Scent #1

First of all, I'd like to mention that i'm a huge fan of "santal" / sandalwood fragrances. from Le labo's santal 33 and Kierin NYC's Santal sky to Atelier cologne's Santal carmin. and I appreciate that those companies are plant-based and don't test on animals or contribute to under-waged labour. So when i found out Zara has a clone of Le labo's Santal 33 for $20 I needed to get my hands on it, even though I don't buy Zara's clothes because they are a fast fashion and an unethical brand. I had to put my ethics aside lol because I love Santal fragrances so much, so i pulled the trigger and purchases Scent #1 And it smells almost exactly like Le labo's Santal 33! the sandalwood is heavy but it also has that spicy green background, just like Santal 33. It's 95% similar to Santal 33. I honestly didn't expect much performance from a $20 fragrance, but I was proven wrong. Scent #1 lasts 12+ hours, with very good projection for the first few hours. when my brother came back home, he said "the house smells like tarragon or something green" and that he hates it and I told him it was the fragrance I was wearing. but a friend of mine said it smells amazing. so yes it projects very well, but it's also polarizing just like Santal 33. If you are a fan of Santal fragrances, then you should definitely check Scent #1 out. highly recommend

I own Santal 33 by Le Labo, and one of my favorites in the collection. I can definetely tell you that for its price the Zara Scent#1 is a no brainer. It naturally lacks many, i mean "many" dimensions Santal 33 has, but it manages to capture DNA of Santal 33 in a linear way. I also find Scent#1 more smokey (maybe the reason why tobacco note was asked below) and chemical. It's like "paper" scent from a magazine, or newspaper with hints of ink chemicals scent. Again, the price..I mean it is dirt cheap and actually smells great. Some people will find it too medicinal, like my friend explained: It smells like a pharmacy depot or clothes in a retail store, like that unworn straight-from-the-factory clothing smell. No objections, but if you like Santal 33, you should give this a try. Performance ? You won't regret at all. This comes from myself who likes long lasting projecting scents. It really lasts longer than many other so-called quality designer perfumes! And moreover with this price you can be generous on the spray. It is by no means a replacement for Santal 33, but a watered down, similar DNA version that you can carry in your bag at work and use on a more daily basis.

A round of applause to whomever is the nose for Zara, as they’ve created a very close dupe for La Labo’s Santal 33 with their greatest creation to date: Scent #1. It’s actually easier to outline the subtle differences between them. Santal 33 lasts a whole lot longer, as the quality is vastly superior for £180 (100ml). That said, Zara’s ‘Scent #1’ performs surprisingly well for only £9.99. It’s certainly the longest lasting Zara fragrance yet invented, lasting most of the day on skin (and hair) and into the next day on clothes. It’s definitely the subtle nuances which make Santal 33’s notes perform like a royal symphonic orchestra, compared to Zara’s version like an impressive X Factor audition gone viral. The dry-down on both is almost identical, it’s the opening which is the only difference. Santal 33 has a slightly smoky, richer opening alongside the mesmerising woods, Zara’s begins exactly how it intends to continue throughout. I’d argue that this shouldn’t be just a man’s fragrance - Santal 33 is unisex so Scent #1 is equally unisex. I’m female and love both. What’s not to love for £9.99? I’m getting a few back-up bottles. In Europe it’s even cheaper at €9.99.

Finaly scored a bottle of this, for an affordable $125 on ebay, to check it out. Certainly a Santal 33 knock off. Really good job. Smells more like a wood plank, leather, a little less sweet. But just as good. Reminds me of Profile Amber 18, but stronger, longer lasting. Commodity Book may be my favorite of all, then Santal, then this. Checking out Maison Marie Louise 4 soon, but this is absolutley worth what I paid. The question is - why did Zara discontiune this? Imagine this for sale in their store for $15 a bottle, which I'm guessing is what it once went for. I'd think they could make a ton of money re-releasing it.

I'm so lucky to have snagged a bottle of this Zara Scent #1 bcos not to mention that it's discontinued, it is almost if not the exact clone of Le Labo Santal 33, and almost exactly the same strength & potency if not a lot stronger that Santal 33 for a fraction of the latter's price. If you love LLS33 & spotted ZS#1 anywhere then clean out the shelf because you don't need to shell out ridic hundreds of $$ just to own a bottle of the former for the rest of your life, which i think was a total rip-off in the 1st place. Better bottle design than the OG as well. Thank god for Zara...long live Zara dupes!🥳✊✊✊

Very happy to have a good clone of a niche expensive fragrance. I've had this for a while now. I Live in London so i popped into Le Labo's store in Soho and sprayed Santal 33 on my hand then walked 5 minutes into Zara on Oxford street for Scent #1 on my other hand........ £9.99 Zara 100 ml £127 Le Labo 50 ml or £184 100 ml No contest ! Ok longevity is a slight issue, i only get 4 hours with it and maybe its lacking some nuances but its pretty damn close to its rival. for a Tenner, just buy it and spray it willy nilly its a no lose situation. I'm happy to re-spray,re-apply. you just can't lose.

Le Labo must be pulling their hair, but I've joined the crowd of people who gave a pass to Sandal 33 in exchange for this cheapie. It is not entirely the same, but close enough to the original to make most of us reconsider purchase of very expensive fragrance. At this price point you seriously risk nothing and if you like it, you can always pay hommage to Le Labo and purchase the original as well.

Update to my original review: After regular use for few weeks (6-8 sprays), I am amazed by the longevity. On clothes it stays for more than a week with noticeable strength. Wow! On skin it goes 4 hrs easy with moderate projection. + another 3 hrs as skin scent. (No feedback on sillage yet) Immediately backed up with an extra bottle. It's a steal for that Santal 33 backbone, if you are into it.

It is super similar to Le Labo Santal 33. I had booth on my hand and could not small the difference. Le labo is stronger. But for the people who think le labo is to strong, this is a good one. It performc decent, 7 hours for arm length. It is enough. If you have le labo santal 33 you could use this to spare your le labo.

Just echoing other reviews this is a great replica of Santal 33. I’ve experienced good longevity and projection with this one. Overall - 8/10

Yup, I’m here too add to the stock of glowing reviews for this guy... fantastic fragrance, unbelievable price, great bottle, win win win!

Yes similar to tiveden but its less woodier i Think the sandalwood is not so prominent.

Everyone comparing this to santal 33 but this is more of a clone of “book” by commodity

Smooth sandalwood akin to Porasso shaving cream only smoother, very linear.

Same as ZARA Tiveden, which is closely akin to Santal 33 by Le Labo.

very nice and inexpensive. Smells just like Commodity's Book

Elegant Woods (2018) Scentrack: Waters – Trying Hard To Look Inside The beautiful characteristic of all woodsy scents, including Zara Scent #1, is an ability to instantly transport me to these introspective moments of being somewhere in the mountains. It could be just some kind of primordial reflexes to go back to the roots, after being exposed to urban insanity. My personal vaccination against the modern world. Scent #1 is a classic dry woodsy scent. It burst from woodiness, but in a very elegant manner. It opens with a strong cedar note accompanied by nice soft leather accord. The important perfumer’s trick was to introduce a soft and vivid violet note to give another dimension to this darker woodsy leather combo. The clean cedar note is, to my nose, deepen with a Guaiac wood to give a slight smoky touch to the overall composition. The whole scent is dry with some pale powdery aspects. Although, Scent #1 is promoted as a sandalwood-based composition I do not feel the usual sandalwood characteristics. In the fragrance community this composition is often compared to Le Labo’s Santal 33, but unfortunately I have not tried Santal 33 thus cannot make a comparison. Knowing Zara’s constant effort to release niche brand knockoffs I believe there might be some similarities. To me Scent #1 seems to have some sharing vibes with Comme des Garcon Wonderwood, Canali Style and very similar to Zara Tiveden. The performance of Scent #1 is average. Longevity is average, but sillage is very soft. I do not to be overly harsh to this composition due to its absolute bargain price. For around 11€ Euros Zara delivers a very nicely constructed and elegant scent. In fact, to this date I consider it, in my opinion, as the best scent released by Zara. I would gladly pay three times more for a similar scent with deeper aspects and better performance. Rating: 7.5/10

I expected more from this to be honest. It is nice. I like that sharpened pencil smell it gives, but I don't love it. Some people even told me this gave a "bad boy rebel" kind of vibe to the wearer, but I do not get that at all. The violet is very present (I don't understand why people placed it third), and the leather takes a secondary position, however I don't get much of it to be honest, which was what I was hoping at first. It is nice, and the bottle is gorgeous. Haven't smelled Santal 33, but if it smells like this, I can't justify its price. I like this for sunny days in autumn, and wear it from time to time. It is an interesting, rather unique smell, but it doesn't give me any other emotions than "hmmm... weird smell". I don't think it's cozy, sexy, warm... it's just that particular and original smell you can choose to have. Guess it is maybe an acquired taste so I'll give it more wears in the future. By the way, if you're worried about not ever being able to get this Zara's just released S4nd4lw00d, which smells just about the same, and it is 12,95€. 6.9/10.

based on several reviews here I did not blind buy this one --- I went to my local Zara and tried it on a paper slip ... I must say I was not impressed, in fact I hated it. Pass 3-4 weeks and I gave it another chance, this time on my skin ... I went on with my business around the mall for 1-2 hours and later on; damn!!! the smell mutated completely in the sense of providing a very complex aroma way different to any other fragrance I've had ever use --- I went back to Zara and bought it (9.95€ here in Spain)

A familiar spicy woody scent. Smells like a combination of powdery sandalwood with black pepper & a hint of cucumber. Nice, warm, & cozy. Mature, suiting people above 30yrs more. Nothing stands out about to be honest, almost generic. Smells like the office fragrance of an average Joe. Good for winter. While likable, it is still forgettable. Like & pass.