You won’t find the most expensive perfumes in the world behind the locked cabinets in your local drugstore. Diamond-encrusted and tricked out in Baccarat crystal, these valuable perfumes may be a luxury we could never afford, but we’re happy to daydream about them for hours. We hope you join us!
11 Most Valuable Perfumes Ever Sold
From fruity spritzes that remind you of your childhood to the warm scents that make you feel alluring, perfume isn’t something to be trifled with. And we’ve got 11 of the most valuable perfumes ever sold to prove it.
| Most Valuable Perfumes | Record Sales Price |
|---|---|
| Le Monde Sur Mesure | $1.5 million+ |
| Shumukh | $1.3 million |
| DKNY x Martin Katz Golden Delicious | $1 million |
| No. 1 Imperial Majesty by Clive Christian | $215,000 |
| J'adore L'or Haute Joillerie Edition by Dior | $140,000 |
| Pleine Lune sur Nil by Parfums De Burmann | $60,000 |
| 1 Million Luxe Edition by Paco Rabanne | $57,000 |
| 1930 Baccarat Corday L'Heure Romantique | $20,000 |
| Le Baiser Du Faune for Molindard | $15,535 |
| Marilyn Monroe's Chanel no. 5 | $10,000 |
| Amaffi Power for Women | $7,700 |
Le Monde Sur Mesure: $1.5 million
Le Monde Sur Mesure is the type of custom fragrance you hear rumors about on defunct subreddits and assume is typical internet chatter. But Morreale Paris does craft unbelievably expensive perfumes and fragrance bottles. The French label’s signature luxury scent comes in a gold-encrusted bottle which racks the price up to $1.5 million.
As of 2018, there was only a record of one bottle being sold. Though we’re not surprised because there can’t be too many people with $1.5 million worth of pocket change lying around.
Shumukh: $1.3 million
Shumukh is more than a perfume, it’s an experience. Created to pay homage to Dubai through scents, motifs, and themes, Nabeel took three years to finalize its formula.
Shumukh comes in a container that’s set with 3,571 IGI and GIA-certified diamonds, topaz, and pearls, and topped with nearly 2,500 grams of 18K gold and 6,000 grams of pure silver. This perfume is “the epitome of luxury.” It’s no wonder that the fragrance costs a whopping $1.3 million to own.
DKNY x Martin Katz Golden Delicious: $1 million
There aren’t many things that can bring you back to 2004 quite like Britney Spears' debut perfume Curious and DKNY’s Be Delicious. Golden Delicious was one of the many subsequent perfumes in their delicious line, and it debuted in 2011. While you can get an old bottle of Golden Delicious for about $25 on eBay, you can’t get this record-breaking bottle quite as easily.
In 2011, DKNY commissioned Martin Katz to craft a special bottle for a charity-auction-bound Golden Delicious. This 14K gold and precious jewel-encrusted bottle hiked the price of the relatively affordable scent to $1 million.
No. 1 Imperial Majesty by Clive Christian: $215,000
Clive Christian is one of the most renowned Western luxury perfumiers in the world, so naturally one of their perfumes would make our list. Launched in 2006, the No. 1 Imperial Majesty offered 500ml of absolute perfume in an 18K gold and diamond-adorned Baccarat crystal bottle.
This isn’t something you could pop on down to BHS in England and snag a bottle of on the way home. Rather, you’d need at least $215,000 on hand to experience the extremely luxurious scent.
J’adore L’Or Haute Joillerie Edition by Dior: $140,000
Dior is best known for being a fashion house, but they also dabble in cosmetics, accessories, and fragrances. Being a massive design label means that they have the connections and capital to release luxurious limited edition perfumes all the time. One of these was the Haute Joillerie Edition of their scent J’adore L’Or.
Just like the previous fragrances on our list, this specific perfume’s expensive bottle is what sets it apart from the usual fare. This special edition perfume comes with a cascading diamond and gold collar, and a stopper and bottle made out of Baccarat crystal. Hence, the starter home price tag of $140,000.
Pleine Lune sur Nil by Parfums De Burmann: $60,000
The first vintage perfume to make our list is the exquisite Pleine Lune Sur le Nil bottle from 1934. Shaped like an Egyptian obelisk and made out of black crystal and gold gilt, this Egyptian revival perfume bottle is one of a kind. It came to the International Perfume Bottle Association’s annual auction in 2023 and sold to one lucky collector for $60,000, making it one of the most expensive ever sold in their auction history.
1 Million Luxe Edition by Paco Rabanne: $57,000
Fashion and fragrance often go hand-in-hand as Paco Rabanne’s 1 Million perfume perfectly exemplifies. The fashion house, led by the eponymous Spanish designer, released a special edition of 1 Million called 1 Million Luxe one year after the first fragrance's launch.
This perfume’s packaging was tricked out with a bottle plated in 18K gold and punctuated with a diamond that was housed in a lockable calfskin case. Let’s just say Paco Rabanne knows how to commemorate an anniversary to the tune of $57,000.
Baccarat Corday L’Heure Romantique: $20,000
Corday is one of those early 20th century perfume brands only enthusiasts tend to recognize. Yet the perfumes are hard to come by, so when they pop up at auction, they do quite well. Such is the case of a 1930 bottle of L’Heure Romantique.
This Baccarat crystal bottle not only comes in the original case but also includes about half of the perfume still inside. While this could have been due to evaporation or use, the fact that there’s some perfume left alongside this stunning bottle and box makes it well worth the $20,000 someone bought it for.
Le Baiser Du Faune for Molindard: $15,535
You can’t get more collectible in the perfume market than a Rene Lalique-designed bottle. His designs from the 1920s-1940s sell for incredible prices, and this Le Baiser Du Faune bottle that he crafted for Molindard is no exception.
Ringed with fragrance, the hollow bottle’s insides bear an etching of a couple stealing a kiss. This alone could’ve fetched quite a lot of money, but having ⅔ of the fragrance still left and the original presentation box still intact made it one covetable lot. So, someone snatched it up for $15,535.
Marilyn Monroe’s Chanel No. 5: $10,000
Out of all the famous estates that Julien’s has brought to auction, Marilyn Monroe’s was one of the most buzzworthy and lucrative. A notorious Chanel No. 5 wearer, one unopened bottle with a provenance trail that tracks it back to her ownership came to auction in the late 1990s. Despite never having been visibly touched by her, it sold for $10,000.
Amaffi Power for Women: $7,700
Currently, one of the most expensive commercially available perfumes comes from Amaffi. Inspired by regal motifs, this bottle is shaped like a ceremonial orb and decorated with onyx enamel, gold filigree, and 2,000+ Swarovski crystals. Most of the $7,700 price tag likely goes into the more decorative elements than the scent itself. But, if you really feel like splurging, then Power For Women by Amaffi might be the fragrance for you.
Smells Like Money
What we wouldn’t do to get a face full of one spritz from these expensive perfumes just to see what money smells like. While they’re unquestionably expensive for the amount of product you actually get, you can’t deny the quality craftsmanship that went into making these luxury fragrances and the bottles they come in.
