The dupes that lie about what they copy

Every dupe is sold on a promise: this bottle smells like that one. Most shops print the name of the original right on the listing. We wanted to know how often the promise holds — so we stopped reading the listings and started reading the people who actually wore them.

How we checked

For each twin, we read what wearers wrote about it — full reviews and short takes, in English and German — and asked one question: does it smell like the fragrance it is sold as? Where enough people had written about it, we scored the answer from 0 to 100. A twin needs at least two independent reviews before it gets a number at all. One voice is an opinion, not a consensus.

Across the 75 twins scored so far, the average lands at 63% — which is the honest headline: a dupe is usually in the family of its original, not a copy of it. But the spread is enormous, and the bottom of it is where people lose money.

Sold as one thing, worn as another

These are the twins that wearers say miss the mark most widely — 17 of them at 30% or less, down to 5% for Cocaigne, which is sold against Tom Ford Tuscan Leather. The name borrowed most often among them is Creed Aventus: a famous original is the easiest thing to put on a label.

1. 01 Oakcha · sold as a twin of Tom Ford Tuscan LeatherCocaigneCitrus‑floral dupe, not Tuscan Leather — and that's fine Wearers compare it to Intrusion 5%
2. 02 Bujairami · sold as a twin of Creed AventusKingsmanBlueberry sweet, not the king of fruits 8%
3. 03 Bujairami · sold as a twin of Le Labo Another 13Mysterious Blend 13Balman look‑alike, not Another 13 – and that’s fine Wearers compare it to Balman 12%
4. 04 Lattafa · sold as a twin of Creed AventusQaed Al Fursan UnlimitedA cheap Aventus copy that smells like a forge 15%
5. 05 Afnan · sold as a twin of Creed Aventus9PM RebelAfnan 9PM Rebel: Cheap citrus splash, far from Aventus 15%
6. 06 Riiffs · sold as a twin of Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540Goodness Oud RougeGoodness Oud Rouge: Cheap gourmand, far from Baccarat Wearers compare it to Hypnotic Poison EDT 15%
7. 07 Emper · sold as a twin of Maison Crivelli Oud MaracujaOud GloriousCheap shower‑gel clone, not the oud you expected 15%
8. 08 French Avenue · sold as a twin of Louis Vuitton Pacific ChillPinnaceFrench Avenue Pinnace: Warm rose‑oud dupe, not a chill Wearers compare it to Houbigant’s classic rose‑oud blend 15%
9. 09 Bujairami · sold as a twin of Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540LavishFresh fruit dupe that strays from Baccarat’s amber trail 20%
10. 10 Maison Alhambra · sold as a twin of Maison Crivelli Oud MaracujaThe Memory Of OudA fresh green spritz, far from the oud Wearers compare it to Curve 20%
11. 11 Bujairami · sold as a twin of Louis Vuitton Ombre NomadeMadnessFresh summer dupe that leans Versace, not LV Wearers compare it to Versace pour Homme 20%
12. 12 The Dua Brand · sold as a twin of Ex Nihilo Blue TalismanMystical Amulet Of BlueMystical Amulet Of Blue – an oud‑heavy reinterpretation Wearers compare it to Kilian Amber & Oud Special Blend 20%
13. 13 Paris Corner · sold as a twin of Yves Saint Laurent BabycatQissa DeliciousDeliciously sweet dupe, but far from Babycat’s edge 20%
14. 14 Lattafa · sold as a twin of Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540YaraPink, powdery and lovely — but not Baccarat Rouge 30%
15. 15 Bujairami · sold as a twin of Louis Vuitton Ombre NomadeMadness ExtremeMadness Extreme: A gourmand twist on Ombre Nomade Wearers compare it to Eris (Mx.) 30%
16. 16 Nusuk · sold as a twin of Tom Ford Ombré LeatherTaraf Al OudFareb delivers desert‑spice intrigue, but strays far from Ombré Leather 30%
17. 17 Oakcha · sold as a twin of Tom Ford Soleil BlancBronze SummerBronze Summer: fresh smoky tonka, not Soleil Blanc 30%

The ones that smell like something else

Some misses are not bad fragrances at all — they are simply a twin of a different original. When most wearers compare a bottle to something other than what the shop names, we say so on its page. These 13 are the clearest cases.

The twin	Sold as	Wearers compare it to
Goodness Oud RougeRiiffs	Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540	Hypnotic Poison EDT
The Memory Of OudMaison Alhambra	Maison Crivelli Oud Maracuja	Curve
MadnessBujairami	Louis Vuitton Ombre Nomade	Versace pour Homme
Madness ExtremeBujairami	Louis Vuitton Ombre Nomade	Eris (Mx.)
CocaigneOakcha	Tom Ford Tuscan Leather	Intrusion
PinnaceFrench Avenue	Louis Vuitton Pacific Chill	Houbigant’s classic rose‑oud blend
Mystical Amulet Of BlueThe Dua Brand	Ex Nihilo Blue Talisman	Kilian Amber & Oud Special Blend
Ansaam GoldLattafa	By Kilian Love, Don't Be Shy	Parfums de Marly Oriana
MashrabyaLattafa	Byredo Bal d'Afrique	Kilian Smoking Hot
Club de Nuit Precieux IArmaf	Creed Aventus for Her	Absolu Aventus
Mysterious Blend 13Bujairami	Le Labo Another 13	Balman
Raghba Wood IntenseLattafa	Parfums de Marly Herod	Maison Margiela By the Fireplace
KaafAhmed Al Maghribi	Parfums de Marly Percival	A&F Fierce

How not to be caught out

Three habits help. First, look for a twin that has been worn, not just listed: a closeness score on FragDNA only exists when real wearers have written about it. Second, be wary when one cheap bottle claims a dozen famous originals at once — a precise copy is aimed at one fragrance. Third, start with a sample. The difference between 85% and 15% is a whole fragrance.

The good news: 34 of the twins we have scored land at 80% or better. They exist. They are just not the ones that shout loudest.

Those are in the twins that actually work — and the houses that get closest most often are in who copies best. Every score here updates as more wearers write in.