Sources & Methodology
Olfactionary's entries are written by triangulating facts across multiple independent public sources, never by copying or paraphrasing a single source such as Fragrantica. Every entry carries a visible review-status badge so you know how far it has been checked.
Facts are not copyrightable; a particular arrangement of words is. Each entry is built from three or more independent public sources, such as brand pages, retailer listings, IFRA standards, PubChem, patents, academic papers, and Wikidata, then written fresh in Olfactionary's own structure. It is never a rewrite of one compiled source.
We use AI language models, including Claude, Gemini and models run through Groq, to help research, draft and organise entries, stories and Academy material, and to run data-cleanup jobs. A large share of the catalog was built this way, so please read it with that in mind.
AI drafts are not treated as final. Facts are checked against public sources, we audit AI-added entries from time to time, and we remove or blank anything we cannot verify. Entries still marked "drafted" below have not been independently checked.
AI can state wrong things with confidence. If you spot an error, please email hello@olfactionary.com and we will correct it.
● drafted, synthesized from sources, not yet independently checked.
● reviewed, spot-checked for factual accuracy.
● expert verified, signed off by a perfumer or chemist.
Every perfume page lists "notes," like bergamot or musk. A note describes what a perfume is meant to smell like, not a verified list of what's in the bottle, since real formulas are trade secrets nobody publishes. See Notes Are Not Ingredients for the full explanation.
We do not copy text or images from other perfume directories. Where a perfume page has no photo of its own, we sometimes show one from an authorized affiliate retail partner, credited, while we work on getting a real brand or reader photo. We do not imply endorsement or affiliation with any brand or perfumer named on this site; references to trademarked names are for identification only.
Decorative photography used site-wide is licensed free for commercial use under the Unsplash License: rose macro by Valerie Blanchett, glass bottles by Birgith Roosipuu. Individual perfume photos, where used, are credited on their own page.
Some "where to buy" and product links on perfume pages go through affiliate networks (Rakuten and CJ) to retailers such as Nicchia Luxury, Perfumania and FragranceShop, and some go through Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, Olfactionary earns from qualifying purchases. We may earn a commission on other purchases made through these links, at no extra cost to you. Links are marked as sponsored. The materials database and Historic Texts library contain no retailer links.
A library of public-domain and open-access perfumery texts, linked to their full text on Project Gutenberg, the Internet Archive and other open sources: Historic Texts.