The 20 Best Colognes For Men, Tested by Grooming Experts

Picking out a signature scent can be a daunting task. How on earth do you go about identifying a blend of smells that perfectly captures the multifaceted nature of your identity, or, hell, your very sense of self?

The thing about fragrances is that they’re complicated, but they don’t have to be. A general understanding of fragrance-speak is helpful, especially when you’re going in blind. The most important thing to know is the scent pyramid: top, heart, and base notes. Top notes are what you smell immediately and dissipate fastest; the heart is, well, the heart of the scent and what you smell after the cologne has “dried down” after a little bit; and the base notes are the core smell that stays on your skin the longest. If I lost you, don’t worry. You can still find your perfect cologne without any of that.

You literally just have to follow your nose. Like, just find one that smells good to you. It’s always nice to know what kind of scents you gravitate toward—woods, spices, freshness—to help cut through the options quickly. But even with that knowledge, the most important thing you need to do is put that nose to the bottle.

And listen, a lot of cologne advertisements promise, in one way or another, to make you smell like someone. A model. An actor. Some distorted, fantasy version of yourself. Forget that. Instead, choose a signature scent that smells like you, in all your glorious multifaceted-ness. Remember, colognes aren’t just about smelling good; they’re also about how they make you feel. And to find the one that makes you feel like you, start here.

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