CBD Guides

CBD labels explained: how to read strength, servings and THC

By the Honest CBD Co team · 29th September 2026

A CBD label tells you nearly everything you need, once you know where to look. The two numbers that matter most are the total CBD in the container and the amount per serving: a 10% oil in a 10ml bottle holds 1,000mg of CBD, which works out at roughly 5mg per drop. This guide walks through every part of a UK label, from strength maths to THC statements and ingredients, so the next bottle you pick up makes sense at a glance.

TL;DR:

Convert percentages to milligrams before comparing products: 10% in a 10ml bottle is 1,000mg in total, about 5mg per drop; 20% is 2,000mg, about 10mg per drop.

A trustworthy label states the total CBD, the CBD per serving and a full ingredients list with allergens flagged.

Divide the price by the total mg to get a price per mg. It is the fairest way to compare two products, whatever the bottle size.

“THC-free” should mean none detectable; full spectrum products carry legal trace THC, and UK law caps THC at 1mg per container.

Buy from a real, contactable business. Vague potency claims, missing contact details and medicinal promises are all reasons to look elsewhere.

Honest CBD Co

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Honest CBD Co makes full spectrum CBD in small batches in Bolton, trading since 2018, with clear labels, honest per-mg prices and an Excellent rating on Trustpilot.

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What each part of a CBD label actually tells you
Working out your dose from the numbers on the bottle
What isolate, broad spectrum and full spectrum actually mean
Reading THC statements without getting caught out
Ingredients, allergens and the quality signals worth trusting
What a certificate of analysis actually shows
What the FSA’s novel food rules mean for the claims you read
Turning label warnings into everyday habits
A quick word for pet owners
Warning signs worth a second look
Your pre-purchase checklist
Why we treat labelling as non-negotiable
Where to find clearly labelled CBD
Sources
FAQ

What each part of a CBD label actually tells you

Every proper label starts with product identity and net quantity: what the product is (oil, capsule, paste) and how much is in the bottle or pack. Without this, you can’t work out your dose at all.

From there, you’re looking at two separate numbers: total CBD content in the container and CBD per serving. A 10ml bottle of 10% oil states “1,000mg CBD” as the total, and a good label or product page also tells you what that means per drop or per 1ml dropper, so you know what a single serving actually gives you.

The other detail worth a proper look is the batch or lot number, usually printed near the expiry date. This links your bottle to a specific manufacturing run, so the maker can answer questions about exactly what you bought.

Product identity and net quantity: confirms what you’re buying and how much is in the pack.
Total CBD vs CBD per serving: total is the whole container, per serving is what one dose actually gives you.
Batch number: your reference point if you ever need to ask the maker about your exact bottle.

Manufacturer contact details should sit somewhere on the label too. A business that stands behind its products puts its name where you can find it; if there’s no way to contact whoever made it, look elsewhere.

Working out your dose from the numbers on the bottle

Percentage strength and mg totals can look confusing side by side, so it helps to convert everything into mg per drop before you decide anything. The maths is simple for a 10ml bottle: the percentage times 100 gives you the total mg, and a drop is roughly 0.05ml, so the bottle holds about 200 drops.

10ml bottle at 5% CBD: 500mg in total, about 2.5mg per drop.
10ml bottle at 10% CBD: 1,000mg in total, about 5mg per drop. This is the strength of our standard Full Spectrum CBD Oil.
10ml bottle at 20% CBD: 2,000mg in total, about 10mg per drop, so you need half the drops for the same amount.

Capsules are simpler again: they state mg per capsule, so there’s no conversion to do. Ours come in 40mg, 80mg and 120mg strengths, and you just multiply by however many you take. If you use more than one CBD product in a day, add the mg figures together so you know your true daily total.

The FSA advises healthy adults to keep to about 10mg of CBD a day. In our view that figure is precautionary rather than a practical ceiling: the FSA’s own advice was 70mg a day until autumn 2023, clinical research uses doses in the hundreds of milligrams, and many regular users settle somewhere between 25mg and 100mg or more a day. A sensible pattern is to start at 10-20mg, give it a fair trial of a couple of weeks, and build up gradually until you find your level. With capsules, 40mg is the usual starting point, 80mg suits regular users and 120mg is for experienced users who know what works for them. If you take prescription medication, or you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, have a word with your GP or pharmacist first.

What isolate, broad spectrum and full spectrum actually mean

These terms describe what’s left in the extract after processing. Isolate is pure CBD with everything else, including other cannabinoids and plant compounds, removed. Broad spectrum keeps other cannabinoids and terpenes but has THC removed or reduced to non-detectable levels. Full spectrum retains the fuller range of cannabinoids and terpenes, including legal trace THC.

The spectrum type is a fact you can pin down, which is more than can be said for phrases like “natural” or “plant-powered”. Those sound reassuring but tell you nothing concrete. The spectrum type, the strength and the ingredients list are what actually confirm the contents. Our own Full Spectrum CBD Oil and flavourless Pure CBD Isolate Oil sit at either end of that range, and every product page states the strength in both % and mg.

Reading THC statements without getting caught out

“THC-free” on a label should mean the THC result reads as none detectable, not simply that THC wasn’t tested for. “Trace THC” means a small, legally permitted amount was found: UK law works to a limit of 1mg of THC per container for finished products, so a legal full spectrum product contains a very small amount indeed.

This distinction has real consequences. Trace THC, even at legal levels, can in rare cases show up in workplace drug testing, and carrying a product with unclear THC content across borders can create legal complications. If either applies to you, a THC-free isolate product is the simpler choice.

If a label uses vague wording like “minimal THC” without a clear statement, treat that as a gap rather than a reassurance. A maker confident in its product says plainly whether it’s THC-free or contains legal trace amounts.

Ingredients, allergens and the quality signals worth trusting

Ingredients should be listed in descending order by weight, same as any food product, with allergens such as tree nuts, soya or gluten-containing grains clearly flagged if they’re present in carrier oils or capsule shells.

Carrier oils deserve a closer look than they usually get. Some CBD oils use hemp seed oil, others use coconut-derived MCT oil, and the difference matters if you’re avoiding coconut. Our Full Spectrum CBD Oil uses organic hemp seed oil, our Pure CBD Isolate Oil uses coconut-derived C8 MCT oil, and our CBD Body Salve lists shea butter, coconut oil and beeswax with lavender and ylang ylang essential oils, so anyone avoiding coconut, animal products or particular essential oils can see it at a glance.

Beyond the ingredient list, a few markers separate a credible label from a vague one:

A clear mg figure for the whole container and per serving, not just a percentage. Label accuracy is a genuine problem in this market: our look at full panel CBD testing covers a UK study where only 49 of 100 products matched their labels.
A full ingredients list with allergens flagged, including the carrier oil.
A named business with real contact details, someone you could actually reach with a question.

Vague phrases like “premium quality” or “high strength” with no mg figure sound reassuring but carry no verifiable information. Numbers you can check beat adjectives every time.

Pro Tip: Divide the price by the total mg of CBD to get a price per mg. It’s the quickest way to compare two products fairly, whatever the bottle size or strength. Our 10% oil, for example, is £25.99 for 1,000mg, which works out at about 2.6p per mg.

What a certificate of analysis actually shows

A certificate of analysis, or COA, is a lab report on a CBD extract or product. When you’re handed one, here’s what you’re looking at:

The cannabinoid panel: how much CBD was measured, and which other cannabinoids appear. This is where the spectrum type shows up in practice.
The THC result: a figure, or “none detected”, rather than a vague phrase.
Contaminant testing, where included: solvents, heavy metals, pesticides and microbial results.

Our own CBD is lab-tested at source, and we’re happy to share the certificates of analysis with anyone who’d like to see them. For more on the tricks less honest sellers use, see our guide to spotting fake CBD oil in the UK.

What the FSA’s novel food rules mean for the claims you read

The FSA’s novel food guidance sets out that CBD products sold as food supplements need to go through a novel food application process, and recommends labels carry the FSA’s daily guidance figure alongside age and pregnancy warnings.

Separately, the ASA’s advertising rules prohibit medicinal claims on unlicensed CBD products, and there are currently no authorised health claims for CBD on the GB register. If a label or advert claims to “treat”, “cure” or “relieve” a medical condition, that’s a claim the product almost certainly isn’t licensed to make.

You can also check the FSA’s product list to see whether a product line is linked to a validated or progressing novel food application, which gives a useful baseline before you buy.

Turning label warnings into everyday habits

Labels should flag that CBD isn’t suitable for anyone under 18, during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or for those trying to conceive, and should advise checking with a healthcare professional if you’re on prescription medicines or immunosuppressed.

Store products as instructed, usually somewhere cool and dark, since heat and light degrade potency over time. It’s also worth keeping a short note of anything you notice when you start, particularly if you’re taking other medication.

A quick word for pet owners

There’s no difference between pet CBD and human CBD. It’s the same cannabidiol, usually sold weaker and dearer per mg under a pet label, and plenty of our customers use our range with their animals. The label details that matter most for animals are the ones people skip: the carrier oil, which matters for cats in particular, and the THC content, since animals are more sensitive to THC than we are.

Veterinary products and claims are overseen by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, and we don’t put animal doses in writing. For anything beyond reading the label, your vet is the right person to ask about your own animal.

Warning signs worth a second look

A handful of label issues should make you pause before buying:

Vague potency claims like “high strength” with no mg figure anywhere.
Medicinal language such as “treats anxiety” or “cures pain”.
No manufacturer contact details anywhere on the pack.
Unclear allergen information on flavoured or capsule products.
A price per mg that looks too good to be true, which usually means there’s less CBD in the bottle than the label suggests.

None of these is worth arguing with; just look elsewhere. And if a label looks unlawful, both the ASA and FSA accept reports from the public.

Your pre-purchase checklist

Before you buy or use a new product, run through this quickly:

Check the CBD mg figure is stated plainly, both the container total and per serving.
Work out the price per mg (price divided by total mg) and compare it across products.
Check the FSA’s novel food list for the product line.
Confirm there’s a real, contactable business behind the label.
Read the ingredients list, check the allergens, and make sure any THC statement fits the UK’s 1mg per container rule.

If a label can’t manage those basics, look elsewhere. Plenty of makers get all five right.

Why we treat labelling as non-negotiable

We started Honest CBD Co because too many labels in this market said little and proved even less. We’re a husband-and-wife team in Bolton, trading since 2018, and we make our own products in the UK in small batches. That approach has earned us an Excellent rating on Trustpilot across more than 700 reviews. Every product states its strength plainly in % and mg, our prices work out fairly per mg, and our strength conversion guide shows exactly how the numbers on any bottle translate into a daily amount. The clue is in the name: honest labelling is the whole point.

Where to find clearly labelled CBD

Everything we make is produced in the UK in small batches, with the strength stated plainly and the price honest per mg:

Full Spectrum CBD Oil: 10ml bottles, 10% (1,000mg) £25.99 or 20% (2,000mg) £37.99.
Pure CBD Isolate Oil: flavourless and THC-free, 10% (1,000mg) £14.99 or 20% (2,000mg) £19.99.
Full Spectrum CBD Capsules: 40mg, 80mg or 120mg per capsule, 15-packs from £19.99.

If a label has ever left you guessing, our product pages are built so it doesn’t have to.

Sources

For the regulatory detail behind this guide, the FSA’s novel food board recommendations set out the daily guidance, the FSA’s business guidance covers labelling recommendations, and the ASA’s CBD advertising advice explains the restrictions on medicinal claims.

This article is general information, not a substitute for advice from a qualified doctor. Consult a qualified healthcare professional about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.

FAQ

How to tell if CBD is high quality?

Look for a clear mg figure for the container and per serving, a full ingredients list with allergens flagged, a named business with real contact details, and a price that makes sense per mg. A maker with a genuine track record, years of trading and consistent reviews, tells you more than any marketing phrase on the pack.

What are the three different types of CBD?

The three types are isolate (pure CBD only), broad spectrum (other cannabinoids and terpenes with THC removed) and full spectrum (the fuller range of cannabinoids, including legal trace THC). The type should be stated on the label, and it tells you what to expect from the THC statement.

What organ does CBD affect?

CBD is understood to interact broadly with the body’s endocannabinoid system rather than a single organ, and research into its effects is still developing. Anyone on medication or with an existing health condition should speak with a healthcare professional before using CBD products.

Is 20mg of CBD very much?

Not by real-world standards. It sits above the FSA’s precautionary daily figure covered earlier, but many regular users settle somewhere between 25mg and 100mg or more a day, and clinical research uses doses far higher again. With a 10% oil, 20mg is about four drops. If you take more than one CBD product, count the combined total so you know where you stand.