The price of a men’s cologne is determined by the ingredients used in a fragrance’s formula, by how much of them are used, and by packaging, marketing and other factors. Most of the pricing in fragrances comes from the cost of raw materials. Certain rare and difficult-to-produce fragrance oils are among the most expensive raw materials in the world.
One of the most expensive fragrance ingredients is oud. Found in high end men’s cologne, Oud comes from the resin of certain agar trees that are infected with a type of mold. This mold-induced resin is extraordinarily rare, in high demand and hard to produce. It is sometimes referred to as liquid gold because it is so sought after and costly.
Some ingredients, like lavender oil, aren’t as expensive because they are easily available and less difficult to harvest and produce. Lavender is a universally beloved fragrance because it’s been popular for decades in everything from fragrance to shampoos to soaps.
Some cologne for men manufacturers turn to synthetic duplicates when formulating their scents. For example, jasmine is a popular fragrance ingredient, but up to 80% of all jasmine used in fragrance is synthetic. Why? Because real jasmine is very expensive. It takes 2,000 pounds of jasmine flowers to produce just one pound of oil. Jasmine flowers are also fragile and their petals can bruise easily, so harvesting them is complex and labor-intensive.
