Constituent · Oxygenated monoterpene
thymol
A warm, medicinal phenol that defines thyme; like carvacrol, a strong irritant used well diluted.
Essential oils richest in thymol
Measured relative composition (GC peak-area %) pooled across published GC-MS samples — median, typical range (middle 50%) and the maximum seen.
| Oil | Median | Typical range | Max | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thyme | 38.07% | 3.14%–49.8% | 84.01% | 84 |
| Mountain savory | 16.18% | 8.42%–19.44% | 56.47% | 44 |
| Lemongrass | 14.02% | 9.67%–18.36% | 22.71% | 2 |
| Palmarosa | 5.94% | 5.94%–5.94% | 5.94% | 1 |
| Oregano | 4.53% | 2.37%–27.18% | 54.21% | 25 |
| Lemon eucalyptus | 2.16% | 2.16%–2.16% | 2.16% | 1 |
| Cumin | 0.92% | 0.92%–0.92% | 0.92% | 1 |
| Wormwood | 0.9% | 0.9%–0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| Sage | 0.67% | 0.39%–2.99% | 5.31% | 3 |
| Spearmint | 0.65% | 0.53%–0.78% | 0.9% | 2 |
| Anise | 0.58% | 0.58%–0.58% | 0.58% | 1 |
| Marjoram | 0.55% | 0.43%–2.31% | 24.6% | 12 |
| Lavender | 0.54% | 0.39%–0.68% | 0.82% | 2 |
| Melissa | 0.4% | 0.23%–0.66% | 9.52% | 7 |
| Cardamom | 0.3% | 0.2%–0.85% | 1.4% | 3 |
| Helichrysum | 0.29% | 0.29%–0.29% | 0.29% | 1 |
| Dill | 0.27% | 0.18%–0.3% | 1.43% | 5 |
| Yarrow | 0.27% | 0.18%–0.62% | 1.5% | 4 |
| Tangerine | 0.22% | 0.05%–4.56% | 10.98% | 10 |
| Basil | 0.2% | 0.13%–0.4% | 0.6% | 3 |
Oils in our library are linked above — open any profile for its full composition, safety panel and the research behind it.
Related constituents
Other oxygenated monoterpene compounds across the oils.
Figures are GC peak-area percentages pooled across published GC-MS samples, not concentrations, and describe chemistry — not health effects. How this is built →