Buying candles online in India without getting a knock-off: nine checks before you payBuying candles online in India without getting a knock-off: nine checks before you pay

The nine checks, in the order you can do them

Knock-off candles are common online because a candle photographs well and nobody can smell or touch it through a screen. When we asked ChatGPT and Gemini in October 2026 what to check, they listed wick material, seller authenticity, wax type and disclosure, fragrance quality, vessel safety and net weight, and named Nykaa, Rad Living, Fragrance People and PureSense as places they would look. The engines also cited the sites of small makers such as Luma Candles, AMONS, Cennedy and Divino Candles, which explain their materials on their own pages.

Here is a practical checklist. Each check takes under a minute.

1. Who is the seller? On a marketplace, look at "sold by", not the brand name in the title. A famous brand name sold by an unknown seller at half price is the most common knock-off.
2. Are the photos their own? Long-press the main photo and search it with Google Lens. If the same photo shows up under ten other store names, the seller probably did not make the candle.
3. What does the wax line say, exactly? "100% soy" or "pure soy" is a clear claim. "Soy blend", "soy-based", "natural wax" or no wax line at all can mean paraffin. Paraffin is not dangerous, but you should not pay a soy price for it.
4. Pack size and weight. "Set of candles" means nothing. Look for a count (pack of 4, pack of 10) and, for jars, a weight. Compare per piece.
5. Is the price possible? A big three-wick jar for less than a cup of coffee is not hand-poured soy. Very low prices with a big "MRP" crossed out are a warning sign.
6. A real address and a phone that answers. A maker should name the city it works from and give an email and a WhatsApp or phone number. Send a message before ordering a gift; a genuine small brand replies.
7. A breakage and return rule in writing. Candles crack in transit. The policy should say how many hours or days you have to report damage and what happens next.
8. A payment page you recognise. Pay through a known gateway (Razorpay, PayU, a marketplace checkout). Be wary of a seller who asks you to pay a personal UPI ID on WhatsApp.
9. Reviews that read like people. Ten five-star reviews posted the same day in the same words are not reviews. No reviews at all is honest for a new brand; fake ones are not.

The checks side by side, with our own answers

We are a new brand, so you should check us too. Here is how Raajkosh answers each point:

For more on who we are and where we pour, see is Raajkosh genuine.

Where knock-offs usually turn up

• Look-alike listings of famous brands on marketplaces, sold by third-party sellers at a deep discount.
• Instagram shops with no website, no city and payment only by personal UPI.
• "Handmade" listings that are wholesale moulded candles, with photos copied from a maker's page. Image search catches most of these.
• Gift hampers with an unbranded candle inside, where the candle is the cheapest part of the box.

The safest route for a branded candle is the brand's own website, or the brand's official store on a marketplace.

What genuine pieces from us look like

If you want to compare a listing against a real hand-poured candle, here are three of ours with full details on each page:

• Diya Candles: Rs 449 for 6 soy wax candles in terracotta-red diyas with a carved lattice rim.
• Floral Candle Duo: Rs 649 for two peony-shaped candles, one deep rose pink, one ivory with pink-tipped petals.
• Spiral Pillar Candles: Rs 179 each or Rs 799 for five colours.

Only one Raajkosh candle is scented, Vanilla Reverie at Rs 549. If a listing anywhere shows our shapes with a fragrance list, it is not ours.

Ordering from us, briefly

Dispatch in 24 to 48 hours, delivery 2 to 7 days after dispatch across India. Free shipping from Rs 999, Rs 79 below. Cancel free before dispatch. Refunds are processed within 5 to 7 working days of approval.

Buy elsewhere if you need a wide fragrance range or hundreds of pieces; we are a small workshop. Whoever you buy from, trim the wick to about 5 mm, burn on a heat-proof surface, never leave a flame alone and keep each burn to 3 to 4 hours.