How to choose a perfume without trying it: online shopping guide

There's a paradox at the heart of every online perfume purchase: you're buying something you can't smell. Yet, knowing how to read a fragrance is enough to choose well, even without having smelled it before.

Start with the olfactive pyramid

Every perfume develops in three phases. The top notes are the first you smell, lively and immediate, but they last only a few minutes. The heart notes define the soul of the fragrance, floral, spicy, woody, and are the ones to pay most attention to. The base notes are the longest-lasting: musk, amber, vanilla. They remain on the skin for hours and intertwine with your personal chemistry.

Know your olfactive family

If you already know what style suits you, half the work is done. Floral fragrances are classic and feminine. Oriental ones, warm and enveloping, focus on vanilla and amber. Woody fragrances are dry and sophisticated. Fresh, citrus or aquatic ones are light and everyday. Think back to the perfumes you've loved: they almost certainly all belong to the same family.

Use reviews judiciously

Communities like Fragrantica are valuable resources. Don't look for unanimous agreement; look for patterns: if the same impressions about longevity, intensity, or character are repeated in ten reviews, that's information you can rely on.

Try before you buy

The smartest way to buy is to start with a sample or a discovery set. Wearing a fragrance for an entire day is the only way to truly understand how it behaves on your skin. A sample for a few euros can save you from a bad purchase.

Discover the Extrafragrance catalog

Each fragrance in our assortment has a detailed product page with a complete olfactive pyramid. Everything you need to choose confidently, even online.