Making your own nicotine-free vape juice requires just three core ingredients: vegetable glycerin (VG), propylene glycol (PG), and food-grade flavor concentrates designed for vaping. The process is straightforward, but getting the ratios right and avoiding unsafe ingredients makes the difference between a smooth, flavorful vape and a harsh or potentially dangerous one.
The Two Base Liquids and What They Do
Every vape juice starts with a blend of VG and PG. These two liquids serve different purposes, and the ratio you choose shapes the entire experience.
VG is a thick, slightly sweet liquid responsible for vapor density. The higher your VG percentage, the bigger and denser the clouds. VG-based liquids produce larger particles that give that visible, foggy exhale cloud chasers are after. The tradeoff is that VG mutes flavor slightly and, because it’s so viscous, can clog wicks and coils in smaller devices.
PG is thinner and carries flavor more effectively. It produces smaller aerosol particles that deliver a cleaner, more “true” taste. PG also creates a noticeable throat hit, that slight catch in the back of your throat that mimics the sensation of smoking. In a nicotine-free juice, PG is the main source of whatever throat sensation you’ll feel. Without nicotine, higher PG ratios give you more of that feeling; without it, the vape can feel very airy and smooth.
Both are available from DIY vape supply shops online. Make sure they’re USP-grade (pharmaceutical quality), not industrial grade.
Choosing the Right VG/PG Ratio
Your ratio depends on your device and what you want from the experience.
- 50/50 VG/PG: The most versatile starting point. Balanced flavor, moderate clouds, and a mild throat hit. Compatible with most standard vape devices and works well below 80 watts.
- 70/30 VG/PG: Noticeably thicker clouds with some flavor and throat sensation still present. Best for sub-ohm tanks and higher-wattage setups.
- 80/20 or 90/10 VG/PG: Heavy cloud production, minimal throat hit, and softer flavor. Requires a sub-ohm device or rebuildable atomizer to wick properly.
- Max VG (little to no PG): Maximum cloud density. Only practical in sub-ohm devices or drippers. Flavor will be muted.
If you use a pod system or a basic vape pen with a coil resistance of one ohm or higher, stick with 50/50 or higher PG ratios. High-VG juice is too thick for these devices and will cause dry hits or coil damage. Sub-ohm devices with larger coils and higher wattage handle thicker juice without issues.
If your high-VG mix is too thick for your device, you can thin it with distilled water. Start at about 10% (10 ml of distilled water per 100 ml of juice) and test from there. Going beyond 20% dilution tends to wash out the flavor.
Flavor Concentrates: What to Use and Avoid
You need flavor concentrates specifically made for vaping, not baking extracts, essential oils, or anything oil-based. This distinction is critical for safety. Inhaling aerosolized oils can deposit lipids in your lungs and trigger lipoid pneumonia, a serious inflammatory condition. A 2019 CDC investigation linked cases of acute lipoid pneumonia directly to inhaling oil-based substances through e-cigarettes, confirming that oils deposited in the airways can impair the lungs’ ability to exchange oxygen.
Vape-safe flavor concentrates are water-soluble and made from PG-based flavoring compounds. Major brands include Capella, Flavor West, The Perfumer’s Apprentice (TPA), and Flavour Art. Each brand has different concentration strengths, which affects how much you add to your mix:
- Flavour Art: Very concentrated. Start at 3 to 5%, though many people prefer closer to 10 to 15%.
- TPA: Variable across their range. Some flavors work at 3 to 5%, others need 15%. Start test batches around 10%.
- Capella: Most flavors need around 15% for medium intensity. Some people go up to 20 to 25% for bolder taste.
- Flavor West: Recommended at 15 to 20% across their lineup. Starting at 15% is a safe bet.
These percentages refer to the total volume of your finished juice. So in a 100 ml batch at 15% flavoring, you’d use 15 ml of concentrate and 85 ml of your VG/PG base.
One important rule: avoid any flavoring containing diacetyl, acetyl propionyl, or acetoin. Diacetyl and acetyl propionyl are linked to respiratory disease when inhaled, and research published in the journal Addiktologie has shown that acetoin converts into diacetyl inside e-liquid, making it an unavoidable source of diacetyl exposure. All three are avoidable. Reputable concentrate brands now label their products as diacetyl-free, and many publish safety data sheets you can check.
Equipment You Need
The supply list is short. You need empty plastic or glass bottles (LDPE or PET plastic squeeze bottles in 30 ml or 60 ml sizes work well for mixing and storing), a digital scale that reads to 0.01 grams, disposable gloves, and paper towels.
Mixing by weight on a scale is faster and more accurate than measuring by volume with syringes. Syringes require a separate one for each ingredient to avoid cross-contamination, they’re slow to use, and small measurement errors compound quickly in a 30 ml batch. With a scale, you place your bottle on it, tare to zero, and add each ingredient by weight. No cleanup, no mess, and precision down to a fraction of a milliliter. Online DIY calculators (such as the ones on alltheflavors.com or e-liquid-recipes.com) let you enter your recipe and will display the weight in grams for each ingredient based on their specific gravity.
Gloves aren’t strictly necessary for nicotine-free mixing since neither VG nor PG is hazardous on skin, but they keep things cleaner and prevent flavor concentrate from lingering on your hands.
The Mixing Process Step by Step
Start small. A 30 ml test batch lets you experiment without wasting ingredients. Use an online DIY e-liquid calculator to plug in your desired VG/PG ratio, flavoring percentage, and batch size. The calculator will output exact weights for each ingredient.
Place your empty bottle on the scale and tare it to zero. Add your flavor concentrate first, since it’s the smallest volume and the most important to measure precisely. Tare again. Add PG next (flavor concentrates are PG-based, so the calculator accounts for the PG already contributed by the flavoring). Tare again, then add VG last. Cap the bottle and shake vigorously for one to two minutes to blend everything together.
That’s it. Your juice is technically ready to vape immediately, but flavor quality improves with time for certain profiles.
Steeping for Better Flavor
Steeping is just letting your juice sit so the flavor compounds fully integrate with the base liquids. Think of it like letting a stew develop overnight. Not all juices need it, but many improve dramatically.
Fruit flavors are the fastest. Most reach their peak within one to three days, and some taste great right after mixing. Cream and dessert flavors, like custards, cakes, and vanilla blends, typically need one to four weeks for the richness to develop. Tobacco flavors are the slowest, often benefiting from two to four weeks or longer.
To steep, store your bottles in a cool, dark place like a cabinet or drawer. Give them a good shake once a day. Some people briefly uncap the bottles for a few minutes every couple of days (called “breathing”), but this is optional and overdoing it can actually degrade lighter flavor notes. The shake-and-wait method works fine on its own.
Common Mistakes to Watch For
Over-flavoring is the most common beginner error. Too much concentrate doesn’t just taste strong; it can taste chemical, perfume-like, or just unpleasant. It’s much easier to add more flavoring to a weak batch than to fix one that’s oversaturated. Start at the low end of the recommended range for your brand and work up in small increments across test batches.
Using the wrong VG/PG ratio for your device causes problems too. If you mix 80/20 VG/PG and put it in a basic pod system, you’ll get weak hits, burnt taste, and a gunked-up coil within a day or two. Match your ratio to your hardware.
Never use any oil-based ingredient. No essential oils, no carrier oils like MCT or coconut oil, no oil-based food flavorings. If a flavoring’s ingredient list includes any type of oil, it is not safe to vape. Stick to PG-based concentrates from established vape flavoring brands.
Finally, store your finished juice and raw ingredients away from heat, sunlight, and anywhere children or pets can reach them. VG and PG are stable at room temperature and your juice will stay good for one to two years when stored properly, though flavor quality is best within the first few months.