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18 of the best long-lasting perfumes that will linger on your skin until bedtime

Our beauty team has spritzed scents from luxury fragrance names to high-street favourites, refining this list of the very best long-lasting perfumes for women

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Collage of four of the best long-lasting perfumes for women from (left to right) Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Jo Malone London, Gucci and YSL, set at an angle and repeated against a silk effect background
(Image credit: Maison Francis Kurkdjian/Jo Malone London/Gucci/YSL/Future)
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As a perfume-loving beauty editor whose daily comfort is catching a whiff of one of my favourite spritzes while going about my business, perfume longevity is one of my top beauty priorities. The best long-lasting perfumes for women not only smell great, they require just the one spritzing session for day-long wear.

Not only does this allow me a moment to indulge my best perfume during my 4pm slump, I'm also a serious overpacker regardless of the destination – from a quick trip to the post office to a 12-hour flight to the Thailand – so any perfume that doesn't require taking a top-up out and about is a serious plus.

As for how to find a long-lasting perfume? First, the type of perfume really matters – the more concentrated the perfume extract, the longer it'll last. So I'd recommend at least an eau de parfum (which tends to have a concentration of 15–20%), or even something as strong as a parfum (usually 20–30%). It's also important to consider the base notes, as they last longest on the skin. While you have to ensure they're to your taste, it helps to look out for woody or musky base notes, which tend to stick around for longer.

But to save you doing all of the investigative work yourself, here I've shared some of my go-to fragrances – and quizzed our team of beauty experts on their signature long-lasting women's perfumes, too. Spanning every olfactory family, and including brands like Jo Malone London, Le Labo and Diptyque, these are the scents we deem the best long-lasting perfumes for women.

The best long-lasting women's perfume deals

Recent updates

These deals were last checked on 19/02/26 and we will continue to do so to ensure that all of the products below are still in stock, still discounted and, most importantly, are the very best deals around at the moment.

YSL Beauty Libre Eau de Parfum 30ml
Deal
Save 20% (£14.40)
YSL Beauty Libre Eau de Parfum 30ml: was £72 now £57.60 at Debenhams UK

You can now enjoy a 20% saving on this YSL Beauty cult classic fragrance, Libre Eau de Parfum, over at Debenhams.

View Deal
Issey Miyake L'Eau D'Issey Eau & Magnolia Eau De Toilette Intense
Deal
Save 30% (£23.20)
Issey Miyake L'Eau D'Issey Eau & Magnolia Eau De Toilette Intense: was £78.50 now £55.30 at LOOKFANTASTIC UK

Bag a 30% discount on the fresh perfume we hailed bright and breezy, Issey Miyake's L'eau D'issey Eau & Magnolia Eau De Toilette, at LOOKFANTASTIC.

View Deal
YSL Beauty Black Opium Eau de Parfum Spray 30ml
Deal
Save 25% (£17.50)
YSL Beauty Black Opium Eau de Parfum Spray 30ml: was £70 now £52.50 at LOOKFANTASTIC UK

One of YSL's most popular and best-loved perfumes, Black Opium has now been marked down by 25% – and, as its loyalest fans will take you, it makes an ideal day-to-night scent.

View Deal

18 of the best long-lasting perfumes for women, reviewed by our beauty team

Whether you're a lover of perfumes with jasmine or prefer scents that sparkle on the skin, like that of a fruity perfume, there's a long-lasting aroma to suit all preferences. To make your search easier, though, we've rounded up 18 blends – spanning brands like Issey Miyake and Byredo to more budget-friendly names like the best Zara perfumes – that are proven to stand the test of time.

Best floral long lasting perfumes

Best woody long lasting perfumes

Best spicy long-lasting perfumes

Best fresh & clean long-lasting perfumes

Best fruity long-lasting perfumes

Best gourmand long-lasting perfumes

How we tested the best long-lasting perfumes for women

A small selection of the best long lasting perfume for women we sampled for this guide from (left to right) Issey Miyake, Burberry, Jo Malone London, Escentric Molecules, Lancome, Frederic Malle and YSL, stood on a wooden surface in front of a vase of flowers and a neutral wall

A small selection of the long-lasting perfumes for women we tried for this guide

(Image credit: Fiona McKim)

As we say in all of our fragrance guides, perfume is a very subjective thing. But, luckily, one universal metric we can assess scents by is lasting power. So, to compile this guide, our team tested dozens of perfumes, from best-sellers to our own personal favourites, in order to determine which perfume lasts longest.

To do this, we gave each scent at least one full day's wear and tested many of them in different weather conditions and environments. As well as assessing how long each perfume had stayed on the skin, we also took other factors like price, packaging, composition and potency into consideration – to determine which long-lasting fragrances are truly worth the investment.

How to choose the best long-lasting perfume

As for how to choose a perfume that lasts, there are a few things to keep in mind right off the bat. One is to consider the perfume as a pyramid, consisting of top, heart and base notes, the latter of which, Karen Harris, Head of Marketing at The Perfume Shop says, "form the foundation of the fragrance." She adds that these base notes, "come into force around 30 minutes after integrating with the middle notes, and typically last six hours."

There's also the matter of concentration and the notes themselves, which we've outlined below...

1. Pick the right perfume concentration

"The perfume concentration is the blend of scented raw materials – namely oils, molecules, absolutes," explains Harris. "The higher the percentage of concentrate, the more persistent the perfume."

  • Eau de parfum: The longest lasting; it can stick around for up to 8 hours.
  • Eau de toilette: Tends to last 4–7 hours.
  • Eau de Cologne: Will last around 2–3 hours.

2. Consider the fragrance notes

If you want your perfume to last, think about the notes you're wearing. Citrus, green and some fruity perfume notes, for example, don't tend to last as long as warm, woody blends (though there are exceptions). Look out for the following when shopping for fragrance.

  • Floral: Jasmine, rose, lavender and patchouli can be found in several of the scents listed above. T they are quite powerful and very recognisable, no matter what they are blended with.
  • Woody: sandalwood and cedarwood are both good examples of enduring notes. They are warm and are often used as a base note.
  • Spicy: These include clove, pepper, cardamom, star anise and cinnamon – adding warmth and depth to scents.
  • Fresh: Powdery florals like iris and zingy citrus notes like bergamot are known to offer distinctive, lasting aromas.
  • Gourmand: Vanilla, milk, caramel and boozy notes like whiskey and rum are often good indicators of a long-lasting blend and are typically found as base notes.
  • Amber: Amber perfumes often boast a very warm and woody base, which as mentioned are the types of notes that tend to linger well on the skin.
  • Oud: This olfactory family also needs a shout-out as they are known for their heady impression and staying power. Oud perfumes are ideal if you gravitate towards very musky and spicy fragrances but it can be quite intense and overpowering.

3. Try it on

The best way to be assured of a perfume’s staying power, by far, is to test it. Whether you’re heading to the high street to seek out Zara's best-selling scents or a fragrance counter for designer brands, be sure to test on your skin, rather than a blotter, to check how it plays with your body chemistry. Then, leave it for 24 hours to see how it dries down.

The scent type must also be factored into your decision. "If you take something light and airy, such as neroli, it’s a 'butterfly' extract, which basically means it flutters off quite quickly," says fragrance expert and journalist Alice du Parcq. "Unless the brand can afford to add copious amounts of it into their scent, those lightweight, citrusy and floral perfumes will only last a couple of hours on the skin, regardless of price.

"However, a larger molecule such as vanilla, tuberose, some wood extracts and lots of beautiful synthetic musks take longer to evaporate from the skin," she continues. "If you want a perfume that’s going to last, aim for those richer aromas that cling on for longer."

Bottle size is also something to consider; it can be worth spending a little more on a larger option so that you can enjoy the aroma for longer – especially if it's a scent you wear every day. Larger bottles are often cheaper per millilitre, too. Knowing where to spray perfume also helps. Your pulse points, like your wrists and either side of your neck, are the best place to spritz your scent – but don't rub your wrists together, as this can break down the scent molecules.

Your long-lasting perfume queries, answered

Are expensive perfumes longer-lasting?

This question doesn't have an entirely straightforward answer. When we put it to Jo Fairley, perfume expert and Editor of digital fragrance magazine The Scented Letter, her response was "yes and no." Often, you'll pay a premium for a scent that goes the distance, but that doesn’t mean you should necessarily splash out far beyond your budget.

“It’s not related to the brand, necessarily, but to the concentration of the scented oils in the bottle,” Fairley says. "An eau de toilette contains a larger dose of fragrant oils than a cologne. An eau de parfum is stronger, still, in terms of concentration. And the highest level of the all-important fragrant oils is in a parfum or elixir – these can often still be detected on skin 24 hours after applying. Although they’re always the most expensive version of a fragrance, I think they offer the best value in terms of staying power."

By this logic, you could purchase an eau de parfum (EDP) from a cheaper brand and still enjoy just as much longevity as an EDP from a fine fragrance house. "There are plenty of ace affordable brands who do excellent long-lasting perfumes," du Parcq adds. "Have a look at M&S Discovery Intense, Floral Street, Nuxe, L'Occitane and Beauty Pie."

Why does my perfume fade so quickly?

Find your perfume seems to disappear moments after you’ve spritzed it? It could be down to a lack of moisture, specifically oil. "This very often happens when your skin is dry," explains Fairley. "Perfume likes to cling to oil, so if you find that your scent is fading fast, either layer it over a 'matching' body product like an oil, cream or body butter, or an unscented body treat, applied to the neck and wrists."

A good long-lasting perfume tip is to exfoliate with one of the best body scrubs. This helps to remove old skin cells that absorb scent but don’t retain it. "You can also try spraying your clothes," Fairley suggests. "Fabric holds fragrance very well. Just be sure to do a 'stain test' first, spritzing a tissue to make sure there’s no mark."

If your skin is well-nourished but you still can’t smell your signature scent, it might simply be that you're accustomed to it. "We tend to become conditioned to a smell if we’re around it all the time," says du Parcq. "It’s like when you walk into a kitchen and there’s a bowl of bananas – our brain recognises that smell instantly, and it’s really potent, but after about 10 minutes you can’t detect it any more. So if you’re spraying a tonne of perfume and you’re barely noticing it, then trust me, other people around you will smell it absolutely fine.

"Perhaps have a little break from that scent, put it into storage somewhere dark and cool so as not to 'age' it for a few months, and try something new," she continues. "When you come back to that scent, your nose will be more responsive to it." This is partly why so many perfume pros have a "fragrance wardrobe" with a rotation of several scents.

Our expert panel

Reviewed By
Aleesha Badkar, Digital Beauty Editor at woman&home
Reviewed By
Aleesha Badkar

Aleesha is Beauty eComm Editor at woman&home. She loves to make an impression with fragrance and her (slightly unreasonable) inclination to not smell like anybody else in the room means she constantly tests different scent profiles and keeps up-to-date with the newest launches every season. She's drawn to woody, amber blends with subtle sweetness or that boast hints of sharp citrus, soft smokiness or salty, animalic notes.

For longer-lasting wear, she says: "Although I know you're not really supposed to, I spray a light mist over my hair to keep my fragrances lingering every time I swish my head around throughout the day. But I make sure to do it from quite far away so that the chemicals don't do too much damage!"

Reviewed By
Stephanie Maylor
Reviewed By
Stephanie Maylor

Woman&home's beauty editor, Stephanie, has almost 15 years of industry experience on everything from skincare to perfumes, the latter of which she's afforded this guide. "My fragrance wardrobe is quite eclectic," she says. "I've got fresh, almost-aquatic aromas I favour in the warmer months, then headier, ambery scents saved for evening. My summer go-to will forever be Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess." To get the most out of your signature scent, Stephanie recommends layering it with the coordinating hair perfume (if it has one), naming Byredo's Gypsy Water her go-to.

Reviewed by
Digital Beauty Writer, Naomi Jamieson
Reviewed by
Naomi Jamieson

Naomi is a Digital Beauty Writer at woman&home, where she shares her expertise on makeup, skincare, nail trends and fragrance. When it comes to her own perfume preferences, Naomi loves powdery florals and warm woody blends; Diptyque's Orphéon and Fleur de Peau, plus Le Labo Santal 33, feature on her list of all-time favourites. She looks for formulas that really melt into the skin to recreate a lingering sense of comfort.

To ensure her fragrance lasts all day? "I never rub my wrists after spraying them, instead, I let my perfume dry down fully," she says. "And when I wear knit jumpers, I always mist the neckline a little, as I find scent really clings to the fibres – though do be mindful of staining."

Reviewed by
Amelia Yeomans headshot
Reviewed by
Amelia Yeomans

Amelia specialises in fashion and beauty, covering everything from fragrance and nail art trends to fashion weeks. Perfume-wise, Amelia is of the firm belief that no compliment beats being told you smell good. Her ideal scent? "Appealing yet distinctive. I tend to gravitate towards fresh, floral and peppery fragrances for the daytime. For evening, I stick to floral top notes but sweeter base notes, like blackcurrant or vanilla. YSL Libre has been my staple for years."

Her long-lasting tip? "I always put a couple of spritzes on the top of my head and the back of my neck. It sticks to my hair for hours and those around you will inevitably get wafts of it."

Expert Advice From
Expert Advice From
Alice du Parcq

Alice du Parcq is an award-winning fragrance expert and journalist who has shared insights into finding a long-lasting signature scent with woman&home, as well as answering commonly-asked questions on price, longevity and why certain fragrances fade. Her Substack, The Perfume Playground, is well worth a subscribe for fragrance fans.

Expert Advice From
Expert Advice From
Jo Fairley

Jo Fairley is a perfume expert and Editor of the award-winning digital fragrance magazine The Scented Letter, who has shared expertise on why fragrances fade, as well as answering the age-old question of whether price equals longevity.

Aleesha Badkar
Aleesha Badkar
Beauty eComm Editor, woman&home

Aleesha is Beauty eComm Editor at woman&home, where she gets to share her expertise into all the best techniques, sharpest tools and newest products—with a particular savvy in skincare and fragrance.

Previously, she was Deputy Editor and Beauty & Fashion Editor for My Imperfect Life, where she headed up the beauty, fashion and eCommerce pages. In the past, she has contributed to a number of women's lifestyle publications, including Women's Health and Stylist, and has earned an MA in Magazine Journalism from City, University of London and an AOP awards nomination for her past work on woman&home's news team.

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