Melt point, and whether your candles will survive a hot car or delivery truck

They can. Container waxes are made to melt low: Golden Brands GW 464 lists a melt point of 113 to 119°F and CandleScience SimplySoy 122 to 128°F, so a jar candle left in a hot car or a sun-baked truck can soften, slump, sweat oil or even melt out of the jar on its side. A candle in a jar usually survives softening and sets again, but its top may need refinishing and a high fragrance load is the first thing to suffer. This page explains melt point, congeal point and drop point, why container and pillar waxes differ, the named figures, and how to test your own candle for heat before you ship it.

Three temperatures on a wax sheet

Wax does not turn from solid to liquid at one exact temperature the way ice does. Data sheets therefore report one or more of these, measured by standard laboratory methods:

Melt point. The temperature at which the wax becomes liquid as it is heated. Many sheets give it as a range. This is the number most suppliers print, and the one this page compares.

Congeal point, or solidification point. The temperature at which melted wax, cooled under set conditions, stops flowing and sets. It sits a little below the melt point. Paraffin sellers often name a grade by it: DistrEbution sells a "56 to 58°C solidification point" paraffin whose melting point on the same sheet is 58 to 60°C [1].

Drop point. The temperature at which a heated sample softens enough to fall as a drop from a small cup with a hole in its base. The "Mettler drop point" is one instrument's version of this test. Voyageur lists a Mettler drop point of 113.0 to 118.0 for GW 464, without stating the unit; it matches the Fahrenheit melt point on the same page [2].

For heat tolerance, the low end of the melt range matters most. Softening starts there, well before the wax is fully liquid, and some blends have no sharp melt point at all. CandleScience says its coconut apricot wax has "a longer softening range" than most vegetable blends and lacks the sharp melting point of pure soy waxes [3].

Container wax and pillar wax are made differently on purpose

A container wax only has to stay solid at room temperature and cling to the glass, so it is formulated to melt low and set soft. A pillar wax has to hold its shape while the top inch of the candle is melting, so it melts higher and sets harder. The soy wax patents show the difference clearly:

• A container soy wax: melting point "generally about 50 to 55" °C (122 to 131°F) when used in a container candle, iodine value about 45 to 65, formulated "to promote surface adhesion" to the jar (US 6,797,020) [4].
• A pillar and votive soy wax from the same inventor and assignee: melting point about 60 to 66°C (140 to 151°F), iodine value 10 to 20, formulated "to inhibit surface adhesion to facilitate release of a candle from its mold" (US 6,773,469, Cargill, granted August 10, 2004) [5].

The additive maker NuCera draws its own line for paraffin at 58°C (136°F): its harder polymers are recommended for paraffins melting at or above 58°C, used in pillars, tapers and votives, and a different polymer for paraffins melting below 58°C, used in container, votive and tart candles [6].

So a container wax is the wrong material for a mold, and a pillar wax formulated to release from a mold will tend to let go of a jar's glass. Pillar making is covered on how to make a pillar candle.

Named melt points, side by side

Each figure is that source's figure for that product or material. Celsius conversions are rounded to the nearest degree.

The spread between the softest container wax here and beeswax is about 30°F. A summer delivery that a beeswax pillar shrugs off can soften a GW 464 candle.

What heat does to a finished candle

When a container candle gets hot enough to soften:

• The top deforms. If the jar is upright, the wax may slump and set again with a sunken or rippled top.
• Fragrance oil can come out. Oil that the wax was holding can rise to the surface or pool, which makers call sweating. Causes and fixes are on oil on top of the candle.
• Wax can leave the jar. In CandleScience's oven test, some candles at 15 percent fragrance load melted out of their containers when laid on their sides at 113°F for 24 hours [3].
• The wick can shift. A wick in softened wax can lean or drift off center, which affects the burn.

Pillars, tapers and other freestanding candles can bend or lean in heat. FAO notes that beeswax candles stay straight at higher ambient temperatures than most paraffin candles because beeswax melts higher [8].

How to test your candle for heat

No standard heat test for shipping candles was found in the sources read; Kohl's retailer protocol 100-Z, for example, tests candles while burning but includes no storage or transit heat test [9]. CandleScience's oven test on its coconut apricot wax is a clear, published model you can copy [3]:

1. Make test candles of the exact product. Same wax, fragrance, load, dye, wick and jar. Cure them as your wax's sheet says.
2. Choose a test temperature and write it down. CandleScience used 113°F (45°C) for 24 hours. That is at the bottom of GW 464's melt range and below SimplySoy's, which makes it a demanding test for a container wax. You may choose a different temperature; record why.
3. Lay some candles on their sides. CandleScience tested candles on their sides, the worst case for a box tipped in transit. Test some upright as well if your shipping cartons keep candles upright.
4. Hold them at temperature for the full time, using an oven with a reliable thermometer inside, not the dial setting. Do not leave an oven unattended with candles in it, and never test with the wick lit.
5. Let them cool at room temperature and inspect. Check for wax outside the jar, oil on the surface, a moved wick and a changed top. Smell them; CandleScience reported whether fragrance was retained.
6. Compare loads. CandleScience's result is the useful pattern: up to 13 percent kept its shape, some 15 percent candles did not. If your high-load candles fail and lower loads pass, that tells you the load to use for summer shipping.
7. Burn one survivor to the end to check the wick still performs.

CandleScience's own advice from its results is to be aware that higher loads may melt in hot shipping weather and to store candles upright [3].

Choosing a wax for heat

If you ship in summer or sell at outdoor markets, you have three levers, each with a cost:

• A higher-melting container wax. CandleScience markets SimplySoy's higher melt point as suited to shipping in high temperatures and outdoor markets [7]. Any wax change needs a new wick test.
• A lower fragrance load in summer. Based on a test like the one above.
• Packing and timing. Keeping cartons upright follows CandleScience's advice above; the rest belongs to shipping candles without breakage or melting, which also covers carrier rules.

Store supplies and finished stock away from heat as well. GW 464's instructions ask for a cool, dry place away from direct heat and sunlight because of its low melt point [2]; storage is covered on storing wax, fragrance and finished candles.

Shipping is the next decision

Once you know what temperature your candle survives, plan the route it takes to the customer. Packing, carrier rules for finished candles and seasonal timing are on shipping candles without breakage or melting. If heat testing pushes you toward a different wax, compare the options on choosing a candle wax.

References

1. DistrEbution GmbH, Product specification: Paraffin wax, fully refined, 56 to 58°C solidification point (article D10022), version 1.0 EN, April 28, 2026. https://www.distrebution.com/media/pdf/51/59/63/D10132_Paraffin5658_Spezi_ENnDzjDrLHoeX56.pdf
2. Voyageur Soap & Candle, Golden Brands GW 464 Soy Container Candle Wax (product page with manufacturer's instructions), undated, read October 22, 2026. https://www.voyageursoapandcandle.com/Golden_Brands_464_Soy_Wax_p/20264.htm
3. CandleScience, Lab Notes: CandleScience Coconut Apricot Wax, undated (images dated April 2024), read October 22, 2026. https://candlescience.com/lab-notes-candlescience-coconut-apricot-wax
4. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Patent 6,797,020, Triacylglycerol based wax for use in container candles (inventor Timothy A. Murphy), issued September 28, 2004, full text (claims and description), read October 22, 2026. https://image-ppubs.uspto.gov/dirsearch-public/print/downloadPdf/6797020
5. Google Patents, US6773469B2, Triacylglycerol based wax for use in candles (inventor Timothy A. Murphy; assignee Cargill, Inc.), granted August 10, 2004. https://patents.google.com/patent/US6773469
6. NuCera Solutions, VYBAR Polymers for the Candle Industry (brochure, version 12142021v1, copyright 2022). https://chasecorp.com/nucerasolutions/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2023/05/NuCera_VYBAR_Candle_Brochure_v4-2.pdf
7. CandleScience, CandleScience SimplySoy Artisan Wax (product page), read October 22, 2026. https://www.candlescience.com/wax/candlescience-simplysoy-artisan-wax
8. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Value-added products from beekeeping, chapter 4: Wax, undated, read October 22, 2026. https://www.fao.org/4/W0076e/w0076e12.htm
9. Kohl's, Test Protocol 100-Z: Candle (including freestanding, taper, tealight, votive, filled and novelty candles), revised February 2025, read October 22, 2026. https://link.kohls.com/content/dam/klink/100-Z-CANDLE.pdf