Buying perfume online, be it for yourself or a loved one, can be tricky, namely because you can’t smell the fragrance before you commit, and usually can’t return it if it’s not for you. But as someone who previously worked on a fragrance counter and has more than 50 bottles in her personal ‘scent wardrobe’, I’ve learned a trick or two to make ordering a new signature scent, or thoughtful gift, a breeze.
Many fragrance fans, especially those not married to a particular scent, like to switch up their perfumes for the season. So with Spring upon us and Mother’s Day around the corner, there’s no better time to share my secrets to confidently ordering online, and discovering a new favourite.
With the rise in discovery sets, fragrance quizzes and flexible return policies, it’s now easier than ever to find your perfect scent from the comfort of your home without the headache of spritzing dozens of those flimsy white cardboard strips, forgetting which is which and leaving the shop with a headache. So, here’s how to shop for fragrance online like a pro.
‘I asked Next employee to choose my outfit and more than one item made it into my wardrobe’
‘I tried LookFantastic beauty egg that gets Medik8, Elemis and Rodial products for under £9 each’
Fragrance Edits
Many retailers and brands now offer curated fragrance discovery sets, allowing you to try out multiple scents before investing in a full bottle. These sets usually feature smaller vials or minis, so you can test how the scent wears throughout the day and how it interacts with your skin.
Some, like the Discovery Scent Edit from LookFantastic, contain a mix of perfumes from different brands. This particular box, which costs £55, features six travel and mini perfumes from the likes of Armani, YSL, Prada and more, with the 15ml Armani bottle being worth £33.50 alone. As well as the selection of perfumes, there’s also a £55 digital voucher which can be put towards a full sized version of your favourite fragrance from the set.
When you look at other fragrance edits available, few include the benefit of a voucher, and rarely contain as much perfume as this one, making LookFantastic’s excellent value for money if you are a fan of any of the scents involved. It’s particularly good if you want to try a broad range of designer fragrances, but if you’re after something a little more niche, then Cult Beauty has not one, but four perfume edits to choose from.
Each priced at £35, there’s a ‘fresh and fruity’ edit, as well as ‘floral and fragrant’, ‘warm and woody’ or ‘sweet and sophisticated’. These are great if you already have a rough idea of the types of characteristics you look for in a fragrance. For me, I’d go for the warm and woody option as someone who loves a deep, cosy, sultry scent. The edits are worth between £100 and £165, with the fresh and fruity version holding the highest value.
In here there are nine perfumes totalling 42.9ml, including names like Commodity, NEST, Fugazzi and Jo Loves. Their smaller bottles are ideal for throwing in handbags or taking on holiday.
For something a little more luxurious, Space NK has launched The Fragrance Library Edit for £75, which contains eight high-end fragrances worth £235. It contains 72ml of fragrance, but no voucher for a full sized bottle. In here, there’s even a sample of the brand new Juliette Has A Gun Miami Shake, which launched earlier this month, alongside the likes of ‘cool girl’ brands Diptyque, Glossier and Phlur.
Brand Discovery Sets
While some might want to try out various different brands in the sets above, other shoppers may be curious about a particular perfume name, but aren’t quite sure where to start. To help you work it out, a number of fragrance brands have launched little discovery sets of their own collections, so you can smell each one and find your favourite.
The Maison Margiela Memory Box, at Sephora, is the perfect way to trial or gift some of Maison Margiela’s best-selling Replica fragrances. The set is composed of 10 x 2ml minis, totalling 20ml, each of which are designed to evoke different memories. The unisex scents include the likes of Lazy Sunday Morning, Jazz Club and Beach Walk. Currently reduced to £30.60, it’s much more affordable than buying a 30ml bottle for £62.
Definitely a brand to have on your radar is Who Is Elijah – a female-founded, independently-owned fragrance house known for its accessible luxury, genderless, and minimalist fragrances. The Australian brand has been gaining popularity since hitting the UK market, with its scent Nomad (one of my current go-tos) being a bestseller. But, if you don’t want to follow the crowd and go with the fan favourite, which is £80 for 50ml, you can try their discovery set.
Like the Maison Margiela one, it has ten of the signature scents in 2ml mini-atomisers, so you can experience them all before committing to a full-sized purchase. As well as Nomad, there’s also the likes of Haze, Muse, Rebel Rose and Ocean Eyes. The set is currently £45 at Boots.
At LookFantastic, this Jo Malone London Scent Layering Kit is £45 and contains three 9ml colognes designed to be layered together to create a unique scent trail. One 9ml fragrance is usually £18, so this set saves shoppers £9. It contains the Grapefruit cologne, alongside Peony & Blush Suede and English Oak & Hazelnut. There’s also a Jo Malone London Cologne Discovery Collection at Sephora for £20, getting you five mini fragrances, however they’re only 1.5ml each, so collectively add up to 7.5ml, meaning it’s more cost effective to buy a full 9ml bottle for less, providing you know what you like.
Alternatively, the Charlotte Tilbury Fragrance Collection Of Emotions Perfume Travel Trio Set, is available for £48 at Space NK, or comes free when you spend £95 on the brand’s beauty best-sellers at the retailer. And one that’s prime for gifting is the Ladies Fragrance Collection from Penhaligon’s, which is £50 for five 5ml bottles, totalling 25ml of scent. It contains The Favourite, Elisabethan Rose, Empressa, Halfeti and Luna.
‘Try Before You Buy’ samples
Some brands now offer a ‘try before you buy’ model where you receive a sample along with your full-size purchase. If you don’t like the scent after trying the sample, you can return the unopened bottle for a refund.
One such brand is Floral Street, who include a sample of your chosen fragrance with all orders of 10ml, 50ml and 100ml scents. If you find it’s not what you were looking for, you can then return the unopened fragrance for a full refund.
If you’re looking for some inspiration, Floral Street’s Wonderland Peony is a bestseller, loved by Stacey Solomon, who has previously raved about the small business’ fragrances on Instagram. The fruity floral fragrance boasts notes of blackcurrant, pink pepper and candyfloss, with the Loose Women panelist loving it so much, her sister Gemma even included it in the party bags for Stacey’s baby shower guests.
The Perfume Shop is a retailer that offers a similar service, where selected fragrances from their ‘try me’ range‘ come with a free perfume sample. If you love it, you of course, keep the bottle – if not, you can send it back. Some of the perfumes available as part of the scheme include Armani’s Stronger With You, Gucci Flora Gorgeous Orchid and Viktor & Rolf Spicebomb Extreme.
Look for deals and gift sets
Fragrance gift sets often provide better value than buying a single bottle. Around key holidays like Christmas, Mother’s Day, and Black Friday, many retailers offer limited-edition gift sets that include extras like body lotions, travel sprays, and candles.
The Marks & Spencer Made for an Icon Beauty Box is a steal at £30 despite boasting contents worth over a whopping £130. Teeming with an assortment of skincare, fragrance, and bath essentials, it’s a dream come true for any self-care enthusiast, with the Floral Street Sunflower Pop fragrance inside being worth £29 – just £1 less than the whole edit.
As an alternative to chocolate this Easter, the Glossybox beauty egg is £45 and worth £198, containing nine products, including two mini fragrances. Ghost’s Orb of Night is an addictive amber floral fragrance with notes of cherry-almond, caramel and sandalwood, while JLo Glow, has notes of Neroli, Orange Blossom and Grapefruit.
But if you want to splurge, Liberty’s She Deserves It beauty kit offers a luxury selection of indulgent treats from across their iconic Beauty Hall – worth over £406, but priced at £130. The hand-picked kit features everything needed to bring an extra special touch to Mother’s Day celebrations, including fine fragrance from Paris-based Ex Nihilo.
Take advantage of freebies
Many brands and retailers offer travel-friendly bottles as free gifts when you buy a full sized bottle. It’s a little different to the try-before-you-buy schemes, but is a great way to get more bang for your buck if you love a particular fragrance. You could even gift the full sized bottle for birthdays or Mother’s Day, and keep the mini for yourself.
Boots frequently offers free minis with their fragrances, and current offers include a free Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia Eau de Parfum 5ml when you buy a 50ml bottle (as well as a free gift bag). There’s also a free Armani Si 15ml and Armani Red Mirror when you buy a 100ml or above Armani Stronger With You, or a free Rabanne Million Gold 10ml travel spray when you buy any Million Gold for Her 50ml or above.
Meanwhile, at LookFantastic shoppers can receive a BVLGARI Omnia Crystalline Eau de Toilette 15ml when you spend £80 on the brand (after discount).
Opt for 10ml bottles
With most brands, a 30ml bottle is the smallest you can buy – but unless you’re certain you like it, it’s still a significant amount of fragrance to take a gamble on. Some brands offer 10ml bottles, which are great for taking to the airport or popping in your handbag, and if it turns out you’re not sold on the scent, it doesn’t feel quite as wasteful.
As mentioned earlier, Floral Street offers 10ml bottles with the added benefit of receiving a try-before-you-buy sample. The travel-friendly spritz costs £29, and if you try the mini and aren’t a fan, you can return it for a full refund.
Another brand who offer 10ml bottles of their fragrances is Kayali – the sister brand to Huda Beauty. Their 10ml bottles cost £28, with delicious-sounding scents available including Yum Pistachio Gelato and Eden Juicy Apple.
At LookFantastic, the Marc Jacobs Exclusive Perfect Eau de Toilette Pen Spray 10ml is down to £15, with Sephora offering a YVES SAINT LAURENT Libre Eau de Parfum Travel Size 10ml for £23.80.
Other top tips for buying fragrance online
If you’re unsure where to start, online fragrance-matching tools can help you find perfumes based on your taste or existing favorites. These tools often use algorithms to recommend scents based on the notes you enjoy or the mood you’re after. Boots and The Perfume Shop have their own Fragrance Finder on the website, which will recommend scents based on your personal preferences, however, the downside is that they generally only recommend brands they stock.
And finally, reading user reviews can also give you a sense of how popular a perfume is, and give you insight that the product description doesn’t, such as how it evolves over time and how long it lasts. If you still need some more inspiration after all that, check out our round up of the best Spring perfumes for 2025.
