Clear information about authenticity and sourcing, a proper UK returns policy, genuine contact details, and honest product descriptions are the basics worth checking before you hand over card details to any online perfume retailer.

The practical checklist

A trustworthy retailer will be upfront about whether a fragrance is a full retail bottle, a decant, or a tester, and will clearly state its concentration and size rather than leaving you to guess. Look for a real UK business address, a working customer service contact, and reviews that feel genuine rather than suspiciously uniform. Price is a useful signal too — if a well-known fragrance is priced dramatically below every other retailer, that’s worth treating with real caution rather than excitement.

  • Clear authenticity guarantees and sourcing information
  • A proper UK returns and refunds policy
  • Genuine contact details and independent reviews
  • Prices in line with the wider market, not suspiciously cheap

It’s also worth checking whether reviews mention actual delivery experience and product condition on arrival, rather than only star ratings, since these details reveal far more about day-to-day reliability than a headline score.

Genuine product photography, rather than only stock images pulled from elsewhere online, is another small but telling sign of a retailer that actually holds and ships its own stock.

Our guide to choosing a perfume and our complete guide to perfume both cover this in more depth, alongside our dedicated guidance on spotting fake perfume.