If you want to know what are the best mens cologne are in 2021, then you’re in the right place.

Here’s the deal:

After weeks of researching and testing 143 different men’s fragrances, we’ve finally rounded up our top picks of the best men’s cologne for 2021.

The results?

All of our highest rated picks smell amazing, have good lasting power and received overwhelming positive ladies reactions.

In fact:

We believe these are the best-of-the-best colognes available today.

The good news?

In this post we are going to share our results with you.

Sound good? Let’s do this!

In a hurry?

Our Top 3 Picks:

• 1. Creed Aventus
• 2. Dior Sauvage EDT
• 3. Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio Profumo

Jump Links

• Things to Consider When Choosing a Cologne
• How Did We Choose?
• Things to Watch Out For
• We’ve Got You Covered
• What Are Fragrances?
• What’s The Difference Between Cologne, Eau de Toilette, Perfume and Eau de Parfum?
• 10. Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue Eau Intense
• 9. Jean Paul Gaultier Ultra Male
• 8. Carolina Herrera CH Men Prive
• 7. Versace Dylan Blue
• 6. John Varvatos Artisan Pure
• 5. Versace Eros
• 4. Prada L’homme Prada EDT
• 3. Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gio Profumo
• 2. Christian Dior Sauvage EDT
• 1. Creed Aventus (Classic Version)

Let’s be honest…

Choosing a good scent can be a difficult task. (especially if it’s a gift.)

We’ve just spent weeks on it ourselves, researching and testing all kinds of different fragrances from different brands across a wide range of different price points.

But don’t worry…

We’ve done all of the hard work for you.

Now we will show you below the best ones to get.

Be sure to also check out our Best Perfumes for Women list.

Seasons and Temperature

Some important things to consider when you’re choosing a cologne are the season (temperature) and the scenario the scent will be used.

Why is that important?

Fragrances that are designed to be worn in the winter season are more powerful and sweet smelling.  These scents will quickly become sickly smelling if applied in the hot summer heat.

Don’t be that guy!

Now:

A scent designed for the summer will typically be fresh smelling and not perform as well in the colder winter months.

To see the best fragrances for the high heat check out our top 10 best summer cologne list out and for the cold weather check out our best winter colognes list

But that’s not all…

Situations

Some scents are best suited towards casual wear, some for formal situations and some for romantic date settings.

What am I talking about?

Let me show you an example:

A fragrance that was designed for a teenager to rock in the club would be a terrible choice for you to wear at work!  Don’t make this mistake.

On top of all this, scents can even be geared towards daytime and night-time usage.

That said:

Many fragrances are designed to be used for all seasons and situations, making them very versatile.  These types of scent could make a perfect signature scent for you.

confused?

Don’t be.

We’ve took all the guesswork out of choosing the perfect scent for you.

The best part:

In the descriptions below, we inform you the best season and the perfect situation each of the colognes will perform best in, making it super easy for you to choose.

The criteria for our selections was simple:

We aimed only to select fragrances that were of a high quality to justify the price, have good lasting power and most importantly, they had to smell amazing!

All of our top picks fit the bill and they got overwhelmingly positive ladies reactions.

Here’s the truth:

The price of a fragrance does not always factor how good smelling or how long lasting the fragrance is. Expensive does not always = good!Click To Tweet

Look:

Some super expensive niche fragrances we tested smelled terrible, one even smelled like an old church.

Some, even though they did smell great, only lasted an hour on the skin before disappearing into thin air!

Now:

We think a good cologne should have decent lasting power to justify the price.

That’s why any fragrance that we tested that had poor lasting performance was immediately excluded from the list, even if they did smell amazing.

That said:

Some of the cheaper designer fragrances we tested smelled amazing, had high quality ingredients and lasted for hours.

So be sure to also check out our best cheap cologne list out to discover some super affordable fragrances that smell amazing.

Here’s the truth:

Many world class perfumers are the same “noses” who create both the super expensive niche fragrances and cheaper designer fragrances. So you can’t simply expect that paying more money gets you a better smelling cologne.

Many companies often reformulate the ingredients of their fragrances, sometimes due to new EU Regulations.

This is a HUGE problem.

This is why your favorite best smelling cologne, that used to perform 9 hours after a single application, suddenly lasts for only 3 hours and doesn’t smell as good as you remembered it.

It gets worse…

Now, to make it last 9 hours, you have to keep reapplying the scent every few hours, using up more of the product.

This is a waste of money!

We keep on top of the fragrance game, so you don’t have to worry about any of these pitfalls.

Now:

The formulations of our latest top picks all have good longevity, smell amazing and are sure to get you boat loads of compliments.

If any of our picks gets reformulated, we will be sure to retest them and update the list.

To be honest:

There’s no one fragrance that works for everyone, but we think you will find a great match here.

Below are our top rated picks of the best cologne for men.

But first, a quick primer on fragrances….

Let’s dive in:

Fragrances are complex scented mixtures of extracts from natural sources (essential oils) and/or synthetic raw materials that are blended with solvents and fixatives to produce a pleasing liquid scent.

And:

The final product is known by many terms – Perfume, Cologne, Eau de Toilette, Aftershave etc.

Different names are used to describe the concentration of the pure perfume oil in the fragrance. The higher the concentration of pure perfume oil – the greater the strength of the fragrance.

In short:

The strength usually will determine how long an application of the fragrance lasts on your skin and how much the scent will project (but this is not always the case, as our testing revealed)

The most common terms you will see are:

Listed from strongest to weakest concentration.

• Parfum Extrait (Perfume Extract) Contains 15–40% perfume oils. This is the most expensive and strongest concentrated of all options.
• Eau de Parfum (EdP) Contains 10–20% perfume oils. Sometimes called “Eau de Perfume” or “Millésime.” This is the strength usually sold as “Perfume.”
• Eau de Toilette (EdT) Contains 5–15% perfume oils. This is the most common strength sold in men’s fragrance.
• Eau de Cologne (EdC) Contains 3–8% perfume oils. Most simply called “Cologne.”

Anyway…

In modern day usage, the terms “Cologne” and “Aftershave” have now incorrectly become a generic term for any fragrance marketed towards men, no matter what the concentration of pure perfume oil contained in them is.

The same way “Perfume” is used generically to describe any fragrance for women, no matter what the concentration is. So technically you can have “Mens Perfume.”

Light Blue Eau Intense is a much better smelling and more improved version of the already loved original Light Blue.

Can you say jackpot?

Now, to be clear:

This newer release is a stronger Eau de Parfum concentration, making it perform better and last much longer.

Light Blue Intense is a fresh citrusy scent with a fruity aquatic vibe. It’s very smooth and  well blended.

And it smells AMAZING.

Perfect for the summer months and can also be used in the spring and fall. Great for dates and casual use and would make a great holiday beach scent.

To discover some more amazing summer fragrances that work well in the high heat, check out our top 10 best summer cologne list out.

In short:

A very safe, mass appealing scent that will bag you a ton of compliments.

This is a sweet mass appealing scent.

Smells like the original Jean Paul Gaultier Le Male, but with a unique juicy pear note.

This ones best for the colder temperatures, think fall and winter.

Now:

This is a perfect clubbing fragrance. (See our #5 pick for the best clubbing fragrance on the market.) Also great for dates and casual wear. Super long lasting.

In fact:

Ultra Male was made by world renowned master perfumer Francis Kurkdjian, so you can be sure you’re getting a super high quality fragrance.

This can be worn by both teenagers and mature men.

Immense compliments on this one.

A masculine and boozy seductive scent.

Smells like woody, leather sweetness with a boozy whiskey accord. Rich and luxurious.

Now:

This is a very appealing scent with excellent lasting power that will garner you a LOT of compliments.

Don’t sleep on this one.

Best for colder seasons and evening use. A perfect date scent or for the bars and clubs.

Simply put:

One of the sexiest mens colognes on the market.

Another solid release from Versace. The women’s favorite mens cologne.

This is a very safe fragrance and would make the perfect gift for a loved one.

Now:

Dylan Blue smells very fresh and fruity with an underlying sweetness. Women love this.

The best part?

This is super versatile and can be worn in all seasons and for all occasions. Dressed up, casual, dates, office, clubbing, you name it.

But what you might not know is:

Dylan Blue makes an excellent cheaper alternative to the more expensive, Chanel – Bleu De Chanel, as they both have the same sort of vibe. In fact, we think Dylan Blue smells nicer! (So did our testers.)

Has good performance for a fresh fragrance and can be worn by both teenagers or mature men.

By the way, you can check out our best Versace cologne list here.

Long story short:

If you’re simply looking for a safe crowd-pleasing fragrance to wear in any season for almost any situation…

Get this.

A unique fresh and clean, inoffensive masculine scent.

This is a super high quality fresh citrusy floral fragrance. This is niche quality at a designer price.

Can you say jackpot?

Artisan Pure is a modern take on a summer freshie. Smells super fresh and uplifting.

In a word: Awesome.

Perfect for any occasion in the spring and summer. Has good lasting power and smells super unique.

Side note: The bottle looks gorgeous too.

Versace Eros is currently the best clubbing cologne on the market.

This is more suited for younger guys but can be worn by all ages.

Eros is a very playful scent, which makes it perfect for dates, nights out, bars and clubs. You get the idea 🙂

In fact:

This is THE fragrance for guys looking to attract women.

Smells like fresh apple with a minty vibe mixed with a creamy sweet woody backbone.

In plain English:

This smells phenomenal. 

By the way, you can check out our best Versace cologne list here.

Now, a quick word of warning:

This is for the cooler seasons and best suited for nights. Do not use this is the summer heat and go easy with the sprays. 🙂

The best part?

Versace Eros Lasts for hours and is a compliment monster!

This is currently Prada’s masterpiece.

To be clear:

Be sure to go for the Classic “Eau de Toilette” version as this is the best one. Prada also have a L’Eau, Intense, and Absolu versions, so be carefully while choosing.

(Speaking off… to see our favorite Prada colognes go here).

What it is:

L’Homme Prada is an amazing fresh, clean and luxurious smelling scent. It’s very elegant and mature smelling.

In fact:

L’Homme Prada contains high quality ingredients and an Iris note that makes it smell super unique.

Best for daytime use and formal situations. This is the best office cologne, perfect with a suit and tie. You can also use this for casual situations.

In short:

L’Homme Prada is a very safe, clean smelling scent, that will get you a lot of compliments.

What happens when you take the best selling mens cologne of all time, add some patchouli and incense, then make it smell even better and last longer?

You get Acqua Di Gio Profumo!

This has the DNA of the original Acqua di Gio but smells more mature and lasts nearly 2 times longer.

Smells like a fresh fruity ocean breeze with a slight woody note and hints of smoky incense.

In a word: awesome.

All seasons, all occasions, this is super versatile. Better suited for summer evenings than summer days.

Now:

Acqua Di Gio Profumo is a gorgeous fragrance that will give you an unbelievable amount of compliments.

And:

If you used to wear the original Acqua di Gio when you were younger then this one is a no brainer. 🙂

All ages, all seasons and all occasions. You can wear this one anytime.

Dior Sauvage is a mass appealing fresh spicy peppery smelling scent.

Now:

This opens with a blast of super fresh citrus mixed with spices. When it settles down you get a slightly fruity sweet spicy vibe with some woody nuances.

And it smells INCREDIBLE.

Fresh, Clean, Sexy, Classy.

Can be used all year round, shines in the warmer weather and gives long lasting freshness.

To be clear:

Go for the Eau de Toilette version, as this is the first and the best smelling concentration. You don’t need the Eau de Parfum version or new Parfum version, the EDT smells the best.

Make no mistake:

This ones a brutal compliment getter and crowd pleaser.

Creed Aventus is a super star in the fragrance community, and for good reason.

Creed are a Niche fragrance house and they use hand-selected super high quality ingredients in their fragrances, but they are also super expensive.

A sweet and fruity masculine scent. Very unique smelling, but mass appealing.

Smells like a pineapple, blackcurrant and apple combo, with underlying woods and musk. Lasts for hours.

The best part:

This can be used in all seasons and all occasions, day or night. Especially good for nights out and dates.

Here’s the thing:

When it was released in 2010 it was super unique, but now other fragrance houses are trying to copy it with their own similar versions. But Aventus is still the original and the best.

To discover what are Creed’s best smelling colognes be sure to check out our top 10 best Creed colognes list. 

Now:

Please be aware that Creed have just released a new different Creed Aventus Cologne version. They have similarities but smell different.

But:

The original Creed Aventus EDP version is our top pick. This ones a brutal compliment getter and head turner.

Is it worth the splurge? Absolutely. That’s if you want the best smelling mens cologne in the World. 🙂

We would love to hear from you

Do you agree with our picks? Did we miss any hidden gems?

What is your favorite cologne?

Or maybe you have a question.

Either way, please let us know by leaving a comment below right now.

Where to go from here?

I highly recommend checking out our Top 10 best summer cologne list and also our best cheap colognes for men for some amazing smelling budget friendly fragrance recommendations.

We hope you enjoyed our article and found this list useful.  If you did, we would love it if you would share it to your favourite social networks!