If you’ve been comparing argan oil vs coconut oil for skin, you’ve probably found plenty of generic advice telling you one is “better” than the other. The real answer is more useful: they do different jobs, suit different skin types, and, when you know what you’re doing, work brilliantly together in the same formula. This guide breaks down the practical differences, matches each oil to the right skin type, and gives you beginner-friendly blend ratios and recipes to get started.

What Makes These Two Carrier Oils So Different

These two oils feel completely different on skin, and that comes down to their fatty acid profiles.

Argan Oil: Lightweight, Dry-Touch, and Non-Comedogenic

Argan oil is rich in oleic and linoleic acids, which absorb quickly and leave a dry, non-greasy finish. Its comedogenic rating sits at 0, meaning it’s unlikely to block pores, which makes it a genuinely reliable choice for oily, sensitive, or acne-prone skin.

Argan’s dry-touch skin feel also makes it one of the go-to natural alternatives to silicones in skincare, giving formulas that smooth, non-tacky finish without synthetic ingredients.

Coconut Oil: Rich, Occlusive, and Deeply Moisturising

Coconut oil is dominated by lauric acid, a saturated fatty acid that sits on top of the skin rather than absorbing into it. That occlusive quality is a strength, it locks moisture in and creates a protective barrier. But coconut oil has a comedogenic rating of around 4 out of 5, making it a real risk for clogging pores on facial skin.

The takeaway is simple. Coconut oil isn’t bad, it’s just not a face-first oil for most people.

Best Carrier Oil for Your Skin Type: A Quick Matchup Guide

Matching your carrier oil to your skin type is the fastest way to get better results from your DIY formulas.

Argan Oil for Acne-Prone and Oily Skin

Argan oil for acne-prone skin is one of the most well-supported recommendations in natural formulation. Its low comedogenic rating means it won’t add to congestion, and its linoleic acid content helps regulate the skin’s lipid balance. Oily skin is often linoleic-deficient, which actually drives excess sebum production.

For mature skin, argan’s oleic acid content supports barrier function and softness without heaviness. It’s a strong everyday facial oil across a wide range of concerns.

Coconut Oil for Dry and Mature Skin

Coconut oil for dry skin works best where you need that occlusive lock, very dry body skin, cracked heels, rough elbows, or as part of a body butter. On the face, it’s generally better reserved for extremely dry or dehydrated skin types that aren’t prone to congestion.

For mature skin that is also dry, blending coconut with a lighter oil tends to work better than using coconut neat, you get the barrier protection without the heaviness.

Which Oil for Combination Skin

Combination skin is where the “just pick one” approach breaks down. Apply coconut oil all over and the oily zones will likely react. Argan alone works, but very dry patches may want something richer.

The answer is blending, and that’s one of the best practical reasons to understand both oils. A blend lets you tune the formula to your skin rather than forcing your skin to adapt to a single ingredient.

Oil Blending for Skincare: How to Use Both Oils Together

No single carrier oil does everything. The skill in natural formulation is knowing how to combine oils to hit the right skin feel, absorption rate, and skin-type target. Once you accept that, blending stops feeling complicated and starts feeling like a practical tool.

Starting Ratios for Face vs Body Blends

For a face serum: Lean heavily on argan. A classic beginner starting point is 70–80% argan oil as your primary carrier, with the remaining 20–30% made up of a lighter or more targeted oil. Jojoba oil as a complementary carrier works particularly well here, jojoba is technically a wax ester and adds skin-softening benefits without heaviness. Coconut oil rarely belongs in a facial serum targeting oily or combination skin.

For a body blend or body butter: Coconut oil earns its place as the base. A whipped body butter commonly uses 40–60% coconut oil blended with a softer butter like shea, with the remainder made up of lighter liquid oils. This delivers the deep occlusive moisture coconut does best, while the secondary oils improve spreadability and skin feel.

For combination or sensitive facial skin, you can introduce a small amount of fractionated coconut oil (up to 10–15%) into an argan-led serum. Fractionated coconut stays liquid, absorbs more readily than virgin coconut, and is significantly less comedogenic.

Simple DIY Recipes Using Argan and Coconut Oil

These are starting-point formulas, adjust percentages based on your skin’s response.

Lightweight Face Serum (Argan-Led)

This suits oily, combination, or acne-prone skin.

Argan oil: 70–75%
Jojoba oil: 20–25%
Rosehip oil: 5–10%
Vitamin E (tocopherol): 0.5–1% as an antioxidant

Mix in a clean amber dropper bottle. Apply 3–5 drops to clean skin morning or evening. Adding Vitamin E as a natural antioxidant also extends the shelf life of your blend by slowing oxidation, especially useful with rosehip, which turns rancid quickly.

Nourishing Body Butter Base (Coconut-Led)

This suits dry, rough, or very dehydrated body skin.

Coconut oil: 45–50%
Shea butter: 30–35%
Argan oil: 10–15%
Sweet almond or sunflower oil: 5–10%
Vitamin E: 0.5–1%

Melt coconut oil and shea butter together, stir in the liquid oils, add Vitamin E, then cool and whip to a fluffy texture. The argan brings a lighter finish to what would otherwise be a heavy butter, a small amount makes a noticeable difference to how it feels on skin.

Both oils, argan and fractionated coconut, are available through DIY Naturally, so South African makers can source everything for these blends locally without importing.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Using These Oils

Applying coconut oil neat to acne-prone or oily facial skin. This is the most common error beginners make. Coconut oil’s high comedogenic rating makes breakouts a real risk on congested skin. Save it for body formulas or use the fractionated version sparingly in face blends.

Using argan oil as the only moisturiser on very dry skin. Argan absorbs beautifully, but it’s not an occlusive, it won’t seal moisture in the way coconut or shea does. If your skin is genuinely very dry, an argan-only formula may leave it feeling temporarily better but not deeply nourished. Add a small amount of an occlusive ingredient, or layer a richer butter on top.

Neither mistake is serious, they’re just missed opportunities. Adjust your ratios, test on a small area, and let your skin tell you what works.

If you’re still finding your feet with carrier oil selection generally, a beginner’s guide to skincare formulation is a good place to build your broader knowledge before experimenting with more complex blends.

Your Carrier Oil Comparison Guide: Quick-Reference Summary for Argan oil vs Coconut oil

Property	Argan Oil	Coconut Oil
Fatty acid type	Oleic + linoleic (unsaturated)	Lauric acid (saturated)
Skin feel	Lightweight, dry-touch, fast absorbing	Rich, occlusive, slower absorbing
Comedogenic rating	0 (very low risk)	~4 (higher risk)
Best skin types	Oily, acne-prone, combination, mature	Very dry, body skin, hair
Best use	Face serums, lightweight facial oils	Body butters, hair masks, foot balms
Face serum ratio	70–80% primary carrier	Use sparingly or avoid on face
Body butter ratio	10–15% as a lighter addition	40–60% as base
Key benefit	Non-comedogenic, balancing, dry-touch finish	Deep occlusive moisture, protective barrier

Starting recommendation for beginners: If you’re new to oil blending and primarily making facial products, start with argan as your base and experiment from there. If you’re making body products, coconut oil is a reliable, affordable base. Once you’re comfortable with both, blending opens up a much wider range of formulas, including a how to make a natural face cream at home approach that uses these oils as part of a full emulsion.

There are also other carrier oils worth exploring once you’ve got argan and coconut dialled in, but for most beginners, mastering these two first covers a huge range of formulas and skin types.

Shop carrier oils at DIY Naturally to pick up both argan and fractionated coconut oil and start experimenting with your own blends.