The best-smelling aftershaves and fragrances for men

Even if you can’t make it to some Mediterranean hotspot this year, Tom Ford’s Costa Azzurra Acqua will make you feel as if you’re there. 

This fragrance promises to be a “harmony of sea and land” by fusing salty waves, cool sea air, beating-down sunshine, and beachy woods – everything you ever wanted from a summer holiday. In fact, with all that slapped across your skin, you won’t even need to step on a plane. 

It has a strong burst of lemon, juniper, and myrtle, paired with the crisp and earthy scents of cypress and pine needles. In a word, fresh.

Azzaro Chrome is a sweet-smelling stalwart of the men’s fragrance game, and one for the dads out there – a scented celebration of the special bond between father and son. 

Aqua is a fresh chapter in the Azzaro Chrome story, created by acclaimed French perfumer Jean-Christophe Herault. Aqua reinvents the classic with the citrus accords of grapefruit, basil, and vetiver. 

Sticking with the aquatic theme, this green fragrance feels like a wave, refreshing the skin. 

Still one of the trustiest spring-summer season scents, Hugo Boss is back with Infinite, bottling a range of classic man-smells for something that’s, as the name suggests, infinitely appealing to the discerning gent.

This fragrance personifies modern man, being both deep and soft (come on, fellas, we all know that’s what you are underneath), with masculine base notes of rich olive tree and sandalwood, fruity top notes of mandarin and apple, and added warming aromas of patchouli, rosemary, and lavender. 

Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue series gets a summer makeover. 

This fragrance is a cocktail of strong notes of Italian bergamot, frozen grapefruit, and ginger, with an undercurrent of coconut, rosemary, vanilla, and cedarwood. 

The overall concept is a trip to Capri, in which the scent invites you to relive your first summer romance. Chances are though, Light Blue Sun will be the one you really fall for. 

A budget price for a big brand, so you know you're getting quality, and you’ll be splashing around more scent than actual cash.

It’s a fresh, citrus scent (it’s in the Tropics name) for those perfect sunny days, with a manly edge to it for those fellas who like to pose when in full summer mode. 

Its top notes are Italian mandarin and mint, with added notes of lavender and amber. 

Named for its adventurous streak, Montblanc Explorer has something of the great outdoors in its scent. 

It’s got raw masculine power with an overall woody and leathery aroma – top notes of bergamot, pomarose, and sage, with other hints of leather, sandalwood, patchouli, ambrofix, and akigalawood. 

Designed by top perfumers, this one uses sustainable ingredients and puts back to the communities that provide them – so you’ll be doing your bit as well as smelling divine. 

It comes in a leather sleeved bottle for that extra macho touch. 

This might be from the heritage perfumers of London (Floris have been putting first-class whiffs up punters’ noses since 1730), but Neroli Voyage lives up to its name by taking you on a journey across the Ligurian coastline of France and Italy. 

Inspired by the scented blossom trees that grow on the coastline, the dominant note of this unisex fragrance is neroli, with added depth from lemon, jasmine flower, spicy ginger, aromatic fennel seed, and oak wood.

Complex but breezy. 

The word legend gets thrown around a lot these days, but the already-trusty Paco Rabanne Invictus has earned its status for being scientifically proven to make you sexier. 

It contains a compound called hedione (or the less-sexy sounding Methyl Dihydro Jasmonate) which stimulates an area of the brain responsible for the release of sex hormones in women. We're not convinced this actually works, but what's the harm in trying?

Scent wise, there’s spicy wood, with notes of metallic geranium, green laurel, salty grapefruit, and honey. 

This is a follow up to Creed’s popular Aventus. A classic reimagined, if you like. 

Putting a twist on the signature scent with top notes of ginger, mandarin, and pink peppercorn, with swirling aromatic hues of patchouli, sandalwood, and an earthy base of vetiver, styrax and tonka bean. 

All splashed on the skin together, this cologne boasts that it embodies “vitality, success, and true grit”. And who doesn’t need a bit more of that added to their life, while swaggering through the summer months looking – and smelling – damn good? 

This one has the look and reputation of an old school masculine fragrance (the bottle looks like the sort of thing James Bond would chuck into his carry-on for his weekend off) and its notes are the same.

With Italian bergamot, grapefruit, and cardamom enhancing authentic notes of black pepper and lavender, Icon Racing attempts to embody a fresh aroma for men on the move. You also get guaiac wood, vetiver, and musk delivering warm and masculine base notes.

It’s a pretty luxurious combination, and let’s be honest, if you’re going to smell this summer, you want to smell of luxury.