How to Tell If Honey Is Real: What Works and What Doesn't

Adulterated honey (honey cut with cheaper syrups) is a real problem in the global market. But most of the "home tests" you'll find online can't reliably spot it. Here's what works and what doesn't.

Popular home tests, and why they're unreliable

• The water test (real honey sinks, fake dissolves): all honey is denser than water and sinks at first, and syrups do too.
• The thumb test (real honey stays put): thickness varies by flower, temperature and water content, not authenticity.
• The flame test (real honey burns): results depend on moisture, not purity.
• The crystallization test: raw honey usually crystallizes over time, but some real honeys (like sage) stay liquid for a long time, and crystallization alone doesn't prove anything.

Detecting added syrups reliably takes laboratory testing, such as sugar isotope analysis or NMR profiling.

What actually helps

• Read the label. The only ingredient should be honey. Look for the country of origin and, for single-variety honey, the floral source.
• Know who produced it. Buy from beekeepers and brands that tell you where each honey comes from.
• Be wary of very low prices. Real single-variety honey costs more to produce than syrup.
• Taste the difference. Real single-variety honeys taste distinct from one another. Sage, orange blossom and buckwheat honey should be easy to tell apart.

Our honey

We're beekeepers. Every Topanga Quality honey is raw, unfiltered, organic and kosher, and we list each variety's origin on its product page. Compare them in our honey varieties guide.

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Do not feed honey to infants under 12 months old.