Fragrance comparison

Dandy vs Essential

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

Updated 15 Nov 2026 51 ratings analysed

Dandy

Santiago Luxury Parfum

4.001 votes

Rank #68,847 AromaticCitrus

Full profile Similar & dupes

49%scent match

Some overlap

1 wins

Essential

Paul Smith

3.4850 votes

Rank #39,610 WoodyAromatic

Full profile Similar & dupes

Quick verdict

Which one should you pick?

Essential takes 1 of 1 categories.

Dandy
Choose it for a aromatic and citrus character. Best in spring, day or night wear.
Essential
Choose it for a woody and aromatic character. Wins on fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear.

Dandy0/1

Essential1/1

Ratings & consensus: Not scored
Community sentiment: Not scored
Longevity: Not scored
Sillage & projection: Not scored
Value for money: Not scored
Versatility: Not scored
Note pyramid (duration): Not scored
Fragranxe ranking: Essential

Head-to-head breakdown

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

Fragrance

DandySantiago Luxury Parfum

EssentialPaul Smith

Winner

Ratings & consensus

Average rating and ownership split

4.00/ 5 · 1 votes

Have 50%Had 17%Want 33%

3.48/ 5 · 50 votes

Have 48%Had 23%Want 29%

Category winnerNot enough dataRating weighted by vote count

Community sentiment

How voters split from love to hate

0%Love

100%Like

0%Ok

0%Dislike

0%Hate

1 vote · too few to score

16%Love

48%Like

4%Ok

32%Dislike

0%Hate

50 votes

Category winnerNot enough dataMost positive mix (25+ votes)

Longevity & sillage

0–100 community performance scores

⏱ LongevityN/A

〰 SillageN/A

♥ Love / hate75

⏱ Longevity67

〰 Sillage63

♥ Love / hate62

Category winners

LongevityNo data

SillageNo data

Value for money

How fairly priced voters find it

¤ Price valueN/A

¤ Price value75

Category winnerNot enough dataBest value score

Main accords

Strength of each scent family · outlined = shared by both

aromatic100%

citrus92%

fresh spicy84%

woody77%

amber69%

green61%

woody100%

aromatic91%

fresh spicy83%

lavender74%

ozonic65%

patchouli56%

Scent match49%Some overlap · both aromatic, woody and fresh spicy

Note pyramid (duration)

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

Top

RosemaryMandarin OrangeGrapefruitPetitgrainPineappleBergamotLavenderGalbanum

Heart

JasmineFreesiaSage

Base

PatchouliLabdanumIncenseCedarAmberMusk

Top

Ozonic notes

Heart

LavenderRosemaryOrangeSage

Base

PatchouliCedarMusk

InformationalShared notesRosemary, Lavender, Sage and Patchouli. Note durations are not published for these fragrances, so this is not scored.

Seasons & time of day

Relative to each fragrance's best season

Spring100

Summer0

Fall100

Winter100

Day100

Night100

Spring95

Summer79

Fall100

Winter21

Day100

Night20

Category winnerNot enough dataMost year-round

Who wears it

Gender appeal votes

Men100

Unisex0

Women0

Men100

Unisex0

Women0

InformationalProfile onlyAudience is not scored

Ranking & credits

Fragranxe overall rank, nose and launch

Overall rank#68,847

PerfumerNot listed

Launched—

Reviews0

Overall rank#39,610

PerfumerHamid Merati-Kashani

Launched—

Reviews0

Category winnerEssentialHigher overall rank

In a nutshell

Description & review snapshot

Dandy by Santiago Luxury Parfum is a lively citrus aromatic fragrance that kicks off with a bright splash of mandarin orange, tart grapefruit, and crushed rosemary. As the sparkling citrus begins to mellow, clean lavender and herbal clary sage move in alongside a gentle breeze of freesia and jasmine. The base brings e…

Reviews →

Paul Smith Essential opens with crisp ozonic notes before settling into a green, clean heart of lavender, rosemary, and sage. Released in 2015 and composed by Hamid Merati-Kashani, the scent blends light citrus sweetness from orange with an earthy base of cedar, patchouli, and musk. It offers a tidy, professional prof…

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.

Recent comparisons

Head-to-head activity from live history

Saffron AmberIlluminumRUNNER-UP vs

Septieme Sens (7e Sens)Sonia RykielWINNER

1 person compared this today

Fancy NightsJessica SimpsonRUNNER-UP vs

Nino Cerruti Pour FemmeCerrutiWINNER

3 people compared this today

Sweet DreamsHouse Of SillageWINNER vs

Safari ElixirAthoor Al AlamRUNNER-UP

1 person compared this today

PrometheuNecalliWINNER vs

Bruno ImperialAnfar LondonRUNNER-UP

1 person compared this today

Common questions

Straight answers from the data above.

Which is better, Dandy or Essential?

Essential takes 1 of 1 categories. Dandy is rated 4.00/5 from 1 votes; Essential is rated 3.48/5 from 50 votes. Choose Dandy for a aromatic and citrus character. Best in spring, day or night wear. Choose Essential for a woody and aromatic character. Wins on fragranxe ranking. Best in fall, daytime wear.

Do Dandy and Essential smell similar?

Some overlap: a 49% scent match on Fragranxe. Both share aromatic, woody and fresh spicy accords. Common notes include Rosemary, Lavender, Sage and Patchouli.

Is Dandy or Essential better for summer or winter?

Dandy suits day or night wear; Essential suits daytime wear. Based on community season votes.

What are the notes in Dandy and Essential?

Dandy has top notes of Rosemary, Mandarin Orange, Grapefruit and Petitgrain, heart notes of Jasmine, Freesia and Sage, a base of Patchouli, Labdanum, Incense and Cedar. Essential has top notes of Ozonic notes, heart notes of Lavender, Rosemary, Orange and Sage, a base of Patchouli, Cedar and Musk.