As the sun begins to get closer, you may find that springtime fragrances become too heavy for the heat. Even those who tend to stick to a single signature scent may begin itching for something new in the searing heat.
Therefore, this guide will reveal the top 10 best men’s fragrances for summer:
- Creed Aventus
- Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio
- Kenzo Pour Homme
- Montblanc Explorer
- Armaf Club de Nuit Intense Man
- Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue
- Issey Miyake Eau Super Majeure d’Issey
- Ralph Lauren Polo Blue
- Versace Eros
- Azzaro Chrome
You can use the links above to jump ahead or scroll down to read about them all.
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Overview
- Fragrance Family: Fruity Chypre
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Office
- Longevity: 4/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
Offering sprightly fruity notes such as pineapple and blackcurrant, Aventus is reminiscent of a fresh cocktail. A floral bouquet with birch and patchouli also soothes under the sun with a light heart. Finally, crisp oak moss and vanilla provide bright notes along with a marine ambergris finish.
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Pineapple, Cassis, Apple, Bergamot
- Heart: Rose, Jasmine, Birch, Patchouli
- Base: Oak Moss, Vanilla, Ambergris
"A luxurious summertime scent and our top recommendation."
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Aquatic Aromatic
- Seasonality: Summer
- Occasion: Office
- Longevity: 3/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
By contrasting sharp citrus notes against a consistent sea-breeze aroma, Acqua di Giò is a renowned summer fragrance. Its sun-kissed beach connotations are then further extended by ambergris and calone with touches of peach and freesia for a mouthwatering heart.
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Bergamot, Lime, Jasmine, Neroli
- Heart: Calone, Peach, Freesia, Rose
- Base: Oak Moss, Cedar, Ambergris
Also Featured In
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Aquatic Aromatic
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Casual
- Longevity: 4/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
A veritable marine adventure, Kenzo Pour Homme offers an experience akin to calm blue ocean and lazy seaweed swaying with driftwood under the glaring sun. A salty seaweed head interacts with mahogany before an aromatic heart, which leads to an ambergris and cedar base.
Read More: Kenzo Pour Homme Review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Seaweed, Bergamot, Mahogany
- Heart: Geranium, Jasmin, Sage, Cloves
- Base: Oak Moss, Patchouli, Cedar, Ambergris
Also Featured In
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Woody Aromatic
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Office
- Longevity: 4/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Worth The Price?
Often unfairly regarded as a clone of Creed Aventus, Explorer offers a unique experience of its own. A bracing fragrance with a combination of refreshing notes, it’s an excellent and affordable option for summer. We’re also big fans of the 30ml travel atomisers for when travelling on vacation.
Read More: Montblanc Explorer review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Bergamot, Clary Sage, Peppermint
- Heart: Vetiver, Guaiacwood, Cocoa
- Base: Labdanum, Patchouli, Agarwood
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Woody Fruity Musk
- Seasonality: Summer
- Occasion: Casual
- Longevity: 5/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
If you’re on a tighter budget and can’t afford Creed Aventus, you should really consider CDNIM! A cult favourite in the fragrance community, it’s essentially an Aventus clone. While it won’t offer you the same premium experience, it’s still a great option.
Read More: Club de Nuit Intense Man Review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Cassic, Lime, Pineapple Leaf, Apple
- Heart: Rose, Jasmine, Birch
- Base: Ambergris, Patchouli, Vanilla
Also Featured In
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Citrus Aromatic
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Casual
- Longevity: 3/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
Although it offers a refreshing citrus head, we’re particularly fond of its aromatic notes. Its hints of juniper with rosemary aromas will both provide a tantalising skin scent while also a seductive scent bubble.
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Grapefruit, Juniper, Bergamot
- Heart: Rosemary, Rosewood, Pepper
- Base: Olibanum, Labdanum, Oakmoss
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Woody Aquatic
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Office
- Longevity: 3/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
A refreshing and inoffensive yet gourmand experience, l’Eau Super Majeure d’Issey delivers initially aromatic and citrus notes. However, it reveals an alluring combination of tonka bean and cashmeran, the latter resembling wool and amber. Perfect for balmy summer nights!
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Rosemary, Clary Sage, Lime, Basil
- Heart: Cashmeran, Sea Salt, Patchouli
- Base: Tonka Bean, Vanilla, Guaiacwood, Sandalwood
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Aromatic Fougère
- Seasonality: Spring & Summer
- Occasion: Casual
- Longevity: 2/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Worth The Price?
Opening with refreshing melon and cucumber notes, Polo Blue is an ideal fragrance for particularly searing days. Delicate aromatics in the heart extend the crisp tones before a white amber base complemented by earthy patchouli and exhilarating oak moss.
Read More: Ralph Lauren Polo Blue review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Melon, Clementine, Cucumber
- Heart: Geranium, Sage, Basil, Leather
- Base: Patchouli, Oak Moss, White Amber
Also Featured In
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Aromatic Fougère
- Seasonality: All Year
- Occasion: Romantic
- Longevity: 4/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
A wonderfully versatile concoction, Eros can be worn throughout the year for a variety of occasions. However, it shines its brightest during summer. In this season, its fruity head and amber heart correspond perfectly to the season’s atmosphere.
Read More: Versace Eros Review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Mint, Lemon, Apple
- Heart: Tonka Bean, Geranium, Ambroxan
- Base: Vanilla, Cedar, Vetiver, Oak Moss
Read More
Overview
- Fragrance Family: Aromatic Citrus
- Seasonality: Summer
- Occasion: Office
- Longevity: 3/5
- Pricing:
Why Is It Good For Summer?
Davidoff Cool Water is probably the first that comes to mind when you think of summer fragrances. Indeed, it held this spot for many years. However, it has been recently replaced by Azzaro Chrome, which is similar but somewhat more refined and more contemporary despite being a product of the 1990s as well.
Read More: Azzaro Chrome Review
Seasonality
Aroma Profile
- Head: Rosemary, Bergamot, Lemon, Pineapple Leaf
- Heart: Oakmoss, Coriander, Neroli, Jasmine
- Base: Rosewood, Cedarwood, Tonka Bean, Labdanum
What Links A Cologne To A Season?
Through the power of association, olfactory memory can liken a specific smell with a memory or experience. This tangible imagery is an aspect that makes fragrances both attractive and desirible.
As memories can often be bound to a place or a time, it’s not surprising that they can also be associated with seasons. Furthermore, both memory and smell can be quite potent, which can lead them to provoke certain emotions.
Therefore, a gifted perfumer will endeavour to draw out these emotional responses. This is achieved by developing a fragrance to which the wearer and his or her entourage can easily relate.
Our individual experiences and environments can also affect the way we associate aromas with such seasons. However, nature can be something of a unifying constant, which can bring us together.
How Do You Define A Summer Fragrance?
If you were to sit back and reminisce, how would you describe summer? Of course, your geographical location may play a role in this. However, many people will imagine the classic sea, sand, and sun ideal.
In terms of smell, we could often conjure imagery of suntan lotion, cool waves, hot sand as well as seawood or moist wood drying under the sun. Alternatively, we could consider more inland locations and think about fresh fruit, drying herbs, cool rocks, and freshly cut grass.
Common Summertime Notes
Therefore, it’s not surprising that many summer fragrances will evoke these notions with tangible and vivid aromas. A particularly common note is calone, a synthetic aldehyde that smells both cool and fresh.
As you may have noticed in the list above, the majority feature this note and may well have it as an ingredient. Although it’s artificial, it’s particularly evocative of cool ocean waves as well as sun cream.
At its most effective, calone is often paired with similar aromas. The sea-breeze sentiment is usually extended by adding ambergris, which is a type of musk extracted from whales. Today, its use is prohibited. However, perfumers have discovered ambroxide as a synthetic alternative.
Overall, ambergris is a note that can be likened to a fresh and oceanic white musk. Sometimes it’s associated with pipe tobacco or even earth. Nevertheless, it offers a potent summertime odour.
Likewise, aromatics and fruit are a particularly popular choice. Sage, mint, and basil are quite common and some fruits such as pineapple and melon are constantly gaining traction. After all, even if you don’t relate them to fresh fruit, you may enjoy them in a summertime cocktail.
Finally, fresh woody tones are often quite effective when incorporated in summer fragrances. The most common of these is oak moss, which is similar to freshly-cut grass. Another frequent choice is cedar, which when paired with calone can make a particularly fresh note.
What Next?
If you liked perusing our selection of the best summertime colognes, don’t forget that you can also see what we suggest for other seasons. Just jump back to the top to see what we offer in our other guides. Alternatively, see all our other fragrance resources, including these:
Men’s Fragrances Contents
My body chemistry seems to have a problem with summer scents (and a few spring scents), but fall and winter scents seem to work very well. Summer scents generally seem to smell like seaweed on my skin (especially the top notes), with a handful smelling better once they progress to the heart and base notes.
I know that Polo Blue seems to work ok, and I have not tried Aventus yet, but most summer scents are a non-starter. So I think it’s related to the Aquatic Aromatic family and probably more specifically the calone or ambroxan/ambroxide. Can you suggest a few more scents that I might be able to try for the upcoming summer?
Hi Sean,
Skin issues with calone and ambroxan aren’t uncommon and you’re not the only one. If this is the case, I would try to stay closer to the Aromatic or Woody families of fragrances. It’ll be a little bit more challenging for you to find something appropriate but it’s certainly appropriate.
A potential option would be to stick to springtime fragrances. Cerruti 1881 or even Paco Rabanne Pour Homme are both solid choices. However, be wary that they can be a little heavy during summer’s peak.
With that said, I would recommend that you do at least try Aventus as its high quality ingredients tend not to turn on different skin types.
Let me know how it goes and feel free to ask more questions if you have any!
Best,
CP
Thank you, Charles-Philippe. I had considered extending some of my spring scents an extra 4-6 weeks as a stop gap. I will definitely test out Aventus, Pour Homme, and Cerruti 1881. As long as I have 2-3 scents for each season, I should be good to go!
Fantastic, Sean. Glad to be of service!
Hi I am patrick from Malaysia. I would like to ask regarding perfume. My country weather will be hot and humid for whole year. Then which category perfume do you will suggest? Summer, spring, winter or autumn? Thank you
Hi Patrick,
Summer would probably be your best bet, yes!
Cheers,
CP
Summer is on it’s way and I’m looking for a night/date/romantic fragrance that is at it’s best in the summer, warm nights. Now I know Bleu de Chanel, Versace Eros and Creed Aventus (+clones/similar CDNIM, Chanel Allure Homme Sport and Montblanc Explorer?) are good choices, but I already have these and looking for a change up. I prefer premium fragrences usually as EDP or Perfume.
Ever reviewed any of Tom Ford’s fragrences?
Hi Jonas,
No, we haven’t yet reviewed any Tom Ford fragrances, I’m afraid. Have you considered Guerlain to mix things up a bit? There’s Guerlain Homme (Eau Boisée), l’Homme Idéal Cologne, and l’Homme Idéal Sport.
Best,
CP
They are on the higher price end, but if that’s not an issue for you, I would highly (highly) recommend the folks at Parfums De Marly. The main ones that come to mind, for Spring/Summer from their house are Darley, Sedley, Percival & Galloway (though I’m sure I’m missing 1 or 2). You can find them at discounters but even still, they’re going to be more than an Eros, as an example, but they have unbelievable scents.
I’d obviously recommend doubt research & even more so, getting testers at stores, but their quality for just about every product is outstanding.