The rise of the dab has been meteoric and as a new generation of consumers prefer concentrate to flower. It’s hard to say if technology enabled the culture or if culture enabled the technology, but dabs and devices go hand-in-hand—as much out of necessity as fashion.
What are dabs?
Dabs, also known as concentrates, are extractions of resin from the cannabis plant. Dabs are much more potent than flower, in the 60-90% THC range, whereas flower is in the 15-25% THC range. Dabs are mainly for cannabis connoisseurs, and may not be as suited to beginners.
Vape pens are different than the vaporizers in this list—they comprise of a battery and vape cartridge, full of cannabis distillate, which is an extraction that has been diluted. Vape pens are for all types of cannabis consumers, from beginners to connoisseurs.
How is vaporizing oil or concentrate different than flower?
Concentrates are much more potent than flower and a little goes a long way. A sliver of concentrate can equal a full bowl of flower, or more. They are also stickier and messier to work, and more expensive than flower.
How to choose the best vaporizer for oil or concentrate
Many factors play into choosing the best concentrate vaporizer. Some are made to stay at home, some are meant to be used on-the-go, and the size of the device usually corresponds to better heating quality and a longer battery life. Additionally, some oil vaporizers utilize water for smoother hits and some don’t.
The best vaporizers for dabs and wax
Whether you’re looking to replace a torch and nail, have a safer experience, or simply improve your consumption ritual, we’ve taken an extensive look at concentrate vaporizers to find the best extraction tech money can buy.
We’ve broken up our overview of devices into two sections—tabletop vaporizers and cordless/portable tech. All of these vaporizers are available in any state across the country, and note that prices may vary by retailer.
Tabletop oil vapes
On one side of the concentrate vaporizer spectrum is devices designed for ultimate portability and quick, convenient sessions. On the other, you’ve got your at-home marijuana consumption machines. These devices reinforce the ritual and tend to be better performers for flavor, control, and vapor quality.
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Best overall: The Switch by Dr. Dabber
Price: $319.95
Features at a glance: Satin finish, glass percolator, induction heating technology, 25 pre-set heating cycles for oil and herb, interchangeable induction cups (ceramic options for oil and leaf come stock; quartz and “smooth ceramic” add-ons available), pass-through charging, 150+ heating cycles per charge, self-cleaning feature, auto cool-down, programmable custom heat cycles.
What’s to love?
- Excellent flavor
- Water filtration
- Easy maintenance and operation
- Cordless battery operation
- User-friendly
What’s the catch?
- While the maintenance is easy, it’s required after each use
Single-button operation, 25 pre-set temps tailored to express both concentrates and herb, an easy-to-handle design, and cordless functionality earn the Switch by Dr. Dabber a perch in my TV room.
But this vaporization device has a lot more going for it than its usability. The fully integrated glass percolator enables contemporary standards of water filtration and cooling with durable borosilicate glass that can be removed for cleaning or replacement.
Personally, I’m most impressed with the Switch’s seamless design—effectively isolating the internals from any oil or water that might get somewhere where liquids shouldn’t. Interchangeable induction cups drop into a frosted glass chamber, creating a final layer of distance between any liquids and precious dabs that bring life to a fail-free user experience.
Given how perfect the Switch is for beginners, the price is a little prohibitive for the dab-curious—but if you’re comfortable spending $300-400 on a first device, the Switch will have you pulling vapor without much fuss.
Most popular: The Peak by Puffco
Price: $379.99
Features at a glance: Integrated water filtration, ceramic and glass air path, four temp settings, swappable ceramic bowl, replaceable heating element, 30 heating cycles per charge, 20-second heat-up time, temp sensor and auto-calibration, packaging doubles as carrying case.
What’s to love?
- Backpack-portable tabletop
- Sturdy build
- Excellent flavor
- Extreme ease of use
- Easy cleaning
- Third-party accessory makers offer customizations
What’s the catch?
- Pricey next to more powerful options
Few cannabis concentrate vaporizers have made waves like the tidal formations rising from Puffco’s Peak. Since its release, concentrate consumers have gathered to celebrate the achievement: an electronic dab rig that’s small enough to take with you and powerful enough to satisfy functionality benchmarks of tabletop vapor production and flavor preservation.
The combination of backpack portability and banger-replacing functionality earns the Peak its own island between continents of wax pens and tabletop-only rigs.
The Peak works much like a traditional dab rig: engage one of four heating cycles, wait for the haptic buzzes announcing peak temp, drop your extract into the ceramic bowl, and rip it up as usual.
As an unexpected bonus, Puffco offers several unique accessories: the packaging that the device ships in doubles as a carrying case, while Puffco has created several silicone attachments including a storage compartment for Q-Tips and dab tools that fits over the glass tube like a little backpack.
Speaking of bonus features, a strong community of third-party glassblowers now make artistic, heady-glass replacement tubes for the Peak.
Beyond strong community engagement and bespoke customization options, the Peak is a breeze to use and does exactly what it needs to. The combination of backpack portability and banger-replacing functionality earns the Peak its own island between continents of wax pens and tabletop-only rigs—an easy favorite for this reviewer and the community at large.
Most innovative: The Reflux by Indux Labs
Price: $1,249.99 – $1,449.99
Features at a glance: Vast ecosystem of swappable heating elements, wireless induction heating technology, silicone whip, industry-leading durability, high-value aluminum body, integrated water-pipe compatibility, on and off buttons, timer dial, overheat failsafe, auto-shutdown sensor.
What’s to love?
- Best-in-class flavor
- Highly detailed cloud control
- Heavy-duty construction
- Never before seen long-duration, low-temp dabs
- Easy maintenance and operation
- Made in the USA
What’s the catch?
- High price tag
- Learning curve
The Reflux by Texas-based manufacturer Indux Labs is the first major update to the extract experience since the dawn of the dab. Think flavor hits not for seconds, but for minutes upon minutes, and that’s what the Reflux enables.
Once dialed in, you will never want to run your extracts through any other rig.
Using an induction-based electromagnetic coil to wirelessly activate a system of interchangeable heating elements—metal pins of varying size, shape, and metallurgic composition—an unprecedented array of temperature ramps are made available in one place.
Yes, the Reflux can achieve banger-replacing hot-temp sessions with ease, but it’s the long-duration, low-temp extract expressions that justify the extraordinary price point.
Slow layer cakes of flavor are the Reflux’s crowning achievement. Also, this thing is built like an industrial power tool.
Visually inspired by executive-class component audio systems, the Reflux sits on a table with the form of a tube amp and the brushed aluminum finishings of a military-grade Apple product. “Indestructible” is the first word that comes to mind when attempting a description of the build quality.
Naturally, the price is substantial—starting at $1,249.99 for the brushed-aluminum version, and $1,449.99 for the anodized black finish, which comes with a hardshell carry case. Additionally, with nearly endless combinations of heating elements at your disposal, it’d be fair to expect a decent amount of trial and error to find your perfect cloud.
That said, once dialed in, you will never want to run your extracts through any other rig.
Beam by Mr. HotBox
Wireless, no-flame torch
Price: $369.99
Features at a glance: Wireless heating technology, single-button functionality, couples with an existing glass banger/bong/water pipe (not included), finished with steel and wood trim, go-anywhere international power conditioner.
What’s to love?
- Flameless, wireless torch
- Single-button, always-on functionality
- Zero cleanup
- Water filtration
- American made
What’s the catch?
- Manual heat control
- Similar experiences can be had for less money
The Beam is a flameless and wireless torch—created as an answer to cheap and sketchy butane devices.
For those seeking a torch option safer than iffy butane setups, the Beam pairs with your existing rig to bring it into the wireless era.
A thin piece of metal clips onto a glass banger, hugging the bottom and sides to do the work of a torch but without all the fire. To operate the device, simply hover the modified honey bucket over the Beam, wait until the metal glows orange, and then dab as usual.
Refining a technique to achieve your preferred hit can take some trial and error, and for that reason other devices are more beginner friendly—yet, the Beam’s operation should feel familiar to anyone who already owns a dab rig.
For those seeking a torch option safer than iffy butane setups, the Beam pairs with your existing rig to bring it into the wireless era.
Cordless & portable oil vapes
Once upon a time, say ten years ago, dabbing on-the-go meant packing up a glass rig, torch, and nail, as well as all the bits and pieces—the sticky stuff and the tools to parse servings.
Gone are the days of the sketchy dab backpack. Here in 2022, a sip of hash with an oil vaporizer on-the-go is diminutive, quick, and painless. The tech shift started with modifications to e-cig atomizers and batteries—just like those that compose ever-popular vape pen cartridge systems.
Nowadays, the market is overflowing with ways to get your dab up to temp wherever you might be. Here are our favorite cordless and portable oil and concentrate vape devices.
Easiest to use: Dipper by Dip Devices
Price: $115
Features at a glance: Interchangeable top-loading quartz and coil “vapor tip” atomizers for straw-style dab use, various finishes, add-on water pipe attachment.
What’s to love?
- Extreme ease of use
- Competitive flavor performance
- Innovative tool-free operation
- Beginner friendly
What’s the catch?
- High maintenance
- Limited but decent battery life
- Copycat devices are improving on the technology and slashing prices
If you find yourself avoiding concentrates because they’re messy and require an array of tools to properly handle, the Dipper just might make a dabber of you yet.
If you find yourself avoiding concentrates because they’re messy and require an array of tools to properly handle, the Dipper just might make a dabber of you yet.
No device delivers a quick hit of concentrate with less fuss than the Dipper, thanks to the first-of-its-kind and widely knocked-off vapor tip—an atomizer that Dip Devices designed to submerge directly into an extract container, negating the need for dab tools.
Just inhale on one end while running the atomizer over your oil. The overall effect is a consumption experience that can happen essentially anywhere—a rare thing, even with all the portables on the market today.
Also of interest to on-the-go consumers, the Dipper’s mouthpiece is removable and can be worn on either end of the device to double as a pocket protector—capping over the atomizer and any sticky residues you wouldn’t want getting all over your clothes, purse, or backpack.
When in this pocket-safe configuration, the Dipper can be used as a globe-style wax vape pen and includes an additional top-loading atomizer for that purpose.
The major complaint people seem to have about the Dipper is that the device can easily become clogged with wax or dab reclaim that has nowhere to go. This means regular maintenance and cleaning are required should you want to avoid by de-gooping the internal air path with a paperclip.
Best flavor: Blaze by Linx Vapor
Price: $135
Features at a glance: Four pre-set temps, single-button operation, swappable inlaid coil-less quartz and recessed ceramic plate atomizers, glass mouthpiece, magnetic mouthpiece cap, stainless steel exterior, diminutive carry case, 510-thread cartridge compatibility.
What’s to love?
- Better-than-average flavor performance
- Easy maintenance
- Simple operation
- Sleek design
- Medical-grade vapor path
What’s the catch?
- Pricier than many wax pens
In their infancy, the majority, if not all, wax pens, concentrate globes, and Dipper-style devices employed coil atomizers.
The experience is worlds ahead of an average wax pen—avoiding the hotspots common to coil atomizers to deliver an even heat and corresponding flavor clarity.
The issue with coil atomizers is that the concentrate making direct contact with the atomizer will vaporize, while the rest gets caked into cool spots. So you can accumulate a lot of buildup and an uneven expression of your dab.
The Blaze by Linx Vapor is a decided departure from the coil atomizer. It comes stock with two swappable heating elements: an inlaid coil-less quartz option called the Ace that’s built for durability and easy cleaning, as well as the Zero, which is outfitted with a ceramic plate for fast heat-up and larger clouds.
The experience is worlds ahead of an average wax pen—avoiding the hotspots common to coil atomizers to deliver an even heat and corresponding flavor clarity.
The Blaze is pocket-safe thanks to a magnetic steel cap that protects the glass mouthpiece. It ships with a padded hardshell carrying case for spare atomizers, dab tools, etc., which is a nice bit of realistic planning on the part of Linx. After all, the Blaze works best when you treat it like a dab rig—load, enjoy, swab clean, repeat—so it’s nice to have a case to make the ecosystem of necessary tools as portable as the device itself.
As an unadvertised bonus feature, the Blaze is equipped with a standard 510-thread battery, so it’s compatible with pre-filled oil cartridges—thinning out the number of devices you might otherwise need to carry.
Most affordable: Evolve Plus by Yocan
Price: $49.99
Features at a glance: Quartz dual-coil atomizer, built-in dab tool and silicon-lined concentrate caddy/jar, single-button functionality.
What’s to love?
- Pocket portable
- Magnetic atomizer lid
- Storage compartment for extracts
- Easy price
What’s the catch?
- Hit or miss performance
- Tough-to-clean atomizer/heating chamber
If you don’t like the idea of carrying a wax pen, dab tools, and extract containers, Yocan’s Evolve Plus is a great option.
Equipped with dual quartz coil atomizers, Yocan’s Evolve Plus works like a traditional wax pen with a few great surprises built into the design.
A magnetic lid that caps atop the atomizer doubles as a dab tool. With a chimney on one end and a scoop on the other, you can spoon extracts directly into the atomizer without leaving behind a sticky thing that needs to be cleaned. Additionally, the base of the device screws on and off to expose a stealthy, silicon-lined storage compartment designed as a concentrate caddy.
The result is a device that covers all the bases for on-the-go consumption, eliminating the need for external tools, containers, etc. Just slip this thing in a shirt pocket and you’re all set.
Given that the Evolve Plus relies on a coil atomizer, the usual issues of functionality follow: hotspots and cold zones can deliver an uneven expression of oils, and it can be a little tough to wrangle a satisfying draw if concentrates aren’t making direct contact with the coil.
Yet, that’s less a criticism of the Evolve Plus, as it applies to every coil atomizer I’ve personally tried over the last ten years (lots and lots and lots). Luckily, the Evolve Plus comes in at half the cost of many big-name wax and cannabis oil pens like those from Atmos and Dr. Dabber.
