Projection
Projection is how far a perfume can be smelled from the wearer. Learn how to assess it and distinguish scent reach from sillage and total wear time on skin.
Updated
Projection describes how far from the wearer a fragrance can be smelled at a particular moment. A scent you notice only when close to the skin has low projection; one you notice from farther away has greater projection.
Think of a scent bubble as a useful image, rather than a perfectly round boundary. Air movement, the amount applied and the observer’s sensitivity affect where it can be detected. A distance reported in a review is an observation under those conditions, not a specification for the bottle.
Ask someone nearby whether they can notice your fragrance after the opening settles and again later in the day. Keep that separate from checking whether it remains on your skin. Quiet projection can coexist with long wear.
- Longevity
- How long a fragrance remains detectable after application. State whether you mean skin, clothing or a paper strip; these are different tests.
- Projection
- How far from the wearer a fragrance can be detected at a particular time. Air movement and the observer affect the result.
- Sillage
- The scent trail left as the wearer moves through a space. It describes a passing trail rather than a fixed distance around the body.
- Concentration
- The proportion of fragrance concentrate in the finished product. It does not specify a wear time, scent profile or projection distance.