10 Perfumes to Try If Your Taste Screams "Baccarat Rouge!" But Your Budget Cries "No!"

I've got you.

Bottle of Baccarat Rouge 540.
(Image credit: Nordstrom)
Jump to category:
By
last updated
Contributions from
in Buying Guides

In an industry where every other product is touted as the "best thing ever," "game-changing," "iconic," and "award winning" (I could go on and on), the *truly* magical players can get lost in the shuffle. In my time as a beauty editor, there have only been a few products that live up to the hype and buzz that have preceded them, and that pool gets even smaller when it comes to fragrance—a notoriously finicky genre that's so exceptionally personal it almost feels wrong to try to make a recommendation. After lots of anticipation and countless testimonials gushing over the magnetic olfactive powers of Maison Francis Kurkdjian's famed unisex number, Baccarat Rouge 540, I finally got my hands on a bottle. Let me just say… That first-ever sniff felt like a borderline religious experience.

It's hard to call a perfume perfect, as the most bewitching perfumes are typically anything but. Scent preference is incredibly subjective, but Baccarat Rouge 540 comes pretty damn close. It's dazzling, and a few hours post-spritz, I knew I was dealing with a true masterpiece. Yes, the glowing orb of obsession it's inspired since its 2015 inception feels about right.

The catch? It will cost you a pretty penny—$335 if I'm being exact. If your budget doesn't allow that kind of splurge at the moment, I've gone ahead and done the good deed of finding 10 very similar contenders—dupes, if you will—that give off the expensive and wonderfully poetic vibes sans sticker shock. In fact, not one clocks in at more than $185. You're welcome!

The Best Baccarat Rouge 540 Dupes at a Glance:

What Is Baccarat Rouge 540?

Born from the relationship between Maison Francis Kurkdjian and Baccarat to celebrate the crystal manufacturer's 250th birthday, Baccarat Rouge 540 is a very special perfume that was carefully crafted with very special ingredients.

"The woody scent releases a poetic alchemy, a highly condensed and graphic olfactory signature," the brand muses on its website. "Breezy jasmine facets and radiant saffron boost the ambergris mineral notes and the woody tones of freshly cut cedar. Bright and sleek, Baccarat Rouge 540 Eau de Parfum caresses the skin like an amber and woody floral whisper."

I mean, who doesn't want to be caressed by an amber and woody floral whisper? Even though I highly recommend MFK Baccarat Rouge 540 as a very worthy investment at some point in your life, $335 isn't a realistic price point to foist on you like it's nothing. (If I weren't a beauty editor, I would have never had access to such a treasure.) Keep scrolling for the best Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540 dupes money can buy without sacrificing an inch of luxury.

The 10 Best Baccarat Rouge 540 Dupes of All Time

Best Overall: Dossier Ambery Saffron

Best Value: Alt Fragrances Crystal No. 23

Best On the Go: Glossier You Solid

Best for Layering: DedCool Fragrance 04

Best Floral Dupe: Boy Smells Flor de la Virgen

Best Woodsy Dupe: Ellis Brooklyn Super Amber

Best Lightweight Dupe: St. Rose Circa 91

Best Salty Dupe: Jo Malone London Wood Sage & Sea Salt

Best Longevity: Henry Rose Last Light

Best Oil: Maison Louis Marie No.04 Bois de Balincourt

What Makes Baccarat Rouge So Iconic?

The luxe bottle is an objet d'art, but it's the fragrance's unique scent profile and impressive longevity that truly make it a crown jewel. See, Baccarat Rouge calls upon specific aromatic compounds, like hedione and ambroxan, to create a one-of-a-kind scent that smells unlike anything you own. The former ingredient—hedione—has a floral, jasmine-like quality that, according to Kurkdjian, is comparable to "a breeze of petals." Swoon. Ambroxan, on the other hand, is a synthetic version of ambergris that has a sweet, musky, animalistic profile. Together, these notes create a slightly sweet, slightly woody blend that's downright delicious. Pair that with opulent saffron—one of the most expensive spices in the world—and the blend smells even more complex and luxurious.

In terms of sillage (or scent trail), the majority of loyalists report six to eight hours of wear. If you shell out $475 for the highly concentrated extrait? Rest assured, you'll smell incredible for over 10 hours.

Of course, TikTok has a huge role to play in its legendary status. Baccarat Rouge 540 certainly received expert fanfare when it launched back in 2015, but there's nothing like a glowing endorsement (or 50) from the thriving #PerfumeTok community to cement a fragrance into the viral hall of fame. Countless users refer to the blend as the ultimate rich girl perfume, and each "I tried it" video concurs that this spendy bottle is truly worth the hype.

Which Celebrities Wear Baccarat Rouge 540?

If you've ever wanted to smell like Olivia Rodrigo, go ahead and grab yourself a bottle of Baccarat Rouge. "I like perfumes that have a natural musk," she told British Vogue in 2021. Chloe Fineman loves it too, telling Who What Wear that she introduced her sister to the luxurious blend. "I thought I was a genius for finding this secret smell," she joked. Finally, we can count Kacey Musgraves as a Baccarat Rouge fan, as eagle-eyed beauty fans have caught the extrait's unmistakable red bottle in the corner of her IG stories.

What to Look for in a Baccarat Rouge Dupe

One word: ambroxan. The complex note has a woody, musky profile that leaves a soft yet noticeable trail, which is why many skin scents feature the ingredient. This compound is what Do considers a contemporary musk, given its refreshing appeal compared to more classic notes in perfumery. "If you find yourself going down the rabbit hole and are attracted to the newer fragrances on the market, you will find fragrances that use contemporary musks in their offerings, which give you an opportunity to find something on par with the Baccarat Rouge brand," he shares.

Jasmine, cedarwood, and saffron will also be your North Star notes, but it's the ambroxan that gives the fragrance that luxe, dazzling dry-down. Great news! You can find it in a number of dupes listed above, like Glossier You, Boy Smells Flor de la Virgen, and Alt Crystal No. 23.

Why Trust Us

At Who What Wear, we know that beauty isn't one-size-fits-all. Over the years, our editors have tested thousands of products—including skincare, makeup, haircare, and nails—while also working closely with trusted experts, like renowned dermatologists, celebrity makeup artists, and other leading industry insiders. Together, this ensures every guide is well-researched, inclusive, and relevant to you.

We focus on formulas that deliver, whether they're affordable favorites or luxury investments. Our product selection is based on tangible results, ingredient know-how, and what we'd truly recommend to our closest friends and family members.

This article was originally published at an earlier date and has since been updated.

Erin Jahns
Beauty Director

Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over five years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor.

With contributions from
Latest
  • Camelia Farhoodi's vanity.
    From Perfume to Bedding—These Are the Random (But Great) Items I'm Loving Right Now

    My August favorites.

  • Photo Collage of street style and runway images featuring cobalt blue color trend at Copenhagen Fashion Week spring summer 2026 season.
    Copenhagen Fashion Week Just Made This 2016 Color Trend Feel Incredibly 2026

You might also like
View More ▸