Difference Between Eau De Toilette & Cologne

Chanel No. 5, a famous eau de toilette.

Many consumers think of eau de toilette and cologne (sometimes called eau de cologne) as simply two phrases that both mean perfume. But in marketing and perfumery terms, eau de toilettes and colognes vary slightly in scent concentration, longevity and cost.

Ingredients

Both eau de toilettes and colognes are made of the same three ingredients: a solvent (usually alcohol), distilled water and the perfume oil, which itself may contain dozens of scented substances. This oil is dissolved in the solvent and water solution at varying concentrations, which dictates whether the fragrance is an eau de toilette or cologne.

Concentration Guidelines

The general concentrations are:
Eau de toilette: 4 to 10 percent scented oil
Eau de cologne: 2 to 5 percent scented oil
Eau de toilettes are primarily women's fragrances, while colognes are mainly masculine fragrances.

Longevity

Perfumes with a higher concentration of scent will last longer when sprayed on skin. Eau de toilettes typically last a few hours on skin, depending on ingredients. Eau de colognes will leave a light scent on skin for an hour or two.

Price

Perfume oils can be extremely expensive to create. Because of their higher scent concentration, consumers find eau de toilettes generally more costly than colognes.

Famous Eau de Toilettes and Colognes

Chanel No. 5 (Chanel, 1921) and Shalimar (Guerlain, 1925) are two legendary eau de toilettes. Famous colognes include 4711, the first commercially-created cologne (Wilhelm Muelhens, 1792) and Brut (Faberge, 1964).

References

• Now Smell This: Perfume FAQ
• History of 4711

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Basenotes
• Fragrancenet.com