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Three things happened together over the last few decades:

1. Spray atomisers replaced dabbing. Extrait was built for a stopper and a fingertip; a spray distributes a lighter concentration efficiently over more skin, and EdP suits that delivery better.
2. Longevity became the headline claim. Consumers compare fragrances by how long they last, and EdP outlasts EdT noticeably while costing less than extrait.
3. Flankers. Houses learned that the same accord could be sold at several concentrations — an EdT, an EdP, an intense, a parfum — which multiplies a single composition into a product line.

This is the practically useful point. An EdP and an EdT of the same fragrance are usually not the same juice diluted differently. They are frequently reformulated, with different proportions of top, heart and base materials.

The pattern is consistent enough to rely on: the EdT is often brighter and more citrus- or aromatic-forward, built to open well; the EdP is often richer, with more base material — amber, musk, resin, vanilla — built to last. So the EdP is not simply a stronger EdT, and someone who prefers one may genuinely dislike the other.

Try both. The names describe strength; they do not describe smell.

Concentration is one variable among several, and it is not the strongest.

• Material volatility dominates. Citrus and light aldehydes flash off in an hour whatever the concentration; oud, labdanum, musks and vanillin last through a day at much lower levels.
• Skin matters. Dry skin holds fragrance poorly; oily and well-moisturised skin holds it far better. Applying to a fragrance-free moisturiser first is the cheapest longevity improvement available.
• Heat accelerates evaporation. A fragrance projects more and lasts less in summer.

Two to four sprays for most EdPs, on skin at pulse points — the warmth is what drives the development through top, heart and base. Spray, do not rub; rubbing crushes the top notes and shortens the opening.

Not before sun exposure on skin that will be exposed, because furocoumarins in citrus oils are phototoxic — bergamot followed by sun causes genuine blistering and lasting pigmentation. IFRA restricts furocoumarin content in leave-on products for that reason.

Cosmetic in the US — FDA primary category (05) fragrance preparations — with no premarket approval and no ingredient disclosure for the fragrance itself: 21 CFR 701.3 permits it to appear simply as "fragrance", and accepted trade-secret ingredients may hide behind "and other ingredients".

In the EU, named fragrance allergens must be declared individually above threshold — 0.001% leave-on, 0.01% rinse-off — and Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 expanded that list from 26 substances to roughly 80, with transitions running to 2028. Products are notified through the CPNP, prohibited substances are listed in Annex II (1,766 entries), and restricted ones in Annex III.

IFRA Standards — industry self-regulation, not law — set the usage limits that actually shape formulation.

Alcohol-based fragrance is flammable and subject to transport restrictions.

Three to five years unopened; two to three after opening. Light, heat and air are what destroy a fragrance, and a bathroom shelf combines all three.

Keep the bottle in its box, in a cool cupboard, upright and closed. Darkening, a sour or varnish-like opening, or an opening that has vanished entirely means oxidation.

• Fragrance — the shelf this sits on, and the rest of it.
• Cosmetics — what the label is legally allowed to say, and the full catalogue.
• The rest of Concentrations — Perfume · Eau de Toilette · Eau de Cologne · Eau Fraîche.
• Regulatory statements here follow the FDA and EU sources listed on Cosmetics, read 16 August 2026.