Synthetic vs. Natural Fragrance: Pros, Cons & What You Should Pick

The good news is that we're never ones to shy away from a thorough conversation. Recently, in an episode on our beauty podcast Clean Beauty School, I spoke with Mindy Yang, fragrance expert, reiki healer, and founder of Perfumarie. In it, we got into the nitty-gritty of what option is best for clean fragrances. Spoiler alert: "Unfortunately, not as straightforward as you would hope," says Yang. 

OK, so that's (some of) the groundwork. Now, what options should you go with? Let's lay out the pros and cons. 

Considering how much we support natural beauty here at mindbodygreen, it's no surprise that we see the many benefits of natural fragrance notes.

Listen, some of us just want to use natural products, full stop. That's reason enough for us! Natural notes tend to have a more grounded, earthy flavor, and many people find that intimate aroma more soothing. Natural fragrances also tend to be more subtle and don't stay around all day—this is ideal for those with sensitive noses, who prefer wearing fragrances that don't come off as overpowering. 

"Personally, I've been really drawn to materials and botanicals that have medicinal and healing properties that also smell nice—largely due to my background in aromatherapy and reiki," says Yang. "There's something so beautiful about functional fragrances that do not smell like medicine and, yet, you're using that in an innovative way so they do help your body. Timeless solutions to basically everyday problems." 

If you like keeping your ingredient lists small, natural fragrances tend to include fewer notes. This is simply the case when formulating naturals: Synthetic fragrances are made up of dozens of molecules and notes to achieve the outcome, whereas naturals typically only utilize a handful of botanicals for their final, edited scent.  

For so long "synthetic" got a bad reputation in the natural and clean world. But as we learn and develop more in this space, consumers are becoming more and more educated that synthetics aren't the problem. (The problem is ingredients like endocrine disrupters, environmental toxins, and carcinogens—which actually aren't exclusive to either the natural or synthetic world.) Here's why safe synthetic ingredients may show up in your fragrance—and why that's to your benefit. 

And the changes to the ingredients are so nuanced, it may even come down to the soil: "If you have an oil from one farm in one region of the world, and then all of a sudden—because of climate change, the supplier chain got disrupted, or the farm got bought up or went out of business—you have to buy from another supplier of the oil. It may smell similar to number one, but there will be differences because of the terroir," says Yang. "It's basically like wine: You have to think about the variations of regional climate and how they process the materials." 

While harvesting from the earth is a beautiful, life-sustaining endeavor—oftentimes with fragrances it comes with environmental drawbacks. "We are actively engineering and creating new molecules and formulas that are inspired by natural ingredients as they become extinct or more expensive due to climate change," says Yang. "Frankincense, for instance, it takes so many years to even be able to get a new harvest, but if you create it synthetically, the ingredient becomes a bit more accessible and you're not depleting the supply."

We must say that fragrance, of any kind, is a challenge for those with sensitive skin. This is why derms tell you to avoid scented products and perfume if you are easily irritated. However, in these new developments in fragrance, many brands have crafted molecules that tend to be easier for those with finicky skin—and cuts out many common allergens, like the EU 26.  

"This is why in modern perfumery, we do work with both natural and synthetics. I have fallen in love with working with both," says Yang. "I love to start with naturals and then use safe, but interesting, synthetics to add the special effects to round out and enhance the formula."