Perfume concentrations: what the percentages really say
Every perfume page in the world shows the same figures: 2 to 4% for an eau de Cologne, 5 to 15% for an eau de toilette, 15 to 20% for an eau de parfum, 20 to 40% for an extrait. They have been copied for so long that they have taken on the look of a standard.
They are not one. No text imposes them, and it is enough to look at our own pages to see that they overlap. Here is what these words mean, and what they do not say.
One term per bottle, from the airiest to the densest — all of them in the catalogue.
What the regulation says — and what it does not
The text governing perfumes sold in Europe is Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products. It sets safety, composition, labelling and the list of allergens to be declared.
Nowhere does it define “eau de parfum”, “eau de toilette” or “extrait de parfum”. These expressions appear only once, in recital 7, cited as examples of cosmetic products — without the slightest numerical threshold. Article 2, which carries the definitions, defines only “cosmetic product”, “substance”, “mixture”, “nanomaterial” and a few other technical notions. In the United States, the FDA accepts these terms on the label without requiring a percentage.
In other words: the term is a choice made by the house, not a regulatory category. It conveys an intention — a denser writing, a smaller bottle, a higher price — and not the crossing of a legal threshold.
The proof from our own catalogue: the terms do not line up
If the term were a threshold, wear times would line up neatly, each category above the one before. That is not what our 203 active fragrances show. Here is first how they break down, as of 27 July 2026:
| Term | Fragrances in the catalogue |
|---|---|
| Eau de toilette | 2 |
| Eau de parfum | 107 |
| Parfum | 9 |
| Extrait de parfum | 81 |
| Absolu de parfum | 2 |
| Élixir de parfum | 1 |
Two families carry most of the catalogue: eaux de parfum and extraits. And when they are ranked by wear, they do not follow one another, they overlap. Our most tenacious eaux de parfum outlast a good share of our extraits; our lightest extraits are outlasted by a good share of our eaux de parfum. A customer choosing “extrait” in the belief of mechanically buying more wear than an “eau de parfum” would often be wrong.
You will find no duration in hours on our product pages. How long a fragrance lasts depends on the skin, the season, the gesture — we cannot guarantee it, so we do not write it. Our pages indicate a tendency, never a figure promised. It is the same reason that makes concentration percentages unreliable: they give an intention, not a result.
The six terms we carry
Our catalogue does not use the six categories of the usual guides: we have no eau de Cologne and no “essence de parfum”. Here are the ones that actually exist, from the lightest to the densest.
Eau de toilette
The airiest. Top notes dominate, the fragrance settles quickly and withdraws just as fast. Two in the catalogue, both from L’Artisan Parfumeur: Timbuktu, a woody chypre signed by Bertrand Duchaufour, and Mûre Musc.
Eau de parfum
The most widespread form by far: 107 of our 203 fragrances. This is the writing of balance — enough material for the heart and base to unfold, enough lightness to be worn all day. For example Vanilla Powder by Matière Première, composed by Aurélien Guichard, or Royal Bourbon by Plume Impression.
Parfum
The word used on its own, without “eau de”. Nine references here, all from Matca, which has made this term its signature: Midnight Honey, Lurra, House of Elixirz.
Extrait de parfum
The second most present form: 81 references. Dense material, a trail often more intimate but more tenacious, a few drops are enough. The three extraits of AB Signature Paris’s Îles Paradisiaques collection are a good example — Oro Rojo, Karès Blan and Ahi Pō.
Absolu de parfum
A house term, used at BDK Parfums for its most concentrated writings: Oud Paradisio and Stellar Silk.
Élixir de parfum
The rarest on our shelves — a single reference: L’air du désert Marocain Noir by Tauer, the densest rereading of a house classic.
What concentration does not tell you
Three things are regularly confused, and the term guarantees none of them:
- Wear — how long the fragrance remains perceptible on the skin. It depends as much on the materials used as on their quantity: a light musk can outlive a far more concentrated citrus accord.
- Sillage — the distance at which others perceive it. Some extraits are deliberately discreet, worn close to the skin.
- Intensity — the strength felt in the first instant, which owes most to the writing of the top notes.
A dense, discreet fragrance exists. So does a light, invasive one. That is the perfumer’s work, not a percentage. We devote an article to each of these three notions: intensity, sillage and wear are three different things, and how long should a fragrance last.
How to choose, in practice
Three simple markers, worth more than a table of percentages:
- The gesture before the category. The denser the material, the less of it is needed: two touches on the pulse points for an extrait, a more generous spray for an eau de toilette.
- The season changes how it feels, not the formula. Heat amplifies diffusion: a fragrance that feels right to you in winter can become invasive in July. That is a reason to go lighter on the hand, not to change the term on the bottle.
- Your skin is the only judge. Two people wearing the same bottle do not get the same wear from it. That is why we offer trial sizes: they cost less than the wrong bottle.
And if you are looking first for an olfactory direction rather than a concentration, our guide to the olfactory families runs through the nine great families, each illustrated by fragrances from our shelves.
Sources: Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (recital 7 and Article 2), available on EUR-Lex; survey of the PlanèteBeauty catalogue as of 27 July 2026, 203 active references. The breakdowns by term come from that survey; we publish no wear duration, neither on this page nor on our product pages.