Regular vs. Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: What's the Difference?

Choosing an olive oil can sometimes feel like choosing a bottle of wine. There are so many different varieties, origins and labels that it can make your head spin. The olive oil world is indeed similar to the wine industry with its certifying organizations and experts. We know how overwhelming all that information can be, so we're here to make things easy for you. We're going to break down the basics and explain the difference between regular and extra-virgin olive oils.

What Is Olive Oil?

Olive oil is a monounsaturated plant-based oil made by pressing or crushing fresh olives (olives are fruits that grow on trees). Depending on the type of olive, when it was harvested and the way the oil is extracted and processed, olive oil can range in color from dark green to light yellow, and taste spicy to neutral. Olive oil can be used in many ways—in vinaigrettes, marinades, vegetable and meat cookery and in desserts and baked goods. It's also commonly found in body products such as cosmetics and soaps.

What Are the Different Types of Olive Oil?

Olive oils are graded based on how they're produced, fatty acid level and flavor. There are several different regulating olive oil authorities around the world, and depending on where the oil is produced (Spain, Italy, Greece, Tunisia, Turkey, Morocco, Portugal and California are some of the top producers in the world by volume) and which organization's standards the producer follows, the parameters for each grade may differ slightly.

The most common types of olive oil used in the U.S. and that you likely see on the shelves while grocery shopping, are:

• Extra-virgin olive oil is made from the first cold pressing. It's the most fruity tasting and most expensive of the oils.
• Olive oil or pure olive oil is a combination of refined olive oil and extra-virgin. "Refined" means that the oil has undergone additional processing to neutralize any defects in taste, aroma or acidity.
• Light and extra-light olive oils have the same monounsaturated fat and caloric content as olive oil. Here, "light" means the blend of refined and extra-virgin oils leans heavily toward refined, so the color, aroma and flavor are lighter relative to the other olive oils.

For the purposes of this article, we'll simply break down the two major categories of extra-virgin olive oil and "regular" olive oil.

What Is Extra-Virgin Olive Oil?

Extra-virgin olive oil is the highest-quality olive oil. It is an unrefined oil, which means it is made by cold-pressing whole olives without any additional heat or chemicals.

In order to be certified as an extra-virgin olive oil, "the oil must be lab-tested for acidity and peroxide values as well as blind-tasted by a certified tasting panel for flavor defects," says Marisa Bloch Gaytan, Pasolivo's Level 2 olive oil sommelier and master blender. Processing and certifying extra-virgin olive oil is labor-intensive and time-consuming, which is why extra-virgin olive oil is significantly higher in price than regular olive oil.

The taste of your extra-virgin olive oil will depend on the type of olive. It can range from buttery and herbal to peppery and bitter.

What Is Regular Olive Oil?

Regular olive oil is a lower-grade olive oil that consists of all or mostly refined olive oil. Sometimes, "producers will run the olive paste through the mill multiple times to extract more oil," says Gaytan, which lowers the quality of the oil. Since regular olive oil doesn't need to follow strict manufacturing and taste profiles, it is much more affordable than extra-virgin olive oil.

Overall, regular olive oil has a more neutral flavor profile than extra-virgin. It is also usually lighter in color and aroma.

What Are Their Different Uses?

Although extra-virgin olive oil is superior in quality to regular olive oil, there's a place for both in your kitchen.

Olive oils are safe and effective to use for cooking. The USDA recommends regular olive oil as a safe oil for deep frying with a smoke point of 410°F, compared to the highest smoke point of soybean or peanut oil at 450°F. However, some research indicates that as the temperature of the cooking method increases, some of the antioxidant content in extra-virgin olive oil may be degraded, according to a 2022 review published in Nutrients.

Extra-virgin olive oil is prized for its flavor, which can be lost in some dishes. You may use your more expensive oil for recipes that don't involve cooking, such as dressings, dips or as a finishing oil.

Olive oils can be used as a substitute for vegetable oils in baking and give a distinctive flavor. Regular olive oil matches flavor closer to neutral oils, such as canola or a vegetable oil blend, while extra-virgin olive oils enhance the flavors when baking with chocolate and citrus.

Extra-virgin olive oil and regular olive oil can be substituted for each other for daily use; however, keep in mind their differing qualities. When substituting regular olive oil for extra-virgin olive oil, remember that regular olive oil has less intense flavor, which will affect the final taste of your dish. The opposite is true when substituting extra-virgin for regular.

How to Select a Good Olive Oil

To choose a good extra-virgin olive oil, Gaytan says to look for one "that has gone through the appropriate steps to be certified as an extra-virgin olive oil. It should also be in a container that completely blocks the oil from the light." This will help keep your oil fresher for longer.

If possible, she also recommends buying directly from a producer you trust. Although taste is personal, Gaytan likes ones that "have a nice balance between the three positive attributes of olive oil: bitterness, fruitiness and pungency." Because regular olive oil is more neutral in flavor, find a brand that aligns with your personal values when choosing.

The Bottom Line

The difference between regular and extra-virgin olive oils comes down to how they are processed. Extra-virgin olive oil is unrefined and only uses cold-press methods during extraction. On the other hand, regular olive oil is refined. Experiment with your olive oils and see which uses you like best in different recipes like Apple-Balsamic Vinaigrette or Double-Tahini Hummus.