9 Best Perfumes for College [For Men & Women!]

It is often said that college years are one’s best years. It is where you make long-lasting friendships and connections. For such a social space, you must make sure that your “best years” are also your “best-smelling” years.

The best perfume for college for both boys and girls is Tom Ford Black Orchid as it is unisex, long-lasting, resists environmental alteration, and is unique enough to make a distinct impression. Moreover, it is easily available online, making it accessible regardless of the college you go to.

People are different, though, and not one perfume compliments all. This article aims to help you find the one that suits you, whether you’re a girl or a boy, an artist, or a sportsman. Read further to find your fitting fragrance.

Factors to Consider When Buying a Perfume for College

Before you pick a perfume as a college student, you need to know the factors that will help you make the right buying decisions.

Environment Resistance

College life is fast-paced and, unlike a corporate workday, involves going into different environments with distinct odor-causing aspects. Your fragrance must retain its note integrity whether you were playing sports or grabbing a bite at the cafeteria.

Uniqueness

The social aspect of college life is a game of standing apart in positive and desirable ways. Getting a “nice” perfume that’s also worn by others wastes a good chance to stand apart in a memorable way.

Ease of Access

No matter the perfume you purchase, you must be able to get it over and over. This means forgetting about the charming bottle you picked up as a tourist in a foreign country. Your perfume is your signature, and you must set one that you can repeatedly use.

With these aspects established, we will dive deep into the first five options for college boys. The perfumes below do not just make up a vague compilation of “good enough” fragrances but are indeed best in each category, which is also mentioned in the subheading title.

Price of the Perfume

One of the most important factors to consider buying a perfume especially as a student is how expensive is the perfume. You may be getting the best of the perfume, but what is the price that you have to pay to get that perfume also makes a huge difference.

Rest assured, I’ve included perfume in varying price ranges so there is something for everyone on this list!

So, let’s get started, shall we?

Top Perfume Recommendation for College Students (Overview)

Before we deep-dive into each perfume recommendation and why I think it is the best for the said category, let us get a quick overview of the top recommendations summarized below –

1. Best Unisex Perfume for Boys & Girls: Tom Ford Black Orchid
2. Best Perfume Overall for College Boys: Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier
3. Best Perfume Overall for College Girls: Marc Jacobs Daisy
4. Best Perfume to Make a Mark: Versace Eros EDT
5. Best for College Sports Player: CREED Aventus
6. Best Perfume for Creative Students: Coffee Man Seduction
7. Best Budget Perfume for College Boys: Desire Blue by Dunhill
8. Best Budget Perfume for College Girls: Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker
9. Best Feminine Perfume for College Girls: Gucci Flora

1. Best Unisex Perfume for College Boys & Girls: Tom Ford Black Orchid Eau de Parfum

One perfume that suits both girls and boys really well is the Tom Ford Black Orchid Eau de Parfum.

The perfume has a dark floral heart, which speaks to the masculine while truffle and bergamot fruitiness retain hints of femininity, making the fragrance a gender-bending statement.

Not all girls have a feminine taste, and a college is surely a place where you can identify with your masculine side much more freely. Choose Tom Ford Black Orchid to express your alternative energy effortlessly. 

• Environment resistance: 9/10 – The unisex perfume is designed to withstand masculine body odor, which means the longevity of this perfume is quite high for the average woman.
• Uniqueness: 8/10 – Despite wide availability, the Tom Ford brand’s masculine appeal ensures that fewer women will purchase this product, making it unique to you in your college.
• Accessibility: 8/10 – You’ll be able to get this at most Tom Ford stores and online. The brand doesn’t seem to have any plans to discontinue the product.
• Price Rating: 3/10

2. Best Perfume Overall for College Boys: Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier

With winners in individual categories established, we come to the best perfume that comes close to being the undisputed champion for college boys. 

For such a perfume, the longevity, value for money proposition, availability, and uniqueness must all be top-notch. Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier has represented youth for, ironically, over 25 years. Its longevity in the market is parallel to its longevity on the body. 

The fragrance can stay active for up to eight hours, with mint and lavender taking a good two hours before fading into a citric heart of the orange blossom. Towards the end of the day, the fragrance becomes more amber and less fruit.

• Environment resistance: 9/10 – The perfume has received raging reviews over various forums and real life experiences definitely reflect the same! Unless you smoke or use tobacco products, the fragrance will persist in most environments.
• Uniqueness: 6/10 – The drawback of being good is the loss of anonymity. The perfume is too good to be ignored, and you can bet on finding at least one other person at your college who wears Le Male.
• Accessibility: 8/10 – Most perfume stores are likely to have this or will offer to get it from a supplier in a week or two. Alternatively, you can get it on Amazon and opt for faster delivery. Either way, 25+ years on the market signal that the fragrance is here to stay.
• Price rating: 7/10

3. Best Perfume Overall for College Girls: Marc Jacobs Daisy

This perfume is perfect for most college girls as it signals a wild yet feminine personality and has a sophisticated charm about it. Featuring strawberry and violet petals, the perfume is unmistakably feminine, and the statement is further established by a gardenia and jasmine conclusion.

• Environment resistance: 8/10 – The college environment doesn’t affect or modify any of the perfume’s intended effects. The top notes through the heart are crafted from quality sources. The bottom notes blend well with most environments as well.
• Uniqueness: 7/10 – Though popular, the perfume is not likely to show up more than once in any iteration of a college squad because of its relatively heavy price tag.
• Accessibility: 9/10 – Daisy by Marc Jacobs is available online, and the manufacturer doesn’t intend to recall or cut off the product’s supply given its popularity.
• Price Rating: 8/10

4. Best Perfume to Make a Mark: Eros Eau De Toilette By Versace

If you want to leave an impression without wearing a strong perfume (which leaves a bad impression), you need to choose a fragrance that is subtle yet noticeably different. 

The perfume must feature notes familiar with most fragrances worn by your respective gender yet have a distinct identity. Wearing such perfume means people will have a similar reaction to you as you do when you see someone who looks like you have met them, yet you can’t place their face.

This contradiction of the strange and familiar leaves people wondering, a reaction that’s pretty good for a college boy. The green apple and mint in the top notes of this perfume lend the familiarity of most “cool” male fragrance products. 

It has a hint of aftershave in texture towards the experience’s end but right off the bat, there’s Italian lemon and later floral notes like germanium, making the perfume quite distinct despite its initial familiarity.

• Environment resistance: 7/10 – This perfume features cool and bold top notes that don’t get altered easily by the environment. However, the floral heart of the fragrance is vulnerable to spices and body odors and can be easily lost in a smelly food court or an active football court.
• Uniqueness: 8/10 – Eros was launched in 2012 by Versace and has stayed popular with the product’s initial patrons, which ensures continued production. However, most college students flock towards newly launched products or heavily advertised ones like Sauvage, making past releases like Eros quite unique in a college.
• Accessibility: 10/10 – Eros is a Versace fragrance which makes it a pretty secure bet. The manufacturer won’t go under anytime soon, and you’ll be able to buy multiple bottles off of Amazon when you run out.
• Price Rating: 9/10

5. Best for College Sports Players: Creed Aventus

As a sports player in college, you need a perfume that won’t betray you the moment you start sweating.

Make no mistake, no perfume can replace the need to shower, but a bold fragrance that can take a lot of punishment from the body’s natural oils makes sure you don’t have the “jock smell” that turns off women and men alike.

Creed Aventus is rich but not overpowering because it retains a fruity flavor that doesn’t invade the nostrils yet keeps subtler odors at bay.

With most fragrances, the expense is a drawback, but if you play sports, an expensive fragrance like Aventus can help break the habit of showering in perfume, cologne, or deodorant.

• Environment resistance: 9/10 – Creed’s ingredient quality ensures that the perfume doesn’t abandon you the moment you step into the court to play a game. The hints of blackcurrant leaves and patchouli are most prominently environment resistant.
• Uniqueness: 9/10 – While the fragrance is well advertised and quite accessible, it remains unique in the college context simply because it is out of most students’ budget.
• Accessibility: 10/10 – Creed Aventus has achieved enough popularity to become a sub-brand with off-shoot products, so it is safe to conclude that there’s no risk of sudden discontinuation. The product has been on the market for over a decade.
• Price Rating: 0.5/10 – The downside of this perfume is that it is extremely expensive. If you are looking for sports scent on a budget that lasts long, go for Armaf Club de Nuit (on Amazon)

6. Best Perfume for Creative Students: Coffee Man Seduction

Whether you’re a theatre major or in the local debate club, you’ll likely stand apart from the sports crowd. The intellectual and the artistic men must use fragrances that convey a sophisticated yet masculine theme.

Coffee Man Seduction creates an interesting contrast between wooden notes and hints of fruitiness, but the most distinct aspect of this scent is its coffee aroma.

Most coffee fragrances miss the point by being too overpowering and ending up smelling like a can of coffee grounds. Coffee Man Seduction walks the tightrope of fruitiness and coffee notes.

• Environment Resistance: 9.5/10 – While being in a debate club or joining the art society doesn’t require a fragrance that has to resist elements in the environment, this perfume is one of the most durable ones on this list. You don’t have to worry about it wearing off or getting altered by the environment.
• Uniqueness: 8/10 – This particular play between the fruity notes, warm woods, and an underlying consistent coffee theme is pretty unique. However, it will resemble some floral coffee scents as well as light roast coffee fragrances to the uneducated nose.
• Accessibility: 6.5/10 – The greatest concern with this fragrance is its possible supply shortage if the manufacturer chooses to stop making it. But as long as you order enough bottles in the first go, you don’t need to worry about the supply running out. 
• Price Rating: 8/10

If Coffee Man Seduction becomes unavailable at any point, you will have the option to pick a coffee fragrance, a citrus perfume oil, and amber essence to recreate a similar result.

7. Best Budget Perfume for College Boys: Dunhill Desire Blue

Right off the heels of an incredibly expensive fragrance, we must discuss a budget-friendly option. While the best thing about such fragrances is their low price, the problematic aspect also happens to be the low cost, which many students can take as a license to shower in perfume.

Therefore, the best fragrance is one that isn’t too invasive when over-applied. And for that, Dunhill Desire Blue is the clear winner with its aquatic theme, Bergamot at the top, and amber crystals at the tail-end. 

The perfume comes off as much more expensive than it is, perhaps because it has achieved economy of scale across nearly two decades of being on the market.

• Environment resistance: 6/10 – The perfume lasts a good 6 hours as long as you’re not too active or in smelly environments. For a college student, this time might be cut short to 4 hours depending on the level of activity.
• Uniqueness: 7/10 – Despite being a classic, this fragrance hasn’t really been in stores and is mostly bought online. There’s a high chance very few people at your college will be wearing this perfume.
• Accessibility: 7/10 – The perfume’s history in the market lends confidence that it isn’t going away anytime soon. However, it is not available in most physical stores as precious shelf-space is reserved for new products, well-marketed fragrances, and expensive items.
• Price Rating: 9.5/10

8. Best Budget Perfume for College Girls: Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker

College life is much better when you save money! Fortunately, there’s a penny-pinching option in SJP’s Lovely, a fragrance that features white amber, lavender, and apple martini, among other notes.

• Environment Resistance: 7.5/10 – The perfume is long-lasting unless you’re a cheerleader or on a sports team with a high-intensity training regimen.
• Uniqueness: 6/10 – Though this fragrance features a unique blend, its popularity among the college demographic makes it hard to be the only one wearing it.
• Accessibility: 9/10 – This fragrance is fairly accessible in ordering options as well as price.
• Price Rating: 10/10

9. Best Feminine Perfume for College Girls: Gucci Flora

College is a new start for your social life, and you get to decide how feminine you wish to be. For girls who identify deeply with their feminine energy, a perfume that complements this identity can be a game-changer. 

And with citrus and peony at the top, Gucci Flora is a true game-changer that conveys feminine elegance all the way to its pink pepper and sandalwood conclusion.

• Environment resistance: 4/10 – Do not expect the perfume to persist if you’re physically very active.
• Uniqueness: 9/10 – Despite being a Gucci product, not many college girls are likely to opt for this fragrance, leaving room for you to make a mark.
• Accessibility: 10/10 – This is one of the easiest to acquire fragrances on this list because of big-business backing.
• Price Rating: 7/10