What does Santal 33 smell like? The notes, and perfumes like it that share them

Santal 33, note by note

Santal 33 launched in 2011 and is listed as unisex. Its note list is short, which is part of why it reads so clearly. It helps to follow it as it unfolds: first spray, the middle hours, then the finish.

The opening. Cardamom and violet come first. Cardamom is a cool, aromatic spice, warm and fresh at the same time. Violet is a soft, powdery flower with a faintly sweet, dewy side. Together they make the first minutes feel airy and lightly spiced rather than sweet.

The heart. Virginia cedar and papyrus take over. Cedar is the dry, straight-grained wood you know from a freshly sharpened pencil. Papyrus is drier still, papery and a little earthy. This is the stage that gives Santal 33 its bare, open feel, like unvarnished wood.

The dry-down. Sandalwood, leather and amber hold the base. Sandalwood is the creamy, soft wood the perfume is named after. Leather gives it a supple, slightly worn edge. Amber adds warmth underneath, so the finish feels rounded rather than dusty. This is where Santal 33 spends most of its time, and it is the part most people mean when they describe it.

The overall shape is simple: a light, spiced top, a dry wooden middle, and a creamy wood and leather base. There is no fruit, no vanilla and no sugar anywhere in the list, which matters when you compare it with anything else.

Who Santal 33 tends to suit

The community votes give a useful picture, as long as you treat them as votes and not as a promise about your skin. For Santal 33, the community vote on longevity leans long lasting, with moderate in second place. On sillage, the vote tilts towards moderate, and strong comes next. Autumn, spring and winter are the seasons voters choose for it. They reach for it by day and in the evening alike.

That spread is unusually wide. It is not tied to one season or one hour, and a moderate trail means it sits close without disappearing. Being listed as unisex, it suits anyone who would rather wear something bare and quiet than something sugary.

If a creamy wood with a leather edge sounds like you, Santal 33 itself is the first thing to try. If you want something that shares part of its character with a different twist, the two groups below are the place to start.

What sandalwood, cedar, leather and violet bring

A note list tells you what is in a perfume, not how loud each part is. That is why two perfumes with sandalwood in the base can feel worlds apart, and why it helps to know what each of Santal 33's main notes does on its own.

Sandalwood is soft, milky and smooth, a wood with almost no bark to it. On its own it reads calm and creamy. Next to vanilla or sugar it turns rich and dessert-like; next to dry woods it stays pale and quiet.

Cedar is the opposite kind of wood: dry, clean and a little sharp. It gives a perfume structure and keeps sweeter notes from sliding into syrup.

Leather can be smoky and heavy or soft and suede-like. In a woody base it adds texture, the feeling of something worn in rather than brand new.

Violet is powdery and slightly green, with a cool sweetness. It lifts a woody perfume at the start and then fades back.

So when you read that another perfume has sandalwood, ask what sits next to it. Cedar and leather pull it towards the dry, bare feel people love in Santal 33. Vanilla, fruit and white flowers pull it towards comfort and sweetness. The groups below follow that line.

Closest by notes: cedar, sandalwood and leather

All four share cedar and sandalwood with Santal 33, and some share more. Each one adds a lot that Santal 33 does not have, so none will feel the same on skin, but the woody finish is where they meet.

Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier

Le Male shares more of the list than any other perfume here: cardamom at the top, and cedar, sandalwood and amber in the base. Around them it puts lavender, mint, bergamot and artemisia to open, cinnamon, caraway and orange blossom in the heart, and vanilla and tonka bean underneath. The result is cleaner and sweeter, a barbershop freshness over warm woods. Released in 1995, it is listed for men. Its sillage vote in the community tilts to moderate, ahead of strong. Winter and autumn are its voted seasons, mostly after dark, and it carries a work tag.

Shalimar Eau de Parfum by Guerlain

Shalimar Eau de Parfum is the one to try if the leather is what draws you. It shares cedar, leather and sandalwood with Santal 33, but the cedar sits at the top with bergamot, lemon and mandarin orange, and the base is led by vanilla, incense, opoponax and tonka bean. Iris, jasmine, rose, vetiver and patchouli fill the heart. Warmer, smokier and far more ambery than Santal 33. Guerlain released this version in 1990, and it is listed for women. The community's sillage vote leans strong, with moderate a step behind. Cold months and evenings are when voters say they wear it.

Pure Poison by Dior

Pure Poison keeps its woods clean: white musk, sandalwood, cedar and white amber in the base, under orange blossom and gardenia, with Sicilian mandarin, jasmine, bergamot and orange at the top. A bright white floral resting on pale woods. From 2004 and listed for women, it draws a longevity vote from the community that leans long lasting, then moderate. Spring and autumn are its voted seasons, which overlaps with two of the seasons chosen for Santal 33, and its occasion tag is work.

Good Girl by Carolina Herrera

Good Girl shares cedar, sandalwood and amber, but hides them under a much sweeter story. Almond and coffee open it, tuberose, jasmine sambac, orange blossom, Bulgarian rose and orris fill the heart, and the base adds cacao, praline, vanilla, tonka bean, cashmere wood and cinnamon. Dark, sweet and floral, with the woods as a frame. Released in 2016 and listed for women, it gets a sillage vote from the community that leans moderate, with strong as runner-up. People voting on season and hour put it in winter and autumn, at night.

Sandalwood in a warmer, sweeter setting

If the part of Santal 33 you like is the creamy sandalwood, these five keep that note and wrap it in resin, fruit or flowers. None of them is dry, and all of them are richer. Think of them as a different mood built on a shared wood rather than a close match.

Guidance by Amouage

Guidance opens with pear, hazelnut and olibanum, moves through osmanthus, rose, saffron and jasmine sambac, and dries down to sandalwood, vanilla, akigalawood, ambergris and labdanum. Nutty, glowing and softly sweet, with the sandalwood carrying the finish. A 2023 release, it is listed for women. Most community voters rate its longevity eternal. In the sillage vote, strong edges ahead of enormous, which is a good reason to start with one spray. Autumn and winter evenings are when voters wear it.

Guidance 46 by Amouage

Guidance 46 takes the same heart of osmanthus, rose, saffron and jasmine sambac and adds more around it: rose water, bitter almond, pink pepper and frankincense at the top next to pear and hazelnut, and ambrette, Georgywood and cypriol in the base with sandalwood, akigalawood, vanilla, ambergris and labdanum. Deeper and more rose-led than Guidance. The newest perfume in this guide, from 2024, it is listed for women. Its longevity vote is clear: most community voters call it eternal. The colder half of the year is where voters place it.

Hypnotic Poison by Dior

Hypnotic Poison sets sandalwood beside vanilla, almond and musk. Apricot, coconut and plum open it, and a heart of tuberose, jasmine, Brazilian rosewood, rose, lily-of-the-valley and caraway leads into that milky base. Soft, creamy and almond-sweet. Dating from 1998, it is listed for women. The longevity vote among the community tilts to long lasting, with moderate second. Voters keep it for winter nights and evenings.

Black Orchid by Tom Ford

Black Orchid is the only other perfume here listed as unisex. Black currant and truffle lead the top with gardenia, ylang-ylang, jasmine, Amalfi lemon, bergamot and mandarin orange. Lotus, orchid, spices and fruity notes form the heart. The base gathers incense, patchouli, Mexican chocolate, vetiver, amber, white musk and sandalwood. Dark, earthy and plush, with the sandalwood deep in the mix. It dates from 2006. On sillage, the community vote favours strong, with enormous close behind. It is a winter choice for voters, worn in the evening and at night.

Angel by Mugler

Angel sits furthest from Santal 33. Sandalwood is there, but at the end of a very sweet base of patchouli, chocolate, caramel, vanilla, tonka bean, amber and musk. Above it come cotton candy, bergamot, pineapple, coconut, cassis, melon, jasmine and mandarin orange, then a crowded heart where honey, plum and red berries sit beside peach, blackberry and apricot, with rose, orchid and lily-of-the-valley, and a dash of caraway and nutmeg. It first appeared in 1992 and is listed for women. The community sillage vote leans enormous, with strong behind it, so one spray goes a long way. Voters save it for nights in winter and autumn.

Choosing when you cannot smell it yet

Reading notes gets you to a shortlist. Only wearing a perfume tells you whether it works on your skin, through a full day, in your own weather. That is the whole case for trying before you commit to a full bottle.

Start with Santal 33 itself. A 3ml decant is enough to discover it, around 60 sprays, so you can wear it for a week and see how the dry-down sits with you. If you like it but want it drier, Le Male or Shalimar Eau de Parfum from the first group are the next step. If you find yourself wanting the creamy wood with more warmth, pick one or two from the second group.

Once a scent earns a place, a 10ml decant holds around 200 sprays, enough to wear it for weeks, and it fits in a pocket. A 30ml decant holds around 600, the size to keep, and the best value per ml of the three. Every decant is filled from the original bottle.

A few other pages help at this point. Browse unisex perfume if you like that Santal 33 is made for anyone. Read niche vs designer perfume to see why Santal 33 and the two Amouage perfumes sit apart from the rest of this list. And if you want to push a sweeter scent towards dry woods, the perfume layering guide shows how to pair two scents on skin.

The bigger picture: What does sandalwood smell like? Creamy, milky and dry woods explained and Chypre perfume and the other fragrance families, explained.