Imperial College analysed the most-loved perfumes: the three notes that win every time
Choosing a perfume is usually a gut feeling: you smell, you hesitate, you fall for it. Yet a study conducted at Imperial College London by researchers Vaiva Vasiliauskaite and Tim Evans reveals that certain fragrance families appear consistently in the highest-rated compositions, and that the combinations between notes play a decisive role.
A method grounded in real user experience
Rather than relying on questionnaires about stated preferences, the two researchers took a different approach. They collected thousands of reviews left by users on women’s fragrances, then cross-referenced those ratings with the detailed composition of each perfume. The goal was to identify the ingredients and accords statistically linked to the highest scores.
This approach has a concrete advantage: it reflects what people actually feel when they encounter a perfume, not what they think they like in theory. That gap between stated preference and real-world appreciation is often underestimated in studies on olfactory taste.
Florals, musk and vanilla: the trio that comes out on top
Three major fragrance families stand out clearly in the results: floral notes, musk and vanilla. These ingredients appear consistently in the best-rated compositions. But their role goes beyond their individual appeal.
According to the researchers, these notes also act as amplifiers. Vanilla, for example, brings a warm, enveloping dimension to a composition. Floral notes add relief and depth. Musk, for its part, helps create a soft, harmonious sensation that binds the different ingredients together.
Understanding this mechanism changes the way you approach choosing a perfume. It is not just the note itself that seduces, it is also what it does to the other ingredients around it.
What unexpected combinations reveal
The study’s most surprising finding concerns accords between notes. Certain notes that appear frequently in well-liked perfumes, such as lavender or geranium, are not enough on their own to explain the highest ratings. It is certain less obvious combinations that seem most closely linked to the most appreciated compositions.
The researchers highlight two particularly noteworthy pairings:
- Jasmine paired with mint, an accord that blends freshness and florals in an unexpected way.
- Musk accompanied by vetiver and vanilla, a combination that plays on depth and warmth.
- Lavender, a familiar note, which gains originality when paired with unexpected facets.
- Geranium, often present in well-liked compositions, but whose impact depends heavily on its olfactory surroundings.
These findings show that the familiarity of a note draws you in, but it is the accord that creates that certain something which makes a fragrance memorable. A well-known note can become entirely original the moment it meets an unexpected ingredient.
How to choose a perfume in light of these findings
This data has a direct practical implication. Having a weakness for vanilla does not necessarily mean you will love every perfume that contains it. The same logic applies to jasmine, musk or woody notes. What matters is how the different notes interact within the overall composition.
Vanilla paired with woods, fresh notes or flowers produces a completely different impression each time. What’s more, you need to give a perfume time to evolve on the skin. A fragrance can reveal new facets after a few minutes, then continue to transform over the hours. Your skin, your memories and your personal olfactory sensitivity all come into play as well.
The researchers also worked on a category of so-called feminine perfumes, but this simply reflects the scope of the study. Commercial classifications between notes for women and notes for men are largely a matter of market convention. Vanilla, vetiver, musk, rose and lavender belong to no particular gender: the only criterion that truly matters is what a fragrance does for the person wearing it.
Balance: the secret behind the most-loved perfumes
What this study brings to light is that the highest-rated fragrances do not rely on a single standout note. It is the subtle balance between several ingredients that makes the difference. Florals, musk and vanilla have a statistical head start, but their real strength lies in their ability to enhance everything around them. Before putting your trust in a single note on a label, it is worth looking at the composition as a whole and, above all, trusting what your nose actually tells you.
