In this study, we investigated the underlying neural circuits of wanting and liking in humans using a combination of higher resolution fMRI techniques and the use of primary rewards (i.e. pleasant odors) to investigate whether the subcortical circuitry of the nucleus accumbens is similar to what is found in animals. We used a Pavlovian-instrumental transfer (PIT) paradigm to quantify how much effort participants were willing to invest for a reward (wanting) and reported ratings to measure the experienced pleasantness during the consumption of the reward (liking), while the participants were inside the scanner. Our results show a trial-by-trial correlation between hedonic experience and BOLD signal in the orbitofrontal cortex, as well as with the nucleus accumbens core and shell. Moreover, we found a contribution of the nucleus accumbens core together with the ventral part of the basolateral nuclei of the amygdala in the modulation of wanting in a participant-by-participant level. Together, our findings suggest that wanting and liking rely on different neural circuits, which are similar to those found in the animal literature.