How to Find Your Signature Scent — A Man's Guide to Testing, Sampling and Buying the Right Bottle

A signature scent is the fragrance people come to associate with you. Finding one is less about luck than method: know which family you are drawn to, test on skin rather than paper, wear each candidate for a full day, and sample before you spend $100 to $300 on a full bottle. Here is how to do it.

Start With Fragrance Families

Most men's fragrances fall into a handful of families. Knowing which ones you like narrows the field from thousands of bottles to a few dozen.

• Fresh: citrus, aquatic and green notes. Easy, clean, good for warm weather and the office.
• Aromatic (fougère): lavender, herbs and moss. The classic barbershop smell.
• Woody: cedar, sandalwood, vetiver. Calm and grown-up.
• Amber and spice: vanilla, resins, warm spices. Rich, best in cold weather and the evening.
• Leather and tobacco: dry, smoky and bold.

Look at what you already like. If one cologne has always worked for you, its notes point to your family. Our explainer on how cologne works covers top, heart and base notes in more detail.

Step 1 — Narrow It to Three at a Time

Smelling a dozen fragrances in one store visit blurs them together. Your nose adapts to smells it keeps encountering, an effect called olfactory fatigue, so the fifth spray smells weaker and less distinct than the first. Pick two or three candidates per session.

Step 2 — Test on Skin, Not Just Paper

Paper strips are fine for a first sniff and for ruling things out. But a fragrance behaves differently on skin, where body heat and skin oils change how quickly each note evaporates. Something crisp on paper can turn warmer or sweeter on you.

Spray your top candidate on one wrist or inner elbow, and a second candidate on the other side. Then wait. The bright opening fades within the first half hour or so, and the heart and base, which you will actually smell on yourself all day, take over.

The Coffee-Bean Myth

Many fragrance counters offer a jar of coffee beans to "reset" your nose between sprays. A study by psychologist Alexis Grosofsky and colleagues at Beloit College tested exactly that (First Nerve: the coffee-bean study). Students picked out a new perfume 57% of the time after sniffing plain air, 62% after coffee beans and 86% after lemon slices, and the differences were not statistically significant.

In other words, the beans don't do much. Stepping outside for fresh air between tests is free and works at least as well.

Step 3 — Wear It for a Full Day

A fragrance you like at the counter can tire you by lunch. Wear each serious candidate for a whole day: notice how long it lasts, whether people around you mention it, and whether you still like it in the evening.

Don't worry if you stop smelling it after an hour. That is the same adaptation at work, not the fragrance disappearing; others usually still notice it.

Step 4 — Sample Before You Buy

Discovery sets are the cheapest way to live with a fragrance before you commit. The luxury houses now sell their own.

The Creed Men's Inspiration Sample Set is five 1.7 ml samples of Aventus, Silver Mountain Water, Millésime Impérial, Green Irish Tweed and Original Vetiver for about $70. That is less than a quarter of the price of a 50 ml bottle of Aventus. Creed's directions are to spray onto pulse points and not rub it in, because rubbing changes how the fragrance develops.

For more wear per scent, the Parfums de Marly Discovery Collection Masculine has four 10 ml sprays — Pegasus, Layton, Percival and Haltane — for about $230. Ten milliliters is enough to wear each one for weeks, not just a day. It was in limited stock on Amazon when we checked.

If you like easy, cozy scents, the Maison Margiela Replica mini discovery set has four 0.24 oz eau de toilette minis — Beachwalk, Jazz Club, By the Fireplace and Afternoon Delight — for about $58 (sold by Maison Margiela). On a tight budget, the 18.21 Man Made Spirits Discovery Set has samples of all four of its colognes — Sweet Tobacco, Spiced Vanilla, Noble Oud and Absolute Mahogany — for about $30.

Step 5 — Commit, and Carry It With You

Once a fragrance has survived a week of real wear, buy the bottle. If you are still slightly unsure, a smaller size costs more per milliliter but less up front.

To top up during the day or when you travel, decant a little into a refillable atomizer instead of carrying the bottle. The LISAPACK 8 ml atomizers are a pack of three with an aluminum shell, a glass inner bottle and a twist-up nozzle with no cap to lose, plus a funnel and transfer tools, for about $10 (sold by Lisapack).

One Signature or a Small Wardrobe?

A single signature scent is simple and memorable. Many men end up with one main fragrance plus a lighter one for summer and a richer one for winter. Our summer and winter cologne guides cover both ends.

How to Wear It

• Two to four sprays is plenty for most fragrances; strong ones need fewer.
• Spray pulse points — neck, chest, inner wrists — from a few inches away.
• Don't rub your wrists together.
• Apply after showering, onto clean, dry skin.

FAQ

How many fragrances should I test at once?

Two or three. Your nose adapts to smells quickly, so later sprays in a long session smell weaker and blur together.

Do coffee beans reset your sense of smell?

Not measurably. In a Beloit College study, sniffing coffee beans between perfumes did no better than sniffing plain air or lemon slices.

How long should I wear a sample before buying?

At least one full day per fragrance, ideally several. You want to know how it lasts and whether you still like it in the evening.

Do I need an expensive fragrance for a signature scent?

No. What matters is that it suits you and you enjoy wearing it. Sampling lets you compare a $30 set with a $300 bottle before you spend.

Ready to look at bottles? Start with our best cologne for men guide, or go straight to the Creed and Parfums de Marly guides.

Sources: First Nerve: the coffee-bean study