Common Perfume Ingredients Explained
A handful of materials do a disproportionate amount of the work across modern perfumery.
- Bergamot — bright citrus top note, ubiquitous across styles.
- Rose — the world’s most-used floral heart note.
- Sandalwood — creamy, versatile wood base.
- Vanilla — sweet, comforting, near-universal appeal.
- Musk — soft, skin-like base, almost always synthetic today.
- Oud — deep, resinous, the signature of Arabian perfumery.
- Ambroxan — a modern synthetic recreating warm, musky-woody amber character.
Frequently asked questions
How many ingredients does a typical perfume contain?
It varies enormously, from a handful in a simple composition to well over a hundred in a complex one.
Discover these ingredients in our Perfume Oils.
