I'm a Fragrance Expert—Trust Me: These 9 Perfumes Will Be on Everyone's Necks This Season

Key notes: Bergamot, pear, ambrette, aldehydes, jasmine, rose, rosemary, violet, orris, vanilla, musk, moss

The launch of Merit Retrospect last year really set the fragrance world on fire, and now that it has won the hearts of some of beauty's biggest trendsetters, I'd be willing to bet a large sum of money on this punchy scent being one of 2025's most adored (and shopped) perfumes. With a powerful extrait blend (that's the strongest and longest-wearing form of fragrance out there, other than a pure oil), its warm, cosy longevity makes it a total winner.

A far cry from the fresher, watery perfumes we have seen top bestsellers lists in the past, Retrospect has a sweet, powdery sort of comfort that has the blueprint of a classic—it smells like a bouquet of velvety flowers that has been thrown into a suede Margaux bag from The Row.

Key notes: Tangerine, bergamot, lavender, jasmine sambac, orange blossom, orchid accord, tonka bean, vanilla, amber gris, vetiver

YSL Libre is, hands down, one of the most exquisite "beauty hall" perfumes of our time—and, by this, I mean somewhat mass market. Not only is the bottle the chicest around, but what is inside is also beautifully wearable and undeniably versatile. While the orange blossom top makes it somewhat zesty and wearable, the additions of lavender, vanilla and musk create a sweet, powdery sort of perfume that clings to skin in a lived-in sort of way. Its beauty has won it top spots on bestsellers lists for the last few years.

For the rest of the year, however, it's this iteration that is going to reign supreme in the Libre family. Yves Saint Laurent Libre Intense is, as the name would suggest, a deeper, longer-lasting, more intense variation of the classic. It has flooded my TikTok FYP in recent months, and Google Trends shows a +650% uptick in search over the past year—and this makes sense, given our desire for stronger perfumes this season. If you're looking for a great evening scent that has a deeply creamy, undeniably alluring base, this is it.

Key notes: Bergamot, mandarin, sweet white peach, white flowers, musk, ambrofix

Up until last year, you might not have heard of luxury French fragrance house, Parfums de Marly—but I had. After launching back in 2009, the brand is now famed amongst insiders for creating some of the most exquisite, expensive-smelling and luxurious niche fragrances of the past decade. Its most notable creation, however, really put the house on the map via TikTok last year. Yes, the buzz around Parfums de Marly Delina on social media had people queuing up in Harrods to secure a bottle of the £245 scent. And while there is no doubt that Delina's sweet, creamy fruitiness will continue to appeal to the masses in 2025, I'm predicting this year will really be Valaya's time to shine.

The house kicked off 2025 by launching Valaya Exclusif, a warmer, sweeter, more gourmand take on the original. And while I'm certain existing fans of Valaya will adore the Exclusif for an evening alternative to their favourite daily scent, I'm also sure the new launch will, perhaps more notably, put the existing Valaya on the radars of others who might not have tried it before.

In a sea of 2025-appropriate deep extraits and intenses, Valaya is a fresh, cotton-like perfume that creates a veil of skin-like cosiness. But do not be fooled into thinking this is just another skin scent—it is sweet and welcoming but possesses a luxurious element that will have the whole room asking after it.

Key notes: Mandarin, star jasmine, strawberries, peaches, apricots, ambery woods

Dior's Miss Dior Eau de Parfum has, probably, been the biggest perfume hit that I have witnessed in my whole career. From the moment it launched in 2021, British perfume-lovers bought it en masse. Its delicate, floral, creamy nature made it a hot pick for those who craved a special perfume that wouldn't set them back hundreds of pounds. When I spoke with perfumer (and now perfume creation director at Dior), Francis Kurkdjian, about the success of Miss Dior Eau de Parfum, he told me that it is no surprise to him that the perfume has been such a hit. "In the UK, there is a specific perfume taste that combines something very voluptuous, sensual and warm, with something that is almost dishevelled—and that is Miss Dior Eau de Parfum," he said.

That being said, with Kurkdjian understanding fragrance at a deeper level than anyone I have ever met, he also saw the rise in demand for punchier scents coming long before anyone else. And so, last year, he created Miss Dior Parfum—a deeper, more potent, richer iteration of Miss Dior. And since its launch, Miss Dior Parfum has climbed steadily in popularity, and I predict that this will be the year it overtakes the Eau de Parfum in sales.

If Miss Dior Eau de Parfum is sheets of silk chiffon draped over a bouquet of soft flowers, Miss Dior Parfum is the raw sexiness that exists when you peel back the layers—it brings out a carnal desire that makes you want to pour the entire bottle over your décolletage.

Key notes: Mandarin, pink pepper, vanilla cream, coconut milk, orange flowers, jasmine

Considering it is a relatively new fragrance brand on the scene, Phlur perfumes have consistently remained high on Space NK's bestsellers lists ever since the brand launched. At the time of writing, the retailer has sold 66 bottles of the brand's iconic body mist, Vanilla Skin, today alone, along with 63 bottles of the pricier Vanilla Skin Eau de Parfum over the past week. My prediction for 2025? The new Golden Rule will dominate the perfume shelves of fashion and beauty's coolest women.

I have come to this conclusion because of two very important observations. Firstly, any new perfume that Phlur launches is destined for greatness. But, secondly, Golden Rule has the makings of a great classic. The brand has learned from its success of Vanilla Skin, taking the spritz's sweet, creamy blueprint and injecting it with a whole lot more punch to create Golden Rule. To me, Golden Rule smells like hot, molten, liquid gold—sparkling, creamy, sweet, thick and beautifully expensive.

Key notes: Iso E Super

I know what you're thinking, and you're right—the fact that Escentric Molecules Molecule 01 is on this list is barely breaking news. In fact, for as long as I have been predicting and writing about bestselling perfumes, this fragrance has been on the round-up every single year. But, truthfully, it deserves it. While I have been brave enough to bump many classics off my prediction list for 2025 (you'll notice a distinct lack of Chanel No5, YSL Black Opium and Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540), this one simply has to stay put.

Virtually every retailer that stocks Molecule 01 names it as a bestseller month after month, and its fresh, cool-girl charm never seems to wane. If you haven't smelled it before, it is like stepping out of a cool shower and burying your nose into your soft, clean skin. While it is a scent marketed to "smell different on everyone", my opinion is that this claim should be taken with a pinch of salt—it smells equally as great on everybody I know who wears it.

Key notes: Orange, jasmine, rose, patchouli, vetiver

Another classic that I refuse to remove from my list is Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle. There is no doubt that this perfume isn't just one of the best Chanel fragrances ever made, but one of the best fragrances ever made full stop. It is, without question, one of the world's bestselling scents year after year, and 2025 will be no different. In fact, while fresher Chanel perfumes, like Chance Eau Fraîche and No5 L'Eau, have garnered particular attention in recent years, I have a sneaking suspicion that Coco M will be more popular this year than ever before. Watch this space.

Key notes: Juniper berry, cedar, tonka bean, jasmine

Some might call me biased for saying this, considering Diptyque Orphéon is my favourite perfume ever created, but I really mean it when I say that Orphéon is set for big things for the rest of the year. Space NK already counts it as a bestseller, and "Diptyque Orphéon dupe" has seen a 120% rise in Google searches over the past 12 months. But listen to me very carefully now: no dupe of Orphéon can exist. And I say this with absolute conviction. The beauty of this perfume sits in the way Diptyque creates scent—the French fragrance house captures a cool-girl nonchalance in a way that no other brand has ever been able to mimic, let alone master for themselves.

Orphéon is a story of a fragrance, one spritz takes you to the powder room of a 1950s Parisian speakeasy, where the scents of gin cocktails, face powder and cigarette smoke swirl in the air. It has a long-lasting depth, for sure, but its overall vibe is soft, velvety and comforting. While Diptyque scents aren't as mass market or well known as others on this list, trust me when I say Orphéon will come to be a perfume that everyone knows in 2025.

Key notes: Grapefruit, oud, Levantine spice, rose

As more and more of us look for niche perfumes that aren't on everybody's shelves, we can expect to see a continued surge in popularity of luxury scents that you might not find in every department store this year. Alongside this trend, we're also seeing somewhat of a British perfumery resurgence take place. While Great Britain has long been famed for its olfactory craftsmanship due to its rich royal past, at some point in the 20th Century, the tradition of British perfumery started to die out. (Historians tend note WWII business closures in the early 1940s as a contributing factor.) But now, as niche, high-end perfume makes a comeback once more, British fragrance is back on the scene.

For this reason, British heritage fragrance house Penhaligon's is destined for huge things. In fact, Google saw a 300% rise in search around the brand in January alone. Halfeti is, perhaps, Penhaligon's most iconic and adored scent, and its profile lends itself to the themes of 2025 beautifully. It is rich, woody and deeply leathery, but possesses a surface-level freshness that ensures it never becomes too much.