How to Find Perfumes That Are Similar

What Ingredients Make Perfume Last a Long Time?
Published: Dec 18, 2009
Updated: Jan 10, 2019
2 minute read
Woman applying perfume
Pixland/Pixland/Getty Images

Perfume is something that is personal and very much individual. What is loved by one person may be hated by another. Perfume will also vary from person to person due to personal body chemistry. It’s a great feeling when you find a perfume that you love. Oftentimes, people tend to like specific notes within a perfume. Some are drawn to ocean type of scents, some to grassy scents, while others like sexier, musky scents. If you are growing your perfume collection, you may likely want to locate perfumes that have similar notes and ingredients as other perfumes that you have loved. Other times, your favorite perfume may have been discontinued and you would like to find something similar.

Instructions

portrait of a young woman smelling perfume on her wrist
Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Find out the notes that are in perfumes that you like. This will help you locate perfumes that are similar to them. Fragrances include top, middle and bottom notes. For example, if you tend to enjoy perfumes with several notes in the citrus family, search for other perfumes that also contain predominantly citrus notes. They will likely have a similar scent.

Hygiene and cosmetic products
Jupiterimages/Creatas/Getty Images

Identify the perfume family that you are drawn towards. There are seven types of olfactive families: woody, citrus, oriental, fougere, floral, chypre and aldehydic. Every single perfume will fall into one of these categories. Find out which families your favorite perfumes fall into.

Woman with laptop on couch
Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images

Use the fragrance-finding feature located at http://sephora.com. Click on the section titled “Fragrance.” On the menu on the left, click on the link that says “Fragrance Finder.” You may search by the name of your favorite fragrance or the perfume family of your favorite fragrance. It will then provide a list of other perfumes that are similar to them.

Woman smelling perfume
Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images

Visit a department store that sells perfumes. They have testers available and you can sample scents that are similar to each other or to your favorite scents. Also, ask an employee that works in that department about her recommendations.

Woman smelling perfume.
Comstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images

Order samples of perfumes. This is a great way to test out several different fragrances. Obtain samples of perfumes that fall into your desired perfume family and that contain many of your favorite notes. Samples can be obtained at department stores and also ordered from online perfume retailers.

References

Photo Credits

Pixland/Pixland/Getty Images

Yvonne Van Damme

Yvonne Van Damme is a freelance writer based in Seattle. She has been writing for several years with a focus on criminal justice and legal topics. In addition to various websites, she has been published in several academic journals. Van…

Sponsored
Our Everyday Life Logo

Explore our everyday life, the best source for food and drink tips, health and general wellness, healthy relationships and much more.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.