on skin wounds.
Other brands have found favor with diabetics and people with glucose regulation difficulties. If you’re partial to color, then you can go from acacia honey, which is almost clear, to opaque brands typically from a variety of wildflowers.
Final Word About the Best Raw Honey Brands
Raw honey is nature’s answer to so many of our man-made problems. Honey has even been found in the pyramids of Egypt, thousands of years old yet perfectly preserved.
Keeping it as close to its natural form is the best and most effective way to get nutrients from honey.
So, if you haven’t already, make the switch to raw honey. I guarantee, it will be a one-way ticket and you’ll never want to go back.
Thank you for the information, it was great.
i bought raw manuka honey for my kids and gives such great results. Thanx for your suggestions
You are welcome, Maria! 🙂
Just got over Asthma Attack and my Primary MD told me to use a tablespoon of Raw Honey and Real Lemon Juice with my Breakfeast. I will choose a Local Beekeeper here in my area in Clermont County, Ohio for purchase.
Sounds great, Larry. Hope the honey will work well for you!
What is important:
1) That it is pure Bees Honey.
2) That it is not adulterated with any other sweetners.
Honey does not deteriorate or go off .
True bees honey does not need additives !
Please forward this to the FDA & the similar organisation in Europe & USA.
Dr. Aubrey Peries
Here’s an added benefit of REAL RAW honey.
I read in a book of how doctors treat patients in 3rd world countries, where medicine is not readily available. In open wounds, they cover the wound with honey and cover the area with a bandage. The honey seals the wound from exposure, preventing infection, and the any bacteria in the wound converts the honey to alcohol, cleaning the wound. The bandage is a cover to prevent the honey from sticking to everything. They claimed that the honey helps with less scarring, and faster healing.
The only real evidence I have is that I now apply it to wounds I get and the results are as they doctors claim.
In Gibraltar, where I come from, my mom always used honey on us kids whenever we had a skin problem, like infection or mosquito bites. This knowledge was passed down to her from her mother and grandmother. This was in the 1950’s, Some people today don’t know the medicinal value of honey……I use Manuka or the German mountain raw honey in my coffee every day, sometimes with a glass of hot milk. I have been taking good quality honey for a very long time, because of its antibacterial and antiviral properties. It keeps your breathing tubes and lungs clear and free from that nasty bacteria……..BTW, thanks for the article, I might try the Wholesome Organic Raw Unfiltered Honey, sounds like a good one.
I also love honey, I call it the cure all food product, I use for all kinds of foods, beverages and as a medical source for “OUCH” cuts, burns, acid reflux, heart burn, sore throat, etc, etc. a big THUMBS UP to our Honey Bee’s.
Great reading, I have a few hives & sell to the locals. Run it through a filter & bottle it in glass. I actually restrict how many jars each person can buy so it gets to more people. I do not understand why honey has to be processed. Honey comb is the best way to eat it, I just spread it on, wax & all. I am moving towards natural bee-keeping, this makes the honey even more special.
I’m in Newcastle, NSW, Australia.