Butane is butane, until a torch lighter starts sputtering or a cigar tastes of gas. The difference between the cans on a hardware store shelf is refinement: cheap fuel carries impurities that clog the tiny jets in a torch lighter or a culinary torch, while the better cans are filtered many times to a stated purity. A separate family of butane, the 8-ounce cartridge with a notched collar, feeds portable gas stoves and has its own safety rules. We ranked the butane in our beauty and health catalog by stated purity and filtering, can size and the number of cans per pack, the nozzle and adapter fittings supplied, what each fuel is meant for, and what thousands of owners report after refilling lighters, torches and stoves for years.
We have not run every can through a gas chromatograph; the verdicts rest on the published specs and the owner review history, and we give each pick our own score instead of repeating the figures on the listing. Prices are not printed because they change daily; every button opens the live Amazon page. If you are buying cartridges for cooking, our camping stoves guide covers the stoves themselves, and our portable electric burners and hot plates guide is the indoor alternative. Do Best Deal readers asked for the fuel, so here is the fuel.
How we picked
- Two jobs, two fuels. Lighter and torch refills with a universal nozzle, and 8-ounce stove cartridges with a notched collar; we say clearly which is which.
- Purity stated. The torch-grade picks quote a purity or a number of filtering stages on the listing; the stove cartridges quote UL listing or a pressure-relief design instead.
- Fittings included. Refills that ship with a metal nozzle or adapters rank higher, since a bad fit is the main cause of a leaking refill.
- Owner history. Every pick has a large base of owner reviews with a positive overall sentiment, and the top three have the largest bases in the category.
- Real brands. Zippo, Ronson, Colibri, Xikar, GasOne and Iwatani have made fuel for decades; the two newer names here publish their refining claims.
The picks
Zippo Butane Fuel Refill, Premium High-Purity for Lighters, Torches and Inserts, Clean Burning, Consistent Flame, Reliable Performance, Made in USA, 75ml 2-Pack
Zippo’s 75 ml refill is the butane most households already own, and for the lighters most households own it is the right choice. It is made in the USA, it ships as a two-pack, and the universal tip fits the candle lighters, flex-neck grill lighters and outdoor utility lighters it is designed for, as well as Zippo’s own butane inserts and most refillable pocket lighters. Zippo says it will not clog burner valves, and owners widely praise it for keeping cheap lighters alive for years. What it is not is a boutique torch fuel: the listing calls it high-purity but does not quote a filtering count, and a jet-flame cigar lighter or a kitchen torch drinks a 75 ml can in a few fills. The most common owner complaints mention the nozzle not sealing well on a particular lighter, which is a fitting issue rather than a fuel one and is why the Jo Chef and NEON cans below ship with adapters. For the drawer full of grill lighters, buy this. Our score 9.2/10.
- The most-bought butane in the catalog and widely praised by owners for value
- Made in the USA by a company that also makes the lighters
- Universal tip fits nearly every refillable lighter
- Small cans are easy to store in a kitchen drawer
- Only 75 ml per can; a torch lighter empties one quickly
- Not marketed as a multi-filtered torch-grade fuel
- Most owner complaints mention the nozzle not sealing on some lighters
Ronson Butane Fuel Refill 135ml, Pack of 2 for Torch & Utility Lighters Gas
Ronson’s 135 ml can is the step up from the Zippo for anyone who owns a torch lighter: nearly double the fuel per can, a universal tip, and a specific claim of low non-volatile contaminants, the residue that gums up a jet-flame burner. It is sold as a two-pack and Ronson lists it for candle lighters and flex necks as well as torch lighters and its own tech torch, so one can does the whole kitchen. Owners widely praise it as the sensible middle ground: cleaner than bargain fuel, cheaper per millilitre than the cigar-grade cans, and sold by a brand that has been refining lighter fuel for a hundred years. It does not claim a filtering count or a purity figure, so a serious cigar smoker or a cook who uses a torch every service should still look at the Colibri or Xikar. The main owner complaints mention a slow fill through the tip on some lighters, which is solved by bleeding the lighter first. Our score 9.2/10.
- Nearly twice the fuel per can of the Zippo at a similar price
- Low non-volatile contaminants, which is what clogs torch jets
- Universal tip; owners praise it for filling torch lighters without fuss
- Ronson has made lighter fuel for a century
- Not a five-times-refined cigar fuel
- Two cans only; heavy users will want a bigger can
- Some owner complaints mention a slow fill through the universal tip
Colibri Premium Butane Fuel Refill for Lighters, Butane Torch Replacement Canisters, 99.999% Pure Butane Refill Fluid for Lighters, 300ml (10.1fl oz) Cans, Pack of 1
Colibri has made lighters since 1928 and its butane is refined to the standard its own jet-flame lighters demand: a stated 99.9994 percent purity, which the brand says is clean enough not to need repeated filtering and which keeps burner valves free of the deposits that cause misfires. It is odorless and flavorless, which matters if the lighter is for cigars, and the 300 ml can holds four times the fuel of a Zippo refill. Owners widely praise it for curing torch lighters that sputtered or died on cheaper fuel, and that is the use case: a triple-jet cigar lighter, a kitchen torch for creme brulee, or any lighter whose jets are too fine to tolerate residue. It is more expensive per can than the Zippo or Ronson and comes one to a listing, and it is wasted on a flex-neck candle lighter that would run happily on anything. If you own one good torch lighter, this is the fuel to keep it good. Our score 9.6/10.
- Highest stated purity on this page at 99.9994 percent
- Large 300 ml can lasts a cigar smoker months
- Widely praised by owners for fixing lighters that sputtered on cheaper fuel
- Colibri makes the jet-flame lighters this fuel is designed for
- Costs more per can than Zippo or Ronson
- Single can per listing
- Overkill for a candle lighter
This is the other kind of butane: the 8-ounce cartridge that slides into a portable single-burner stove, a butane heater or a camp lantern. GasOne’s version is the reference cartridge for those stoves, UL listed as a butane safety container, 7.25 inches tall with the notched collar that aligns it in the burner, and built to reseal automatically when the stove’s lever is released. It comes twelve to a case, which is a camping season, a semester of dorm cooking or a winter of hot pot and Korean barbecue at the table. Owners widely praise it for a steady flame and for the absence of the leaks and hissing fits that cheap cartridges produce. It has no nozzle and will not refill a lighter. Store the case somewhere cool and never in a hot car. And note that butane itself, not GasOne, struggles below about freezing, where the cartridge pressure drops and the flame weakens; that is physics, and the only fix is to keep spare cartridges warm in a pocket. Our score 9.6/10.
- UL listed, the first UL recognized butane safety container
- Notched collar lines up in nearly every portable butane stove
- Twelve cartridges is a season of camping or a year of hot pot nights
- Widely praised by owners for consistent flame and no leaks
- Not a lighter refill; no nozzle
- Twelve cans is a lot to store safely in a small apartment
- Butane stoves lose pressure in cold weather regardless of brand
XIKAR PUROFINE Premium Butane Fuel Refill (400ml) 0 Impurities - Ultra Refined, Food Grade, Culinary Butane Refill for Torch & Lighter - Jet Flame Lighter Fuel & Kitchen Torch Refills (3 Pack/8oz)
Xikar makes cigar cutters and lighters, and Purofine is the fuel it refines for them: under 15 parts per million of impurities, food grade for culinary torches, and tuned to burn properly at altitude, which is a real problem for jet lighters in Denver or Salt Lake. The cans are 400 ml, the largest on this page, and the listing is sold as a multi-pack, so this is the bulk buy for a cigar lounge, a restaurant pastry station or anyone who refills a torch weekly. Owners widely praise it for ending the misfires and weak jets they had on cheaper fuel, and for the sheer amount of fuel per order. It is also the most expensive listing here, three big cans is more than a casual user will burn in two years, and the pack configuration has varied, so read the listing title before ordering. If you have a drawer of jet lighters or a kitchen torch in daily use, buy it; for one lighter, the Colibri single can is the same grade in a smaller dose. Our score 9.6/10.
- Largest can here at 400 ml, and a multi-pack
- Stated impurities under 15 ppm, food grade for culinary torches
- Formulated to perform at high altitude, which owners in mountain states confirm
- Xikar is a cigar accessories brand that services the lighters this fuel feeds
- The most expensive listing on this page
- Three large cans is more butane than a casual user needs
- Check the pack count on the listing before ordering; owners note variants
Jo Chef Butane Refill, Universal Butane Fuel for Kitchen Torch Lighters
Jo Chef sells kitchen torches, and its butane is the obvious fuel for them: a food-grade refill with a universal tip and, usefully, a nozzle adapter in the box, so it mates properly with the torch, a cocktail smoker kit or a cigar lighter instead of spraying gas round the nozzle. The listing offers single cans up to five-packs, which suits both the occasional creme brulee and a bar that smokes cocktails all night. Owners widely praise it for exactly those uses and for the adapter, which is the piece most refills leave out. The gaps are on the spec sheet rather than in the kitchen: Jo Chef does not quote a purity percentage or a filtering count, so a cigar smoker who wants numbers should look at the Colibri or Xikar, and the price per can sits above the Zippo and Ronson. For a home cook with a torch that gets used on weekends, it is the most convenient can here. Our score 9.2/10.
- Nozzle adapter in the box solves the fitting problem that causes leaky refills
- Food grade, from a brand that makes kitchen torches
- Pack sizes from one to five cans
- Widely praised by owners for creme brulee and cocktail smoker torches
- Purity figure is not stated on the listing
- Priced above the Zippo and Ronson per can
- A cooking brand rather than a lighter brand; cigar smokers may prefer Colibri or Xikar
NEON Butane Fuel Refill, 11X Ultra-Refined, 300ml Premium Lighter Fluid with Metal Nozzle & 5 Butane Gas Refill Adapters for Refillable Jet Flame Lighters, Torches, and Culinary Use, 2 Cans
NEON is a big name in butane in Asia and a newer one on US shelves, and its two-pack of 300 ml cans is the fuel to buy if you have ever sprayed butane over your hand because the can did not fit the lighter. Each can has a precision metal nozzle and comes with five removable adapters, so it fits European and Asian lighter valves as well as the common universal type. The fuel itself is filtered eleven times to a stated 99.9997 percent, in the same class as the Colibri and Xikar, and NEON lists it for jet lighters, culinary torches and even soldering tools. Owners praise it for leak-free fills and for the sheer quantity of fuel, and the most common complaints are about the small adapters going missing and a nozzle that seats stiffly at first. If you own lighters from several brands, or a torch with an unusual valve, this is the most adaptable can on the page. Our score 9/10.
- Metal nozzle and five adapters cover nearly every lighter valve
- Two 300 ml cans per order
- Stated 11-stage filtering to 99.9997 percent
- Owners praise it for leak-free refills of lighters that other cans would not fit
- Less familiar name in the US than Colibri or Xikar
- Adapters are small and easy to lose
- A few owner complaints mention the metal nozzle seating stiffly
Iwatani BU-6 CassetteFeu Butane Fuel Canister For Butane Stove & Torch Refills, 8-Ounce Corporation of America BU-6 Butane Fuel Canister for Portable Butane Stove, Red
Iwatani makes the tabletop butane stoves that Japanese restaurants and serious hot pot households use, and the BU-6 is the cartridge it says those stoves should burn. It is a standard 8-ounce notched-collar cartridge, so it also fits GasOne, Coleman and other portable stoves, but it adds a patented Countersink Release Vent that opens if the cartridge pressure rises abnormally, which is the failure mode that makes butane stoves dangerous when a pan overhangs the cartridge bay. Owners of Iwatani stoves widely praise it for a hotter, steadier flame than generic cartridges and for peace of mind, and even owners of other stoves rate the fuel. It costs more per cartridge than the GasOne twelve-pack and comes in smaller quantities, so for a cheap camping stove the GasOne is the economical choice. For an Iwatani stove, or for anyone who wants the safest cartridge for indoor tabletop cooking, this is the one. Our score 9/10.
- The matching fuel for Iwatani tabletop stoves, which owners of those stoves prefer
- CRV pressure relief vent is a genuine safety feature
- Hot, fast flame that owners praise for boiling and searing
- Standard notched collar also fits other portable stoves
- Costs more per cartridge than GasOne
- Fewer cartridges per listing
- Still an 8 oz cartridge, not a lighter refill
Compare the picks
| Product | Type | Size | Purity or safety claim | Best for | Our score | Our score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zippo Refill 2-packZippo Manufacturing Company | Lighter refill | 75 ml x 2 | Will not clog valves; made in USA | Candle and utility lighters | 9.2/10 | 9.2 | See price |
| Ronson 135 ml 2-packRonson | Lighter refill | 135 ml x 2 | Low non-volatile contaminants | Torch and utility lighters | 9.2/10 | 9.2 | See price |
| Colibri 300 mlColibri | Torch refill | 300 ml | 99.9994 percent | Jet-flame cigar lighters | 9.6/10 | 9.6 | See price |
| GasOne 8 oz 12-packGas One | Stove cartridge | 8 oz x 12 | UL listed, auto reseal | Portable gas stoves | 9.6/10 | 9.6 | See price |
| Xikar Purofine 400 mlXikar | Torch refill | 400 ml multi-pack | Under 15 ppm impurities, food grade | Cigar lounges, pastry stations | 9.6/10 | 9.6 | See price |
| Jo Chef RefillJo Chef | Torch refill | Single to 5 cans | Food grade, adapter included | Kitchen torches | 9.2/10 | 9.2 | See price |
| NEON 300 ml 2-packNEON | Torch refill | 300 ml x 2 | 11x filtered, 99.9997 percent; 5 adapters | Mixed lighter collections | 9/10 | 9.0 | See price |
| Iwatani BU-6Iwatani | Stove cartridge | 8 oz | CRV pressure vent | Iwatani tabletop stoves | 9/10 | 9.0 | See price |
Lighter refill or stove cartridge?
The two are not interchangeable. A lighter refill is a pressurized can with a small nozzle on top; you press it into the valve on the bottom of a lighter or torch and fuel transfers in a few seconds. A stove cartridge is an 8-ounce can with a notched collar that locks sideways into a portable burner, a butane heater or a camp lantern, and it has no nozzle. The Zippo, Ronson, Colibri, Xikar, Jo Chef and NEON cans are refills; the GasOne and Iwatani are cartridges. Some cartridge listings say “and torch refills”, which refers to the large torches that take a whole cartridge, not to a pocket lighter. If you are buying for a single-burner tabletop stove, confirm the stove takes the notched-collar 8-ounce cartridge, which nearly all do.
Why purity matters for torch lighters
A soft-flame candle lighter has a wide burner and shrugs off residue. A jet-flame torch lighter or a kitchen torch forces gas through a jet smaller than a pin, and the non-volatile impurities in cheap butane build up there as a waxy deposit until the flame sputters, leans or dies, which is why owners of expensive lighters blame the lighter when the fuel is the problem. The torch-grade cans here quote their refinement: Colibri at 99.9994 percent, NEON at eleven filtering stages and 99.9997 percent, Xikar at under 15 parts per million of impurities. The Ronson claims low non-volatiles without a figure, and the Zippo is a general-purpose fuel. Match the fuel to the lighter: for anything with a jet, buy the refined cans; for everything else, the cheaper cans are fine. When a torch has already been clogged, bleed it completely, fill with a refined fuel and let it sit a few minutes before lighting.
Storage and safety
Butane is stored under pressure and expands with heat, so every can here should live somewhere cool, out of sunlight and away from the stove, and never in a car in summer. Keep refills upright and away from children. Bleed a lighter before refilling it (press the valve with a small screwdriver until it stops hissing), fill in short presses, and wait a minute before lighting so the fuel warms and the pressure settles. With stove cartridges, never use a pan wide enough to overhang the cartridge bay, since radiated heat can overpressure the can; that is the scenario the Iwatani CRV vent and the GasOne auto-reseal are designed for. Use any butane stove in a ventilated space. And do not stockpile: a twelve-pack of cartridges is already plenty for a household, and the small 75 and 135 ml refill cans are easier to keep safely than a shelf of 400 ml ones.
Which butane is best for a torch lighter?
A highly refined fuel: Colibri at 99.9994 percent purity, Xikar Purofine at under 15 ppm impurities, or NEON at 11 filtering stages. All three keep the fine jets of a torch lighter from clogging; Zippo and Ronson are fine for soft-flame lighters.
Can I use the same butane for a kitchen torch and a cigar lighter?
Yes, if it is a refined, food-grade fuel. Xikar Purofine and Jo Chef are sold as food grade, and Colibri is odorless and flavorless. Avoid unrefined fuel in a culinary torch because the residue can taste.
Will a butane lighter refill work in a portable stove?
No. Portable stoves take an 8 oz cartridge with a notched collar, such as the GasOne 12-pack or the Iwatani BU-6. Lighter refills have a nozzle and are much smaller.
Why does my butane stove flame get weak in the cold?
Butane vaporizes poorly below roughly freezing, so cartridge pressure drops. Keep spare cartridges warm in a pocket, shield the stove from wind, and expect weaker performance in winter camping with any brand.
How do I stop a refill from leaking around the nozzle?
Use a can with a tip that matches your lighter valve. Jo Chef includes an adapter and NEON includes five; with a universal tip such as Zippo or Ronson, press straight down firmly in short bursts and bleed the lighter first.
Prices and stock change daily. The buttons above open Amazon so you always see the current price. We may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you.
Do Best Deal is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy through links on this site we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. Learn more.
