If you’re currently being followed around Instagram by your favorite influencer’s Pura review and discount code, same. After seeing ads for the Pura all over Instagram, I finally caved and purchased this nifty little home fragrance diffuser.
(In case you’re wondering, it was Julia Marcum from Chris Loves Julia who really did me in.)
I was sold on the Pura for a few reasons, aside from the fact that Julia Marcum was the one hawking it:
- I love the idea that I could set a schedule for the device from my phone
- I also loved that there were so many scent options from the candle brands I love
- I loved that it was non-toxic
- And, it wasn’t all that expensive, especially not when held up to my candle habit
I ended up buying the Pura 3, and have since bought the Pura 4 also. I put the Pura 3 in our Airbnb as a way to give it a subtle fragrance, and kept the Pura 4 for my home.
So, has the Pura lived up to my expectations? And is the Pura worth it? Here’s what I loved, what I didn’t and my overall verdict.
Pura Pros
The pros of the Pura are basically what I listed out above, plus a few other highlights.
Easy setup
For one, both the Pura 3 and Pura 4 were incredibly easy to set up. I took the device out of the box, downloaded the app (which you have to do to use it), popped in the fragrances and was using it in five minutes.
Two fragrances at once
Another pro, which I didn’t realize when I bought it the first time, is that there are two fragrance chambers in the Pura, so you can have two different scents at once, say if you wanted one for the morning to wake up to, and one in the evening for winding down and relaxing. Or, you could double up on your favorite fragrance so you simple have to change the cartridges less often.
Shop my favorite Pura scents:
Adjustable scent strength
One thing my husband appreciated was that you could adjust the fragrance strength to make it either super subtle or stronger. He prefers a more subtle fragrance, but I’ve found that I like to adjust each one depending on the scent, since some just seem to be naturally stronger than others.
A subtler scent setting also makes the scent cartridges last longer, which is nice.
Non-toxic scents
Since I have young kids and a dog, I’m cognizant of the items we use at home. I don’t want to fill my house with toxic fumes. I’ve been using candles made with soy or beeswax since I had my first son, for example, so I didn’t want to switch to something that was going to turn the air in my house into a fog of VOCs. So the good news is that Pura fragrances are made without chemicals like acetaldehyde, diclorobenzene, ethylhexanol, formaldehyde, GMOs, methyl pyrrolidone, parabens, phthalates, propylene glycol, and styrene.
Affordability on par with candles
When I first clicked on the Pura ad, I was surprised to see that it cost less than $50
I can use it at my Airbnb
This is kind of specific, but if you have an Airbnb or short-term rental, I like this device because I’ll turn on a low-fragrance setting for about an hour on the day of check-in so the house is subtly scented. I turn it off about an hour before arrival because I don’t want the smell to be overpowering or seem like it’s covering anything up, but just a little touch of something pine-y (our house is in Vermont) sets a nice mood, I think.
It’s also safer than leaving out candles for guests.
You can change the light color
The Pura device comes with a night light, and you can change the color, which I appreciate. Here is the blue color, but I generally leave it on a warm white.
Fragrance Brands I Love
One more thing I liked is that I had a place to start when choosing fragrances, because many of the scents are from popular candle brands like NEST, Studio McGee, Anthropologie and Apotheke. Since I’ve used candles from all of the above, I knew I’d be able to find fragrances I liked, and felt like I had an idea of what fragrances I wanted to try.
However, that point brings me too….
Pura Cons
I don’t love everything about the Pura device, so wanted to share my personal drawbacks to help you make your own purchasing decision.
The first con is that I didn’t love all of the fragrances I received in my first few orders, even though I bought a couple that I’d tried before in candle versions.
For example, I own the Studio McGee Vanilla Santal candle, which I love. So, I got the Studio McGee Vanilla Santal Pura. And I like it …. but I don’t love it like I love the candle.
I am [clearly] not a scientist, but I’m sure it has something to do with the medium from which the scents are being dispersed, and I just happen to prefer the candle.
The pro of this con is that, I was actually able to easily exchange the scents I didn’t like for new ones, so I was able to find ones that I did like.
I also felt that some of the scents I ordered smelled sort of “fake,” moreso that I find with candles or reed diffusers. Not all of them do, but some of them.
The workaround for this is to order one of the Pura scent sampler booklets, to find fragrances you like first.
Really, that’s my only con. I wish there was a Pura store I could visit to sniff all the things. I feel like it would sit right next to the Bath & Body Works and Yankee Candle in an early 2000s mall. But it doesn’t exist, so there’s some trial and error.
My Pura Verdict – Is Pura Worth It?
If I had to give Pura a star rating, I’d give it an 8/10. Overall, I think it’s a nice way to give your home a subtle background fragrance, and the price is affordable, so yes, the Pura is worth it.
It won’t replace candles for me, but instead it’s sort of like a compliment to them.
How does the Pura work?
Pura is controlled by the company’s app, so you’ll need to download it in order to work the thing. Once you download it, the app walks you through the simple setup instructions.
You’ll be asked to plus the device in and connect it to your wifi network.
Once it’s paired, you scan the QR code on the back of each fragrance (each Pura device holds two fragrance cartridges), which tells the device which scent you have in which chamber, so you can turn them on an off accordingly.
Then, you set a schedule for your fragrances directly in your app. You can also turn them up or down to be either strong or subtle.
And that’s about it. So very easy.
How long do Pura scents last?
How long a Pura scent lasts depends on the scent strength you choose, how many hours of the day you use it, and, in my experience, the actual fragrance itself. In general, I find mine last around a month when I use a low setting for about 4 hours a day.
The company claims they last about 120 hours each, which is pretty much exactly right in my experience.
