Fragrance comparison

Cologne du 68 vs Bal à Versailles

Notes, accords, longevity, sillage, seasons and community ratings, side by side.

Updated 30 Oct 2026 2,958 ratings analysed

4 wins

Cologne du 68

Guerlain

4.22702 votes

Rank #2,987 CitrusAromatic

Full profile Similar & dupes

5%scent match

Clearly different

Bal à Versailles

Jean Desprez

4.152,256 votes

Rank #24,457 AmberPowdery

Full profile Similar & dupes

Quick verdict

Which one should you pick?

Cologne du 68 takes 4 of 7 categories.

Cologne du 68
Choose it for a citrus and aromatic character. Wins on ratings & consensus, community sentiment and versatility. Best in spring, daytime wear.
Bal à Versailles
Choose it for a amber and powdery character. Wins on longevity, sillage & projection and value for money. Best in winter.

Cologne du 684/7

Bal à Versailles3/7

Ratings & consensus: Cologne du 68
Community sentiment: Cologne du 68
Longevity: Bal à Versailles
Sillage & projection: Bal à Versailles
Value for money: Bal à Versailles
Versatility: Cologne du 68
Note pyramid (duration): Not scored
Fragranxe ranking: Cologne du 68

Head-to-head breakdown

Every category side by side, with the winner called out.

Fragrance

Cologne du 68Guerlain

Bal à VersaillesJean Desprez

Winner

Ratings & consensus

Average rating and ownership split

4.22/ 5 · 702 votes

Have 52%Had 21%Want 27%

4.15/ 5 · 2,256 votes

Have 73%Had 27%Want 0%

Category winnerCologne du 68Rating weighted by vote count

Community sentiment

How voters split from love to hate

40%Love

49%Like

2%Ok

8%Dislike

0%Hate

702 votes

47%Love

36%Like

3%Ok

13%Dislike

1%Hate

2,256 votes

Category winnerCologne du 68Most positive mix (25+ votes)

Longevity & sillage

0–100 community performance scores

⏱ Longevity62

〰 Sillage53

♥ Love / hate80

⏱ Longevity76

〰 Sillage66

♥ Love / hate79

Category winners

LongevityBal à Versailles

SillageBal à Versailles

Value for money

How fairly priced voters find it

¤ Price value46

¤ Price value60

Category winnerBal à VersaillesBest value score

Main accords

Strength of each scent family

citrus100%

aromatic92%

floral84%

green77%

fresh spicy69%

white floral61%

amber100%

powdery92%

woody84%

animalic77%

musky69%

balsamic61%

Scent match5%Clearly different

Note pyramid (duration)

Top, heart and base, with how long each lasts when known · gold = shared

Notes

CitrusesIrisSageLime (Linden) BlossomPetitgrainRosemaryOrange BlossomBergamotFrangipaniGreen NotesMandarin OrangeViolet Leaf

No top / heart / base split published

Top

RoseBulgarian RoseOrange BlossomJasmineRosemaryNeroliMandarin OrangeBergamot

Heart

LeatherYlang-YlangSandalwoodOrris RootPatchouliLilacVetiverLily-of-the-Valley

Base

CivetResinsTolu BalsamAmberBenzoinVanillaMuskCedar

InformationalShared notesRosemary, Orange Blossom, Bergamot and Mandarin Orange. Durations are only published for Cologne du 68, so this is not scored.

Seasons & time of day

Relative to each fragrance's best season

Spring100

Summer91

Fall62

Winter28

Day100

Night26

Spring31

Summer0

Fall0

Winter100

Day–

Night–

Category winnerCologne du 68Most year-round

Who wears it

Gender appeal votes

Men14

Unisex68

Women18

Men4

Unisex47

Women49

InformationalProfile onlyAudience is not scored

Ranking & credits

Fragranxe overall rank, nose and launch

Overall rank#2,987

PerfumerSophie Labbé

Launched—

Reviews55

Overall rank#24,457

PerfumerJean Desprez

Launched—

Reviews0

Category winnerCologne du 68Higher overall rank

In a nutshell

Description & review snapshot

Cologne du 68 by Guerlain takes the traditional citrus cologne blueprint and expands it into an intricate daytime scent. It opens with a crisp spray of bergamot, mandarin orange, and petitgrain that immediately lifts the senses like chilled citrus water. Rather than fading quickly into nothing, the scent deepens throu…

Reviews →

Bal a Versailles opens with a dense puff of orange blossom and powdery rose before shifting into a heavy, lived-in leather. This vintage classic suits collectors who crave dramatic, animalic warmth rather than modern clean scents. Wear it on cold winter nights when you want a rich envelope of resins and civet to cling…

Reviews →

InformationalRead bothTaste is personal

How we score: ratings blend public fragrance ratings with Fragranxe member votes; longevity, sillage, value and sentiment are community vote scores, and season bars are relative to each fragrance's strongest season. Categories with too little data are shown but not scored. The scent match weighs accord overlap (60%) and shared notes (40%). More in the FAQ.

Common questions

Straight answers from the data above.

Which is better, Cologne du 68 or Bal à Versailles?

Cologne du 68 takes 4 of 7 categories. Cologne du 68 is rated 4.22/5 from 702 votes; Bal à Versailles is rated 4.15/5 from 2,256 votes. Choose Cologne du 68 for a citrus and aromatic character. Wins on ratings & consensus, community sentiment and versatility. Best in spring, daytime wear. Choose Bal à Versailles for a amber and powdery character. Wins on longevity, sillage & projection and value for money. Best in winter.

Which lasts longer, Cologne du 68 or Bal à Versailles?

Bal à Versailles lasts longest (Bal à Versailles 76/100, Cologne du 68 62/100), based on community performance votes.

Which projects more, Cologne du 68 or Bal à Versailles?

Bal à Versailles projects furthest (Bal à Versailles 66/100, Cologne du 68 53/100), based on community performance votes.

Do Cologne du 68 and Bal à Versailles smell similar?

Clearly different: a 5% scent match on Fragranxe. They share few main accords. Common notes include Rosemary, Orange Blossom, Bergamot and Mandarin Orange.

Is Cologne du 68 or Bal à Versailles better for summer or winter?

For summer, Cologne du 68 is the stronger pick. For winter, Bal à Versailles is the stronger pick. Cologne du 68 suits daytime wear. Based on community season votes.

What are the notes in Cologne du 68 and Bal à Versailles?

Cologne du 68 features Citruses, Iris, Sage, Lime (Linden) Blossom and Petitgrain. Bal à Versailles has top notes of Rose, Bulgarian Rose, Orange Blossom and Jasmine, heart notes of Leather, Ylang-Ylang, Sandalwood and Orris Root, a base of Civet, Resins, Tolu Balsam and Amber.