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Eau FactsThe science of wearing it

Does perfume go bad after opening?

The short answer

Not from opening alone. A 2014 study in the Flavour and Fragrance Journal found no sign of limonene breakdown in repeatedly opened, half-empty bottles of eau de toilette stored for nine months, while in a 2021 study strong ultraviolet light changed lavender oil within three days. Light and heat are the real risks.

By the Fragnatique team2 min read6 sourcesUpdated

A line drawing of a half-empty bottle under the words scientists checked: opened, half-empty.Watch on Instagram

Key facts

  • 9 monthsOpened, half-empty bottles showed no sign of limonene's breakdown product, Kern and colleagues found in 2014.
  • Linalool, 2014A companion study found its breakdown product not raised by storage in a perfume exposed to air.
  • 10 weeksPure linalool left in open air fell to about 80 percent, a 2002 study found.
  • 72 hoursUltraviolet light at 366 nm changed the make-up of lavender oil, even in vials flushed with nitrogen.
  • 50 °CHeat changed compounds sensitive to temperature and oxygen in the same 2021 study.
  • Dark, cool, dryLancôme's storage advice, or keep perfume in its original box.

Does air in a half-empty bottle spoil perfume?

Not in the tests we found. Pure linalool left in open air for ten weeks did fall to about 80 percent, a 2002 study in Contact Dermatitis found. Inside real perfume the picture changed: Kern and colleagues found limonene highly stable in eaux de toilette, and a companion study found linalool's breakdown product was not raised by storage in a perfume exposed to air, with no sign of it forming in fine fragrances.

What does light do to perfume oils?

It changes them quickly. In a 2021 study in the Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society, lavender essential oil kept under ultraviolet light at 366 nm for 72 hours at 25 °C lost part of several compounds, such as cis-ocimene, and gained trans-ocimene. The same changes appeared in vials flushed with nitrogen, so removing air did not stop them. Both oils tested were most stable when light and oxygen were absent.

Does heat damage perfume too?

Yes. In the same study, 72 hours at 50 °C changed compounds sensitive to high temperature and oxygen: in lavender oil kept with air, linalool rose from 24.1 to 25.9 percent, and it was unchanged without air. The ICH stability guideline uses raised temperatures on purpose to increase the rate of chemical change. Lancôme says strong light, heat and humidity can break down essential oils, even inside the bottle.

How should you store an opened bottle?

Away from light and heat. Lancôme advises keeping perfume somewhere dark, cool and dry, or in its original box. That matches the lab results: the opened bottles held up in normal storage, while light and heat changed the oils. Those studies tracked limonene and linalool, not every material in a perfume.

The full storyHow Long Does Perfume Last? On Skin, on Clothes and in the Bottle10 min read in the Fragnatique Journal

Sources

Primary sources only. Every statement on this page restates one of them, read by the Fragnatique team.

  1. Kern et al., Stability of limonene and monitoring of a hydroperoxide in fragranced products, Flavour Fragr. J. 29(5), 2014doi.org
  2. Kern et al., Detection of potentially skin sensitizing hydroperoxides of linalool in fragranced products, Anal. Bioanal. Chem. 2014pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  3. Sköld et al., Contact Dermatitis 46(5), 2002pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  4. Odak et al., Thermal Stability and Photostability of Satureja montana and Lavandula angustifolia Essential Oils, J. Braz. Chem. Soc. 32(11), 2021scielo.br
  5. ICH, Q1A(R2) Stability Testing of New Drug Substances and Products (2003)database.ich.org
  6. Lancôme, How to store perfumelancome.ca

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