If you've ever browsed Japanese incense, you may have wondered why one box can cost a few pounds while another can cost considerably more.

They may both contain relatively simple-looking, slender incense sticks – so what exactly are you paying for?

The answer is largely found in the ingredients, their rarity, the quality of the aromatic woods and the skill involved in blending them.

And when it comes to the most precious ingredients used in traditional Japanese incense, one name stands above most others: Kyara.

Why can Japanese incense be expensive?

Not all Japanese incense is expensive. There are plenty of affordable ranges designed for everyday burning.

However, as you move into premium Japanese incense, you'll often encounter increasingly valuable natural aromatic materials such as sandalwood and agarwood, also known as aloeswood or jinkoh.

Unlike simply adding a fragrance to an incense base, traditional premium Japanese incense can use aromatic woods themselves as an important part of the fragrance.

The quality, origin and rarity of those woods can have a significant effect on the final price.

There is also the craftsmanship involved.

Traditional Japanese incense houses have developed their blending techniques over generations. Creating a balanced fragrance from aromatic woods, herbs and spices requires experience and careful selection of ingredients.

What is the most expensive ingredient in Japanese incense?

One of the most precious ingredients found in high-end Japanese incense is Kyara, the highest and most prized grade or form of agarwood.

To understand why Kyara is so valuable, we first need to understand agarwood.

What is agarwood?

Agarwood – also called aloeswood or jinkoh in the world of Japanese incense – is an extraordinary aromatic wood.

The wood does not simply begin life with the deep fragrance associated with fine agarwood.

Under particular natural circumstances and over time, certain trees develop a dark, fragrant resin within the wood. It is this resin-rich material that produces the complex aroma prized by incense makers.

Good-quality agarwood can produce an extraordinarily layered fragrance, with characteristics that may be perceived as sweet, woody, spicy, bitter or resinous.

It has been treasured in Japanese fragrance culture for centuries.

Why is agarwood so expensive?

The problem is that high-quality agarwood isn't something that can simply be taken from every tree.

Only certain wood develops the desirable concentration and quality of aromatic resin, and the finest material is increasingly difficult to obtain.

It is also sourced from relatively limited areas of Southeast Asia.

This combination of rarity, time, quality and demand means that genuine high-grade agarwood can be exceptionally valuable.

The better the quality of the aromatic wood used in an incense, the more expensive the finished incense is likely to become.

And then there is Kyara...

Within the world of agarwood sits something even more special: Kyara.

Kyara is regarded in Japanese incense culture as the finest and most highly prized form of agarwood.

It is exceptionally rare and prized for the complexity and elegance of its aroma.

This helps explain why you may occasionally encounter Japanese incense with a price that initially seems extraordinary.

You're not simply paying for a box of sticks.

You're potentially buying an incense containing tiny quantities of an extremely scarce aromatic material that has been valued for centuries.

For serious Japanese incense enthusiasts, experiencing Kyara can be rather like a whisky enthusiast tasting a particularly rare whisky or a perfume enthusiast experiencing an exceptional natural ingredient.

It's about appreciating the material itself.

Is Kyara really more valuable than gold?

You may have heard people say that Kyara can be worth more than gold.

This isn't simply a phrase invented by incense sellers. Nippon Kodo itself describes premium aloeswood used in its Kyara incense as extremely difficult to obtain today and says it is considered more valuable than gold.

However, quality varies enormously, so it isn't useful to assume that every piece of agarwood – or every incense carrying an agarwood description – has the same value.

That's why the provenance, grade and amount of aromatic wood used can make such a difference.

What about sandalwood?

Sandalwood is another extremely important ingredient in Japanese incense.

Known as Byakudan in Japan, sandalwood has a wonderfully smooth, sweet and woody fragrance.

The aromatic heartwood is particularly valued, and good-quality sandalwood has been prized for centuries.

You'll therefore often notice a progression when exploring Japanese incense.

An accessible everyday incense may use a relatively simple fragrance composition. Move further into traditional incense and you'll begin encountering better-quality sandalwood. Go further still and you'll find incense featuring agarwood.

At the very highest end, you may encounter Kyara.

That isn't a strict rule – incense formulations vary enormously – but it helps explain the dramatic differences in price you can see between Japanese incense ranges.

Why are some tiny boxes more expensive than large boxes?

This catches many customers out.

With incense, more sticks doesn't necessarily mean better value or better quality.

A large box of everyday incense could cost considerably less than a small wooden box containing only a handful of premium sticks.

That's because the cost isn't simply determined by how much incense is in the box.

It's what's in the incense that matters.

A smaller quantity containing premium agarwood or Kyara can be far more expensive to produce than a much larger quantity of everyday incense.

Does expensive Japanese incense smell stronger?

Not necessarily – and this is really important.

Higher price does not automatically mean a stronger fragrance.

In fact, somebody accustomed to powerful Indian incense may initially find some premium Japanese incense surprisingly subtle.

The appeal is often in its complexity.

Rather than one strong fragrance immediately dominating the room, you may begin to notice different characteristics as the incense burns and as the fragrance gently moves through the space.

Japanese incense appreciation is sometimes described as “listening to fragrance” rather than simply smelling it.

That idea makes much more sense when you begin exploring higher-quality aromatic woods.

Is expensive Japanese incense worth it?

That depends entirely on what you want from your incense.

If you simply want a pleasant fragrance to burn around your home every day, you certainly don't need to spend a fortune. There are some wonderful affordable Japanese incense ranges.

But if you become interested in incense as a fragrance experience, exploring premium sandalwood and agarwood can open up an entirely different side of Japanese incense.

You also don't have to jump straight from everyday incense to Kyara.

Part of the enjoyment is working your way through different grades, woods and incense houses and gradually learning what you can smell.

From everyday incense to something extraordinary

This is perhaps what makes Japanese incense so fascinating.

At one end, you can buy an affordable box to burn while relaxing at home.

At the other, you enter a centuries-old fragrance tradition involving rare aromatic woods, skilled incense makers and ingredients such as agarwood and Kyara that have been treasured for generations.

So, the next time you see a small box of Japanese incense carrying a surprisingly large price tag, take a closer look at the ingredients.

You may find that those unassuming little sticks contain one of the world's most precious aromatic woods.

And that is when Japanese incense becomes much more than simply making a room smell nice.

It becomes an exploration of fragrance.