5 Best Oud Colognes in 2024 – Reviews & Top Picks

As far as luxury is concerned, oud wood is in a class of its own. 

The agarwood scent forms when the heart of an aquilaria tree, also called oud wood, is infected with a unique wood mold that produces a scented resin.

The rarity of the aquilaria tree and the time it takes for the wood infection to produce this mold makes it an extremely expensive wood. 

It also means there aren’t many oud fragrances out there. 

Oud oil is predominantly found in the Middle East, but that doesn’t mean you can only find it there.

A lot of perfume houses have been exporting oud oil outside of the Middle East, to be used in creating opulent oud fragrances that make the world go crazy.

If you’re a big fan of the unique and exotic aroma that an oud cologne exudes, check out the best oud colognes reviewed in the list below.

Who knows, you could find one to be your next favorite fragrance here.

At A Glance: Our Top Picks for Best Oud Colognes

If you’re in a hurry, you can jump straight into our top picks (these are the oud colognes that most people buy).

• Versace Oud Noir
• Creed Royal Oud
• Acqua Di Parma Colonia Intensa Oud

Top 5 Best Oud Colognes – Our Reviews:

1. Versace Oud Noir

Oud Noir is an oriental woody perfume that gives out a distinguished fragrance that’s far richer and classier than many of its competitors on the market. 

The house of Versace is known for their luxury driven products and the Oud Noir is no different. 

It begins with top notes of black pepper, neroli, and bitter orange before moving to heart notes of olibanum, saffron, and cardamom. 

After a while, it settles to luxurious base notes of agarwood, leatherwood, and patchouli.

This Versace perfume’s main accords are oud, fresh spicy, warm spicy, balsamic, and citrus. 

Launched in 2013, Oud Noir delivers over 8 hours of powerful performance. 

Its sillage, meanwhile, is moderate and could be a little overpowering especially when you’re smelling the opening notes. 

Hence, Oud Noir is mainly a winter fragrance, although there’s no rule that says you can’t wear it on a cool summer evening. 

2. Creed Royal Oud

Smell like royalty when you wear Creed’s Royal Oud. 

Launched in 2011, this fragrance was inspired by facets of the royal Persian palace including marble, wood, leather, and gold.

Creed released its own oud fragrance due to popular demand by users across the world.

 As you would expect, the house of Creed incorporates certain features that ensure this fragrance stands out among its likes.

Creed Royal Oud opens with top notes of lemon, bergamot, and pink berry, while its beating heart introduces notes of angelic roots, cedar, and galbanum. 

After a while, you should smell base notes of regal Indian oud, sandalwood, and Tonkin musk. 

Creed Royal Oud’s main accords are woody, musky, powdery, citrus, green, and soft spicy. 

It delivers over 8 hours of powerful performance while its projection is moderate but effective. 

This Creed fragrance is predominantly a winter perfume but can be worn in fall and spring.

3. Acqua Di Parma Colonia Intensa Oud

Colonia Intensa Oud is Acqua Di Parma’s vibrant and elegant take on oud. 

This cologne brings a unique Middle Eastern smell with a subtle vibe that quickly becomes powerful and intense. 

Launched in 2012, Colonia Intensa Oud begins with top notes of ginger, bergamot, cardamom, and citrus while its heart notes consist of myrtle, Guaiac wood, cedar, and neroli. 

After a while, it settles to base notes of musk, leather, benzoin, and patchouli.

Its main accords are oud, leather, citrus, animalic, fresh, and fresh spicy. 

Clean, and fresh, Colonia Intensa Oud produces over 12 hours of powerful performance with a heavy sillage that offers an intense scent from its opening notes to its base notes. 

This cologne is an everyday perfume and can be worn at any time of the day and at any time of the year. 

Whether you’re going casual or official, its scent is all you need to sprinkle a bit of nobility to your outfit.

4. Comme Des Garcons Wonderoud

Another oriental woody scent makes it to this list with the fresh and ultra-masculine Wonderoud by the house of Comme Des Garcons. 

Launched in 2014, Wonderoud is one dark and intense concoction, producing an intoxicating fragrance to boost your confidence and accentuate your style. 

It opens with agarwood and Texan cedarwood as its top notes while its middle notes are sandalwood and patchouli. 

The fragrance then settles to base notes of Lignum Vitae and vetiver after a few minutes. 

Its main accords are oud, fresh spicy, balsamic, and woody.

Wonderoud produces about 8 hours of powerful performance while its sillage offers a heavy aroma for the first 3 hours which becomes soft thereafter. 

Its intense scent means it is a fragrance better suited to the cold winter days. 

Wonderoud is one example of a classy cologne for men that can be worn to work during the day or to date on a cool evening. 

Casual or formal, Commes Des Garcons Parfums Wonderoud is just what you need to win hearts and get warming compliments. 

5. Polo Ralph Lauren Supreme Oud

The last oud cologne on this list is from another big brand on the market. 

Polo Ralph Lauren’s take on the oud fragrance is quite interesting and absolutely stunning. 

Supreme Oud was launched in 2015 to critical acclaim and has since been one of the top fragrance choices for users all over the world. 

Designed by Carlos Benaim, Supreme Oud begins with top notes of cinnamon and pink pepper, while its heart notes are Indian oud. 

Its base notes are guaiac wood and vetiver and its main accords are woody, oud, cinnamon, warm spicy, and soft spicy. 

This Ralph Lauren perfume should last over 8 hours on a single spray while its moderate projection is decent enough to announce your presence in grand style. 

Supreme Oud is predominantly a winter cologne, but folks have been known to also wear the fragrance on cool summer evenings. 

Often compared with Boss Bottled Oud and Tom Ford Oud Wood, it also works well for casual and official occasions with a unique aroma that will please any perfume aficionado.

Conclusion

There you have it! Those are 5 of the best oud scents on the market. 

As to be expected from an oud fragrance, none of the above colognes sell cheap so you will need a bit hefty budget if you want one. 

In fact, an ounce of pure oud cost around $300, so you can understand why this is such a rare and expensive fragrance type.  No wonder pure oud is often referred to as “liquid gold.”

With high performance comes a high price, but the good news is you won’t regret parting ways with a couple more dollars to afford these exotic oud wood perfumes. 

Whether you’re investing in the royalty of Creed’s Royal Oud or you’re gunning for the elegance and nobility of Colonia Intensa, you’ll no doubt be pleased with any of the oud fragrances listed above.

That doesn’t mean though that there aren’t any other oud scents out there that are worth considering. Check out Boss Bottled Oud or Tom Ford Oud Wood as both are strong contenders for the fifth spot in this list.