You’ll Go Bananas For These Unexpectedly Fruity Perfumes

A new personality litmus test just dropped on TikTok and the question at hand is “Do you like banana perfumes?” Chances are, you’re either totally on board with smelling like a Laffy Taffy or convinced that anyone who does is, well, absolutely bananas — and there’s no middle ground.

Still, a bunch of new banana fragrances cropped up this month, suggesting not only that the controversial note is finally getting its flowers, but also that it’s officially no longer synonymous with that candied, artificially sweet finish.

Take Ellis Brooklyn’s Isla Sirena, for instance: tropical and a little salty, it blends blue java banana with coconut water and lime. Juliette Has A Gun’s latest launch, Banana Rush, goes in the opposite direction, pairing banana with maple syrup and sandalwood. The result has earned plenty of rave reviews — including a few from self-proclaimed banana skeptics — but also its fair share of people wondering where, exactly, you’d wear it outside of Waffle House. Hey, fair enough.

“We’re living in a time where perfumery is dismantling ‘good taste,’” says Douglas Little, founder of Heretic Parfum. Banana, he adds, has been “culturally typecast as childhish, artificial, even a little vulgar” — which is exactly why it’s currently getting a second look. Love it or love to hate it, keep reading for everything to know about the unexpected fruit that’s shaping up to be the breakout scent of spring.

Why Are Banana Perfumes Everywhere?

Short answer: Gourmand fragrances aren’t going anywhere. Everyone still wants to smell edible, but the usual suspects — caramel, vanilla, even marshmallow — are starting to feel played out.

It’s not just super sweet notes that got the gourmand treatment, either. Raspberry, strawberry, and even apple-based perfumes have made strong cases lately for something brighter, tarter, and a little less expected.

Banana pushes that idea even further. “It sits right at that fault line between pleasure and discomfort,” according to Little, who calls it the “black sheep” of the fruit family. “Yes, it brushes up against gourmand,” he adds. “But it’s not a polite dessert — banana is more carnal.”

For Little, the recent rise of banana perfumes also “signals a willingness to smell strange, not just pleasant.” As people move away from simply wanting to smell “good” and toward wanting to smell interesting, banana’s balance between sweetness and something heavier underneath — humid, almost sticky — makes it as a top candidate.

“When done right, banana doesn’t smell like candy,” Little says. “It smells like skin after the sun or overripe fruit on the verge of collapse.” Getting it there isn’t easy, however. It’s a “notoriously tricky” process, breaking down the fruit into its parts — the waxy green peel, the starchy flesh, the faint floralcy underneath — then pushing it off balance with woods, salt, pepper, and rum.

Those layers, though, are what make the note feel surprisingly sophisticated. Depending on how its built, banana can become cozy and nostalgic, green and fresh, or even a little savory. “There are two camps,” Little says. “People who want banana as a lullaby, and people who want disruption: they’re bored of citrus, bored of florals, bored of ‘pretty.’”

Bottom line: “It’s not going to replace vanilla,” Little says. But whether you’re looking for something creamy and edible or spicy and date-night ready, there’s a banana perfume waiting to prove you wrong.

Banana Perfumes To Try

1. Green & Floral

If you’re still not convinced that banana can be anything beyond artificial candy, it’s time to reconsider. Instead of anything too sweet, these scents lean “starchy and a little vegetal,” according to Little. He calls it the most “unexpected and intellectually satisfying” version of the note, where banana’s waxy edges are pulled forward and paired with white florals and juicier fruits like bergamot and passionfruit for a finish that’s equal parts sharp and sappy.

2. Creamy & Gourmand

These perfumes, in particular, smell good enough to eat. Banana crepes, puddings, splits — all the desserts are here, just made wearable. They feel “soft, lactonic, almost coconut-adjacent,” as Little puts it — melting into the skin in a way that feels warm instead of candied, which is a major part of the appeal. “I love the banana notes that end up reading sweet, and dessert-like on the skin,” adds Bee Shapiro, founder of Ellis Brooklyn — the brand behind the previously sold-out Banana Milkshake body mist. TLDR: whipped and rich is the most popular take on banana for a reason.

3. Tropical & Solar

“Banana is satisfying as the hero ingredient,” Shapiro says. “But it can also be a phenomenal team player.” Case in point: these vacay-transporting perfumes, where banana slips into that supporting role. In Ellis Brooklyn’s Isla Sirena, it’s blue java banana — often called “ice cream banana” for its vanilla undertones — layered with coconut water and lime. The result is a sheer, fresh tropical scent that dries down to something like sun-warmed skin, without veering into sunscreen territory, thanks in part to what Shapiro calls “a new Firmenich technology that captures the more natural, IRL notes of a fresh banana.”

4. Toasted & Boozy

Banana, but make it all grown up. The traditionally innocent note gets an after-hours upgrade, layered with maple syrup, rum, cinnamon, and ambers that pull out its caramelized side. At this stage, banana goes slightly overripe — “dark, boozy, almost fermented,” as Little puts it — with a brown-sugar warmth that lingers on skin. These perfumes are deep and a little undone, the kind of signature scents that settles in close (and might make someone else lean in a little closer, too). Basically, they’re the perfect options for the girls who don’t want to smell like anyone else.