The Best Coconut Extract You Can Buy

Chances are good that, if you’ve ever tried to make a dessert with strong coconut flavors, you’ve encountered coconut extract. It’s a great shortcut to get that strong coconut flavor permeating a dish…without having to crack open the coconut yourself.

Plus – and this matters if you’re trying to really control your texture and don’t want dessicated coconut throughout your pie – coconut extract is totally smooth and adds no additional texture at all. So you get the pure flavor with no other complications.

If you get the good stuff.

Which is why it’s so important to get a great-quality coconut extract. We’ll talk about that in a second, but first…

What is coconut extract?

Coconut extract is the essence of coconut flavor, distilled and suspended in alcohol. You can make your own coconut extract by taking shredded coconut meat, combining it with vodka in a jar, letting it sit for 5-7 days, and then straining out the coconut. This leaves you with the flavor, captured in the alcohol.

Or you can just buy it – which is way faster and will do in a pinch. While making your own coconut extract at home will save you a few dollars, I haven’t found a huge quality difference between the homemade and store-bought varieties, so it really comes down to how urgently you need the coconut extract and how much you’re willing to spend. (To be clear, a good-quality bottle of coconut extract will run you $4-$5. We’re not talking about anything that’ll break the bank here.)

How to use coconut extract in your baking and cooking

The key with coconut extract is that a little goes a long way. You’ll be amazed at how much concentrated flavor you get with just a half teaspoon of coconut extract – it may not seem like a lot, but it adds a TON of flavor.

My recommendation: Always measure exactly. This isn’t the kind of thing where you can eyeball it and it won’t make a big difference. Because the flavors are SO concentrated, you can’t afford to be off by even 1/8 of a teaspoon at the risk of totally overwhelming the other flavors, especially with something as potent as coconut extract.

With that in mind, let’s talk flavor combinations. Because coconut extract gives you that creamy / nuttiness that we all crave…it pairs well with citrus, chocolate, curry powder, tropical fruits, and cinnamon. I like adding a tiny dash (like, 1/4 teaspoon level) to my favorite coconut chicken curry to amp up the coconut taste a little further.

How to choose the best coconut extract

Here are the exact criteria I used to rank the top coconut extract brands, ensuring you get nothing but the best:

1. Ingredients: When it comes to ingredients, we want the good stuff – alcohol, water, coconut. Strong preference for organic. No additives or artificial flavors here. While I generally don’t like sweeteners added to my extracts – I can do that myself in my baking – I DID include one extract that contains a little agave syrup. Of course, because we believe in total ingredient transparency, you can see all of them below.
2. Consumer feedback: On top of my own taste tests, I paid close attention to what other amateur bakers had to say. Their honest opinions helped me curate this list of top coconut extracts.
3. Track record: I looked into the brands’ track records to ensure they consistently delivered high-quality products over the years.
4. Price: Great coconut extract doesn’t have to break the bank. So, I made sure to include options that won’t burn a hole in your wallet.

(You can, of course, reverse-engineer all this work yourself, if you’d like!)

Here’s what I came up with:

#1 Best Overall: Watkins Coconut Extract

Watkins’ coconut extract has a fantastic pedigree – long-tenured experience (Watkins has been around since 1868), deep expertise in extracts (they got started in vanilla), and a great brand reputation. Generally Watkins is one of the first brands I turn to for any of my baking needs, and they consistently deliver. Their coconut extract is well-liked among amateur cooks and bakers for its refreshing coconutty flavor, it has no GMOs, and it’s one of the least expensive of the high-quality coconut extracts I reviewed as well. Great quality, great price, what’s not to love?

Ingredients: Water, alcohol, glycerin, natural flavors, extractive of coconut

#2 Trusted Brand: McCormick

Open up your pantry or spice shelf, and chances are good you’ll see lots of McCormick products there. They’ve built a strong reputation across spices, rubs, extracts, and flavors – and with good reason. Go to any grocery store, and you’ll see McCormick. They’re ubiquitous and popular for a reason – they deliver a good-quality product that gets the job done. McCormick’s coconut extract is a little more expensive than Watkins and almost twice as pricey as best value OliveNation (right below), but it’s well-liked by bakers nonetheless. Can’t go wrong here.

Ingredients: Alcohol, water, natural flavor, & extractives of coconut

#3 Best Value: OliveNation

OliveNation isn’t a brand I’ve used much in my personal baking, but it’s well-liked in my circle, and it’s not hard to see why. You’re getting a premium product for easily the cheapest price of any of the coconut extracts I reviewed. It runs about $1.24 per fluid ounce, whereas if you want to pay up for organic (Flavorganics, right below) – you’ll pay more than four times as much.

For the quality of product you’re getting, the price can’t be beat!

Ingredients: Alcohol, water, glycerin, and natural coconut flavors

#4 Best Organic: Flavorganics

When I was researching, I was surprised by how few certified USDA organic coconut extracts there are. Fortunately, Flavorganics delivered (as it always does), and it’s a lovely, concentrated coconut flavor that’s perfect for baking. Because the major brands in this space (Watkins, McCormick, OliveNation) didn’t go organic, there’s a substantial price point difference – you’ll pay up for the organic label. But I think that, once you try this extract, you’ll be glad you did. Worth noting – this extract is also sweetened with agave syrup.

Ingredients: Water, organic alcohol, organic agave syrup, organic coconut milk

#5 Best in Bulk: Goodman’s

The first thing you should know about Goodman’s coconut extract is that it comes in a big bottle – 16 fluid ounces, to be exact – so I’d recommend buying it only if you’re planning to make a LOT of stuff with coconut extract. (Like hosting a party with coconut cocktails.) For all that it’ll clutter up your shelf, though, it’s a good product at a reasonable price – and it’s GMO-free and kosher, too!

Ingredients: Water, glycerine, alcohol, natural flavors with extractives of coconut

#6 Premium Price, Premium Taste: Vanilla Bean Kings

As you can tell by the name, vanilla bean kings specializes in…vanilla.

But like Watkins and McCormick – they built expertise in one flavor…and then built out from there. Vanilla Bean Kings’ coconut extract is pricey (in fact, the only coconut extract I reviewed that’s more expensive is Flavorganics’ – and that’s because it’s organic!), but you’re getting a great-tasting product for the extra dollars. If you’re fine with spending a little extra, I think you’ll really enjoy this one.

Ingredients: Alcohol, water, glycerin, and natural coconut flavors

#7 Best Kosher: Happy Home

Happy Home’s delicious coconut extract is great – it delivers the goods on flavor with no frills or extra mess. And it’s a reasonable price – about $2.50 per fluid ounce, which is more than Watkins or OliveNation (the best value) but still only half the cost of, say, Flavorganics’ premium offering. But Happy Home also has an added benefit: It’s Certified Kosher!

Ingredients: Natural flavors, water, propylene glycol