Last Updated on November 22, 2023
Think you need to spend a fortune on perfume? Think again. M&S has a collection of incredible fragrances that smell just like your favourite luxury scents. Let’s be honest: designer perfumes are expensive. Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Jo Malone…most of our favourite perfume brands set you back around £100 for a bottle and often more – but should we really need to spend that much for a great fragrance?
While its hard not to associate designer brands and hefty prices with quality, this doesn’t always have to be the case, especially when it comes to fragrances. In fact, the perfumers behind most of our favourite designer brands are often the same people who work on the high street’s offering. A good case in point is Zara and Jo Malone collaborating on a perfume line, as well as H&M working with Olivier Pescheux, who also previously worked with Diptyque and Yves Saint Laurent.
Zara is widely known as having some of the best perfume dupes on the market, but M&S gives it a run for its money. All M&S’ perfumes are cruelty free and suitable for vegans, which is an added bonus for some and a down right necessity for others.
Interested? Keep scrolling for my favourite M&S fragrances that are dead-ringers for some of our favourite designer fragrances. Next, check out these amazing perfumes for autumn winter 2023 and don’t forget about Boots’ £10 Tuesday, when the drugstore discounts 50 products for 24 hours.
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The OG: Wood Sage & Sea Salt, £118, Jo Malone
Wood Sage & Sea Salt 100ml, £118, Jo Malone at Cult Beauty – buy now
The Dupe: Sea salt & Neroli Eau De Toilette, £12.50, M&S
Sea salt & Neroli Eau De Toilette 100ml, £12.50, M&S – buy now
M&S’ Sea salt and Neroli perfume has top notes of sea salt and mandarin, a middle note of neroli and base notes of musk, which work to create a delicious unisex perfume that works perfectly as a summer fragrance. The first thing I noted when I smelled it is that it’s a dead ringer for Jo Malone’s Wood Sage & Sea Salt. Both scents are earthy, salty and refreshing, so if you’re looking to save yourself some cash, this is a great alternative.
The OG: La Vie Est Belle, £44.80, Lancome
La Vie Est Belle 30ml, £44.80, Lancome at LookFantastic – buy now
The Dupe: Pink Pepper Eau de Toilette, £6, M&S
Pink Pepper Eau de Toilette 30ml, £6, M&S – buy now
M&S’s pink pepper eau de toilette has notes of orange blossom combined with pink pepper and white flowers, finished off with base notes of patchouli, vanilla and amber musks. The iconic Lancome perfume La Vie Est Belle smells very similar, with matching notes of patchouli and vanilla. While they don’t smell exactly the same, M&S’ beautiful fruity fragrance is almost 90% cheaper than the original at just £6.
The OG: Daisy Eau de Toilette, £67.90, Marc Jacobs
Daisy Eau de Toilette, £67.90, Marc Jacobs at LookFantastic – buy now
The Dupe: Gardenia & Vanilla Eau De Toilette, £12.50, M&S
Gardenia & Vanilla Eau De Toilette 100ml, £12.50, M&S – buy now
This M&S fragrance contains rich notes of vanilla and sandalwood, combined with sweet, flowery top notes of gardenia and grapefruit to create this distinctive eau de toilette. If you are a fan of the floral scent of Daisy by Marc Jacobs, this is a fantastic alternative at a very bank balance friendly price.
The OG: Black Opium Eau De Parfum, £87.50, YSL
Black Opium Eau De Parfum 90ml, £87.50, YSL at LookFantastic – buy now
The Dupe: Midnight Blossom Eau De Toilette, £10, M&S
Midnight Blossom Eau De Toilette 100ml, £10, M&S – buy now
Midnight Blossom eau de toilette blends layers of soft florals and warm, musky undertones with notes of sweet jasmine, tuberose and subtle amber. This is IMO one of the best dupes of YSL Black Opium I have seen and I wear Black Opium on repeat. I will for sure be stocking up on this M&S gem.
The OG: Good Girl Eau De Parfum, £90.40, Carolina Herrera
Good Girl Eau De Parfum 80ml, £90.40, Carolina Herrera at LookFantastic – buy now
The Dupe: Fresh Mandarin Eau De Toilette, £10, M&S
Fresh Mandarin Eau De Toilette 100ml, £10 – buy now
This M&S scent is a zingy, citrusy scent, with base notes of amber, vanilla and sandalwood, heart notes of jasmine, rose, tonka bean and ylang ylang and top notes of cassis, orange flower and mandarin. It is without a doubt a great dupe of Carolina Herrera’s Good Girl. Like all dupe fragrances, you may have to apply a little more often but that’s a small price to pay when you’re saving so much money!
The OG: Coco Mademoiselle Eau De Parfum, £114.92, Chanel
Coco Mademoiselle Eau De Parfum 100ml, £114.92, Chanel at LookFantastic – buy now
The Dupe: Soft Iris Eau de Toilette, £10, M&S
Soft Iris Eau de Toilette 100ml, £10 – buy now
M&S’ Iris eau de toilette is a beautiful floral scent, with top notes of iris, jasmine and bergamot, a middle note of orange blossom essence and base notes of vetiver, amber and patchouli. My TikTok feed is full of claims that this eau de toilette smells just like Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle and after buying a bottle, I have to say I agree on this one. Chanel’s is predictably more complex, but it has similar notes of bergamot, orange blossom, vetiver and patchouli, making their similarity undeniable.
The OG: No.5 Eau de Parfum, £122.50, Chanel
No.5 Eau de Parfum 100ml, £122.50, Chanel at Sephora – buy now
The Dupe: Velvet Amber Eau De Toilette, £10, M&S
Velvet Amber Eau De Toilette 100ml, £10, M&S – buy now
M&S’ Velvet Amber eau de toilette is hailed as an affordable rival to the iconic Chanel No. 5 scent as both perfumes offer notes of neroli, jasmine and amber. At £10, you’ve got absolutely nothing to lose by trying the M&S scent. Again, this isn’t as complex as the iconic Chanel perfume, but it’s definitely very similar!
