| Summary: | This study aimed to assess the benefits of the solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) on chamomile (<i>Matricaria recutita</i> L.) essential oil quality and yield compared to the extraction by steam distillation (SD). The oil obtained by SFME and SD presented a blue color, a solubility in 70% ethanol (<i>v</i>/<i>v</i>) of four, a relative density of 0.929–0.925 g/mL, a refractive index of 1.5013–1.4790, and an acidity value of 6.23 and 3.43, respectively. The yields were significantly different between extraction methods, being the highest (0.5 mL (0.083% <i>v</i>/<i>w</i>)) for SFME and 0.2 mL (0.03%) for SD. The GC-MS analysis showed a marked difference in sesquiterpenes, such as Chamazulene, α-bisabolol, α-bisabolol oxide A, and α-bisabolol oxide B. The SFME had 97% and 20% more content of chamazulene and α-bisabolol respectively, whilst SD had 88% and 12% more content of α-bisabolol oxide A and B, respectively. The results suggest that SME is an outstanding alternative for essential oil extraction due to much higher yield and quality compared to the steam distillation.
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