Cananga oil is derived from the flowers of the cananga tree, which is native to parts of Asia, including Indonesia. Generally, most of the members of this plant family grow up to an average height of 12 metres. The flower is drooping, long-stalked, with six narrow, greenish-yellow petals and yields the highly fragrant essential oil. Cananga Essential Oil is sometimes used as an economical substitute for Ylang Ylang Oil in fragrancing applications.

Aromatically, Cananga Oil resembles Ylang Ylang Oil, but it is less floral and is commonly described as being greener than ylang ylang. Though Cananga Essential Oil is sometimes treated as an inferior cousin to Ylang Ylang Oil, there are those that prefer its aroma. Cananga and Ylang Ylang have different chemical compositions, and their therapeutic uses differ.