The Prettiest Rose Fragrances That Smell Like Spring in a Bottle

Balancing its floral elements of rose absolute and rose essence with warm, spicy notes like cumin, cedarwood, and amber, Rose 31 is a flexible, amorous scent that wears well both day and night, whether you’re at work, headed to a party, or out on a date. If you want to layer this scent to make it last as long as possible, or if highly concentrated eau de parfums just aren’t your thing, Le Labo’s Rose 31 also comes in the forms of body lotion and shower gel—all housed in Le Labo’s iconic apothecary-inspired packaging.

Tocca’s bold, semi-translucent fuchsia bottle looks as gorgeous as the perfume it contains smells. Gia is a bright floral scent that builds upon a base of warm and spicy notes (vanilla, amber, patchouli) with Turkish rose, ylang-ylang, and tuberose, ultimately closing out with fruity and spicy top notes of tangerine, bergamot, and pink peppercorn.

Created in collaboration with beauty TikToker Monet McMichael, Snif’s Rose Era is a playful fruity-meets-floral eau de toilette that, to put it simply, smells fun, blending delicious notes like strawberry and pear with delicate rose and aromatic ambrette. One of Rose Era’s more unique notes, which I’m admittedly surprised not to see in fragrances more often, given that it’s at the top of my “best smells in daily life” list: clean laundry. Plus, while many of the scents on this list have mini formats sold separately, every full-size bottle of this (already affordable) fragrance comes with a small travel-size tube to take with you wherever you go.

This spicy, invigorating eau de parfum brings unexpected undertones of rose to the table through its middle and base notes, making it an excellent option for those who normally feel averse to florals. Rich and earthy with a bit of fruitiness, I find Boozy Patchouli layers well with light, crisp woody scents, which help to bring out its peppery notes.

When I hear the words “floral perfume,” Flora Carnivora by Henry Rose is often the first fragrance that comes to mind. A bold, sophisticated scent that balances orange blossom and neroli with jasmine and tuberose over a warm, woody-spicy base, Flora Carnivora smells fresh and pretty, bringing a botanical vibe to any season. The brand sells a $35 mini size, too, so you can take the scent for a spin before you pick up the full size.

While many, if not most, fragrances focus on natural ingredients, Aeir takes a different approach by utilizing synthetic molecules—a choice the brand attributes to its unique stance on sustainability. Packaged in a minimalist refillable cylinder made of magenta aluminum, Grand Rose is an opulent scent that blends florals (rose water, iris, jasmine), fruit (rhubarb), and warm notes (cedarwood).

A deeply romantic scent, master perfumer Francis Kurkdijian calls L’eau À La Rose his “declaration of love translated into fragrance.” It is an unmistakably rose-starring scent, but the eau de toilette format—which contains lower concentrations of perfume oil than an eau de parfum—may make it a more appealing option for those who love rose, but find stronger scents to be overwhelming. (Even so, I’ve been very impressed with the longevity of L’eau À La Rose: I’ve had my own bottle for years and, despite my less-than-ideal storage habits, it has somehow retained its potency to this day.) Plus, its pretty pink shade exudes the buoyant energy of spring.

Toward the other end of the intensity spectrum comes Merit Beauty’s first foray into fragrance: Retrospect. At nearly 30 percent perfume oil, Retrospect is a highly concentrated, long-wearing scent that features clean floral notes (rose, jasmine, violet) and playful fruitiness atop a warm, friendly base of vanilla and musk—a unique blend of elements that comes together beautifully.

No list of the best rose perfumes would be complete without this fan-favorite pick, which Well+Good writer Alanna Martine Kilkeary deemed the top splurge on her list of the best floral scents on the market. Inspired by the prominence of flowers at traditional Indian weddings, Flowerhead features a heart of rose, tuberose, and jasmine topped with accents of citrus and berry, all sitting atop grounded bottom notes of amber and suede. Fair warning, though: Flowerhead is an intense scent and not for the faint of heart (or the apprehensive toward florals).

Named for By/Rosie Jane founder Rosie Jane Johnston, this pretty, bright perfume makes you feel like spring has sprung, and features a minimalist set of notes (sweet rose and nude musk) that somehow come together to form a sophisticated yet simple scent. It is a relatively strong floral, though, so if you’re feeling cautious toward rose as an ingredient, you may want to pick up the $29 travel size and try it out for a few weeks before investing in the larger bottle.

Mysterious and alluring, Dom Rosa is an imaginative fragrance that features a nostalgia-sparking blend of notes, which spans from clove and incense to rose, champagne, and cedar. (Plus, its bottle looks curiously like liquid blush—a side observation that, for whatever reason, feels like it adds to the scent’s charisma and romance.)

A fresh scent inspired by the salty, chilly shores of the New England coast, D.S. & Durga’s Rose Atlantic is the scent I’d urge anyone who’s normally resistant toward rose scents to try. Yes, it has a heart of rose resting amongst herbal notes of linden and grass, but it is not the type of fragrance the mind normally conjures up when envisioning a rose perfume. Breezy and enigmatic, it is a complex scent that’s hard to pinpoint (unless you’re reading the brand’s list of notes) and evolves throughout the day with wear.

Packaged in an opaque matte pink-and-black bottle, Rose Prick smells as sleek as it looks. This warm floral fragrance features a striking amount of rose balanced by peppery notes and is best suited for those who consider themselves unhesitant fans of florals. Ringing up at more than $250, it has one of the highest price tags of the bunch. Fortunately, it does come in a much less expensive travel size, allowing you to try it for a few months prior to springing for a full size.

As mentioned above, the wonderful thing about rose’s popularity as an ingredient in products is that you can find it across the entire beauty industry—not only in fragrance, but in haircare, makeup, and skincare, too. Jurlique’s Rosewater Balancing Mist is a classic skincare staple (in fact, it’s the first face mist I ever owned!), offering a refreshing spritz of rosewater that you can use on your face or, should you choose to wear it as an extremely lightweight scent, all over your body, which makes it a great option for those who find traditional fragrances overwhelming or who can’t wear perfumes in their homes or workplaces.

If hair products are more your thing, Gisou’s floral edition of its famous honey-infused hair perfume would make an excellent addition to your bathroom vanity. Specifically formulated to use on hair (unlike most perfumes, which tend to dry strands out), Gisou’s hair perfume adds softness and shine along with its blend of rose, honey, and vanilla notes.