Fragrance clones have been around for a long time and while the names aren’t the same and even the notes aren’t the same, they smell so close that sometimes the clone is way better than the original (except for those clones like "Savage" instead of Sauvage lol). Some even go as far as to match the bottles (Maison Alhambra Amber & Leather is a really close rip of Tom Ford Ombre Leather in both smell and bottle design). Let’s jump right into it and let’s see how much money in total we can save!
- Creed Aventus -> Club de Nuit Intense Limited Edition
For the low price of $365 you can get a 50ml bottle of the most talked about fragrance in the community – Creed Aventus. But why spend so much on a 50ml bottle when you can spend around $55 for a 100ml bottle that smells exactly the same? Club de Nuit Intense Man (CDNIM) from Armaf has a lot of different concentrations, but I’ve found that the Limited Edition Parfum version smells the closest to Aventus. Pineapple, birch, and oak moss are some of the notes and the performance on the CDNIM is really impressive. I recently had my daughter smell Aventus followed by CDNIM and finally Montblanc Explorer and she was blown away that all three smelled so similar. Now, some people are purists and want to keep to buying the original fragrance, and that’s fine, but for me, grabbing CDNIM is an absolute steal.
Total savings buying Club de Nuit Intense Man Parfum = $310
- Parfums de Marley Layton -> Lalique White in Black
A 75ml bottle of Layton at full retail will sting your wallet for $235, but I have a clone that will cost you around $45 at almost twice the size (125ml). Lalique White in Black is one of those fragrances that I blindly bought from Decant House and had no clue what I was getting into. It wasn’t until I wore it a bunch and then inevitably bought my own full presentation bottle that I did the research and found it was a clone. What I also learned, after smelling the scent profile, that Zadig & Volatire’s This is Him is also a clone of Layton. Before you comment below, I know about Al Haramain’s Detour Noir and I’m also aware that this fragrance is cheaper than the Lalique clone, but I haven’t put my nose on this one yet, but I hear it’s really good. If you do not like patchouli, then stay away from this because it’s a patchouli, pink pepper and ambroxan masterpiece that is great for this fall season.
Total savings buying Lalique White in Black = $190
- Initio Parfums Oud for Greatness -> Lattafa Oud for Glory
Have you seen that Spiderman meme where there’s two Spidermen pointing at each other? I feel like that meme fits in perfectly with these two fragrances. A 90ml bottle of Oud for Greatness will set you back $385 (the most expensive in this list) however the clone from Lattafa (100ml) will only ding your wallet for a mere $20. From the bottle to the scent, it’s uncanny how close these two actually are. Lavender, oud, and patchouli are the main notes in this fragrance and even if you’ve never smelled Out for Greatness, Oud for Glory is a solid buy for a twenty spot.
Total savings buying Oud for Glory = $365
- Invictus Aqua -> Rasasi Hawas
I am not too keen on Invictus as a whole, as I’ve mentioned in the past. As a man in my middle age, I tend to shy away from fragrances that are specifically geared towards a younger audience, and Invictus is one of those lines that I tend to avoid. However, Rasasi Hawas is an amazing scent to me, even though it’s a clone of Invictus Aqua. Truly a scent that I actually enjoy. So why would I still avoid Invictus then, you ask? Well, on top of it being a fragrance not geared towards my generation, I also really hate the presentation. So, if I had an option to buy a bottle of Invictus Aqua (discontinued but 50ml still on Amazon) for around $110 or Rasasi Hawas (100ml) for around $40, I’m picking Hawas all day. Even if the prices were equal, presentation is always a deal breaker for me, and I’d still go for Hawas all day. This fragrance is very much a warmer type of scent with a lot of citrus notes as well as cardamon and patchouli, but I think you could get away with it in the fall if you wanted to.
Total savings buying Rasasi Hawas = $70
- Dior Sauvage -> Prada Luna Rossa Carbon
Macys, Ulta and Sephora are just a few retail stores that sells designer fragrances. I encourage anyone to go look at these sites, look at men’s fragrances and look at the top ten most popular and I’m betting all 4 concentrations of Sauvage will be listed on all three of their sites. The occasional Bleu de Chanel would slip into the top 10 with some other familiar faces like Versace Eros, but Sauvage is always there at the top. A 60ml bottle of Sauvage will cost you around $92, which honestly is the lowest cost item on this list. Don’t get me wrong, I DO own a bottle of Sauvage, and I do enjoy it, but Prada’s Luna Rossa Carbon is just as good, if not better than Sauvage for only $40. I personally bought a bottle of Carbon before I owned Sauvage and if I had to pick one and toss the other it would be Carbon that I would keep. Black pepper, lavender and ambroxan are the main notes and Carbon mimics these notes perfectly but is more smooth and less harsh than Sauvage.
Total savings buying Prada Luna Rossa Carbon = $52
Final Thoughts
There you have it, my top 5 clones that are worth your hard-earned money over the originals if you want to ball on a budget. So, how much money did we save? The grand total we would save by buying these five clones would be a whopping $990 ($1190 original vs $200 clones). Keep in mind, the original prices are full retail, and the clone prices are from discounters, but you can also find mostly all of these in-stock right here at Decant House. Give these ones a try and see if you can tell the difference. I’ll see you all in the next one!
