Libre vs Libre Intense vs Le Parfum: which YSL Libre to choose

How the Libre line fits together

Yves Saint Laurent launched Libre in 2019 and has kept adding to it ever since. Nine Libre perfumes are in the 10ML catalogue, and almost all of them share one idea: lavender, a citrus start and orange blossom, with vanilla somewhere underneath. What changes is the supporting cast, so the note lists are the quickest way to tell them apart.

A word on the names. Eau de Parfum, Parfum and the other concentration words describe how much perfume oil a bottle holds, and what that means in practice is set out in Eau de Parfum vs Eau de Toilette. A name on the box cannot say which Libre will feel stronger on your skin, so this guide compares the perfumes by what is in them.

Libre: the 2019 original

Libre by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre opens bright and a little tart: mandarin orange and black currant, with petitgrain and lavender keeping the citrus from turning sugary. Orange blossom and jasmine form the heart, the white-floral core of the whole family. Underneath, Madagascar vanilla meets musk, cedar and ambergris, which gives the dry-down a soft, skin-like warmth with cedar giving it a drier edge than a dessert sweetness would.

Libre is listed for women; its occasion tag is work. On longevity, community votes lean long lasting. On sillage, the votes lean moderate. Autumn and spring take the season votes, and evening, day and night all get picks. That spread of times is why it is the family's natural starting point: it asks little of the weather or the dress code. If you want to see what else sits near it, our guide to perfumes like Libre covers the style, and lavender and orange blossom have their own pages.

Libre Intense: tonka, vetiver and a deeper vanilla

Libre Intense by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Intense launched in 2020 and was created by perfumers Anne Flipo and Carlos Benaïm. The lavender moves to the front, with mandarin orange and bergamot. The heart is Tunisian orange blossom, jasmine sambac and orchid, a richer and more layered floral than the original's pair. The base is Madagascar vanilla with tonka bean, ambergris and vetiver.

The result reads sweeter and rounder, with vetiver adding a dry, grassy ground under the vanilla. It is listed for women, and its season votes go to winter and autumn, with night as the time of day.

Libre Le Parfum: ginger, saffron and honey

Libre Le Parfum by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Le Parfum launched in 2022, again by Anne Flipo and Carlos Benaïm. It takes a different road from the other two. The top is bergamot, ginger, mandarin orange and saffron, a spiced citrus start that has no counterpart in Libre or Libre Intense. The heart is lavender and orange blossom, and the base is Bourbon vanilla with honey, tonka bean and vetiver.

So the shared lavender and orange blossom now sit between a spiced opening and a honeyed base. It is listed for women. Its longevity is rated long lasting by most community voters. On sillage, most community voters answer moderate. Its season votes go to spring and summer, for day and evening wear, which makes it the warm-weather pick of the three by vote.

Libre vs Libre Intense, side by side

Both start with mandarin orange and lavender, both carry orange blossom and a jasmine in the heart, and both finish on Madagascar vanilla and ambergris. The differences:

• Opening: Libre adds black currant and petitgrain; Libre Intense adds bergamot and puts lavender first.
• Heart: Libre is orange blossom and jasmine; Libre Intense adds orchid and uses Tunisian orange blossom and jasmine sambac.
• Base: Libre adds musk and cedar; Libre Intense adds tonka bean and vetiver.
• Season, by community vote: Libre autumn and spring; Libre Intense winter and autumn.

In short, Libre is the brighter, drier and more musky of the two, and Libre Intense is the sweeter, more floral and more tonka-led. On paper, the cold-weather votes for Intense and the autumn-and-spring votes for Libre are the clearest guide.

Libre Intense vs Le Parfum

This is the pairing for readers who want a deeper, sweeter Libre than the original. They share lavender, mandarin orange, bergamot, orange blossom, tonka bean and vetiver, and both finish on vanilla (Madagascar in Intense, Bourbon in Le Parfum).

• Opening: Libre Intense is lavender, mandarin orange and bergamot; Le Parfum is bergamot, ginger, mandarin orange and saffron.
• Heart: Libre Intense has orange blossom, jasmine sambac and orchid; Le Parfum has lavender and orange blossom only.
• Base: Libre Intense has ambergris; Le Parfum has honey.
• Season, by community vote: Libre Intense winter and autumn; Le Parfum spring and summer.

The votes point opposite ways. Intense is the choice for cold nights, and Le Parfum the pick of warm days and evenings. If you wear one perfume all year, that is worth knowing before you choose. Our guide to ambergris perfumes explains the note both Libre and Libre Intense share, and the tonka perfumes guide covers the one that Intense and Le Parfum share.

The rest of the Libre line

Six more Libres are in the catalogue. Each is a variation on the same lavender-and-orange-blossom idea.

Libre L'Absolu Platine by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre L'Absolu Platine launched in 2023 with bergamot, mandarin orange and aldehydes, then lavender, blue lavender and orange blossom over amber and vanilla. Its accords include a soapy, fresh side. Winter takes the season vote, with day, office and evening as the times.

Libre Flowers & Flames by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Flowers & Flames (2024) puts coconut, lily and palm tree beside orange blossom, with lavender and bergamot on top and vanilla below. Summer takes the season vote, with night and evening as the times.

Libre Berry Crush by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Berry Crush (2025) is listed as unisex and is the fruitiest of the nine: raspberry and mandarin over Bourbon vanilla, musk and coconut. Its season votes are summer and spring, worn by day and in the evening.

Libre L'Eau Nue by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre L'Eau Nue (2025) is the lightest-looking list: mandarin, then orange blossom, settling on lavender. Its longevity is rated moderate by most community voters, and its season votes go to summer and spring, for day wear.

Libre Vanille Couture by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Vanille Couture (2025) lists only heart notes: Bourbon vanilla, orange blossom, vanilla caviar, lavender and rum. Winter and autumn take its season votes, with night and day as the times.

Libre Santal Couture by Yves Saint Laurent

Libre Santal Couture (2026) was created by Anne Flipo and is the shortest list of all: lavender, orange blossom and sandalwood. Autumn and winter take its season votes, with night and day as the times.

How to choose from the notes alone

Read the lists against what you already wear:

• You like a slightly tart citrus start over a musky base. Start with Libre.
• You want vanilla and tonka bean with a deeper floral heart. Start with Libre Intense.
• You like spice and honey in a sweet perfume. Start with Libre Le Parfum.
• You want fruit and coconut rather than white flowers. Start with Libre Berry Crush.
• You want the lightest citrus take. Start with Libre L'Eau Nue.
• You want rum with vanilla for cold nights. Start with Libre Vanille Couture.
• You want a woody base under the lavender. Start with Libre Santal Couture.

If you are choosing a bottle for someone else and are unsure of their taste, our guide to safe blind-buy perfumes is a good next read, and the white musk perfumes guide covers musk, one of the notes in Libre's dry-down. Readers curious about other houses that work in the same style will find them in our guide to YSL Libre lookalikes, and the women's perfume page shows the wider range.

Wear it before you buy the bottle

Three note lists cannot tell you which Libre is yours. Skin does that, and the quickest way is to wear two of them for real.

1. Pick two and order a 3ml of each. Around 60 sprays per vial covers roughly a week of wear.
2. Wear them on separate days first. One alone, then the other, so neither colours how you read it.
3. Then split your wrists. Put one on each, straight after a shower, and smell both in the morning, at midday and again at night.
4. Match them to the season. Wear Libre Intense on a cold night and Libre Le Parfum on a warm day, as the community votes suggest, and see whether the votes fit your skin.
5. Keep the one you miss. The Libre you find yourself wanting back on a day without it is your keeper.

When you have your answer, a 10ml decant is the next step, with around 200 sprays for weeks of daily wear. When each size makes sense is covered in our decants and full bottles guide.

The bigger picture: Lavender perfumes: 16 to try, from classic fougère to sweet and floral.