Sandalwood is a very common ingredient in many fragrances, especially men’s colognes. It provides scents with a smooth woody aroma with a bit of sweetness which lends itself well to the world of perfume.
Since so many people enjoy this note, some want to find colognes where sandalwood is the main attraction. Well, in this post, I’m going to present the best options for men’s perfumes which feature a prominent sandalwood note.
Now, some of these options will be more of a straightforward sandalwood fragrance. While others, will feature it as the main note, that is perhaps blended with others to make something beautiful and unique.
Favorite Sandalwood Fragrances for Men
Great Inexpensive Sandalwood Fragrance
Taylor of Old Bond Street Sandalwood Cologne, 100 ml
It is low key and a softer scent, but not weak. Taylor of Old Bond Street’s Sandalwood, is dry and comforting, and quite affordable.
Taylor’s Sandalwood gives you a cleaner fragrance, without the spices, found in some of the others on the list. Gets fairly soapy at times, with the sandalwood/lavender mix. Then, it can be powdery and fresh.
Best Designer Sandalwood Scent
Guerlain ‘Santal Royal’ Eau de Parfum Spray 4.2oz/125ml 
The sandalwood is initially a side attraction, along with the cinnamon note. It is quite thick and rich at the beginning, with a rose note providing sweetness, along with a hint of fruitiness.
As it moves forward, Santal Royal, does become much more of a sandalwood dominant fragrance. It is drier and smoother, with the leather note being our target ingredient’s, main partner.
The sillage here is strong, with awesome longevity. It’s a masculine cologne for the colder months of the year. Santal Royal Full Review
Santal Saffron
Santal Carmin by Atelier Cologne– Warm. Saffron, sandalwood, and vanilla is most of what I pick up with this one. Very tiny bit of citrus, right after the initial spray, but not much of it beyond that. Kind of sharp, though.
The saffron is probably number two here and is one of my favorite ingredients in these sorts of blends. Santal Carmin is dry, smooth, and has a fairly creamy sandalwood note…particularly paired with the vanilla.
Guaiac wood and musk round things out. Smokey and somewhat musky in the dry down but mostly giving you a laid back sandalwood and attractive saffron, in these latter stages.
Unisex Chanel Aldehydes and Sandalwood
Bois des Iles by Chanel– An older creation, dating back to the 1920s, Bois des Iles is a fantastic blend of sandalwood and spices. It has some similarities to Egoiste (listed below), but is more of a sandalwood focused blend, with greater floral touches.
Tonka bean lends some creamy sweetness, the ylang-ylang and orris give it a floral and somewhat powdery finish, but the lead is the woods. Bois des Iles opens with aldehydes and coriander creating a spicy and fresh dynamic.
It settles down into a woodsy and amber-laden perfume, with a warmth that is great on an autumn or winter’s day.
May not be for everyone, as it does have more of a floral aroma versus the others on this list, but it is unisex and Egoiste is the more masculine alternative.
Coconut Sandalwood
Santal Complet by Fragrance du Bois– With the coconut and lemon top, you might expect this to be more feminine than it actually is. Sure, it might lean more that way, but Santal Complet is definitely in the unisex camp.
The coconut is great here. Naturalistic and doesn’t constantly try to grab attention. Up top, there is that citrus hint with the tropical fruit, but that is pretty short-lived.
As it dries down, it does indeed become drier, woodier, powdery, ambery, and earthy. The vanilla adds a touch of creaminess to the coconut, but the sandalwood base note is the one that ultimately shines.
More of a mixed blend than just a pure sandalwood fragrance, but it gives you a lot of our target note.
Two Wood Luxury
Oud & Santal by Cartier– The sandalwood has the upper hand in this combination, but the oud note adds some nice depth, warmth, and smokiness to further things along.
This one is actually sweet, also. Cartier adds a plum syrup accord to the mix to give this one a bit more than just the woody pairing. It’s smooth and the oud never goes full barnyard in its smell, to overpower the sandalwood note.
Dries down soft and elegant. It does have a thicker sort of aroma, but it isn’t loud or dominating, especially in the later hours. This is a pricey one, however.
Classic Daily Wear Designer Cologne
EGOISTE POUR HOMME Eau De Toilette Spray FOR MEN 3.4 Oz / 100 ml
Egoiste is more of a blended cologne, with sandalwood being one of the biggest contributors to the scent, along with tobacco, rose, and cinnamon.
Egoiste starts off spicy, with its coriander and cinnamon notes. It’s not overbearing, but gives it a nice kick. Then, there is a rose note, other florals, and amber. All together and Egoiste has a balsamic sort of feeling.
Finally, you hit the smooth dry down. Here’s where the sandalwood really comes through. Leather and tobacco with rose and a hint of vanilla. Quite woody, with periods of sharpness, and can really deliver good performance. Egoiste Review
Sandalwood and Rose Blend
Serge Lutens Santal Majuscule Eau De Parfum Spray For Men 50Ml/1.6Oz
But, it is joined by raw cacao and rose, to give Santal Majuscule an underlying powdered sweetness. It’s very smooth and has a creamy element while maintaining a familiar dry warmth.
This is absolutely one of the best options on the market, for someone who wants a dominate sandalwood note. It is pretty simple and straightforward, with its list of ingredients, but takes those and creates something that it beautiful.
It has elements of spice and sweetness and bitterness, at times. Simplicity with depth and is just plain enjoyable.
Top Sweet Sandalwood Blend
Original Santal By Creed For Men. Millesime Spray 4.0 Oz
I find it so much more pleasant than after my first few days of wear and really began to enjoy its understated smoothness.
There is a hint of juniper berry in the composition and the whole thing has a really fresh vibe. Original Santal is a softer scent and the longevity is pretty average, but a nice scent to wear on a cold day.
I really like the vanilla note here, with the sandalwood. The cinnamon gives it that little bit of spice, but the sweet creaminess, can be utterly terrific. Creed Santal Review
Great Balanced Fragrance
CREED BOIS DU PORTUGAL by Creed EAU DE PARFUM SPRAY 4 OZ
A very mature and masculine scent perfect for the older gentleman or those who prefer their colognes to have a bit of a spice to it.
It is however, a distinct woodsy experience of lavender, sandalwood, and a dry oakmoss note.
Bois du Portugal starts with the sandalwood and a nice citrus note. Pretty sure, it’s bergamot. You get a somewhat bright and clean aroma, before cedar and lavender, replace the citrus.
Portugal becomes super smooth and fresh, with just a bit of the Creed ambergris, making an appearance.
It’s mostly about the sandalwood and lavender, but you do get some vetiver, during the dry down. Fairly moderate sillage, but lasts on my skin for 8-9 hours. This is a refined and mature scent. Very well put together. Best Creed Colognes for Men. and Bois du Portugal Review
Best Woody Blend Perfume
Diptyque Tam Dao Eau De Parfum
Tam Dao opens with more of the cypress note, before the dry down transitions to having the santal be the leader of the pack. Lots of wood notes with some amber and slight spices.
This is the choice for those guys who want a woodsy cologne, way beyond just what the sandalwood provides. The cypress and cedar, are also joined by rosewood. So, this one can get quite dry and forest-like.
That can be a selling point for some men, while others would want to stay away. Nonetheless, I think this is the type of fragrance, that could easily win someone over to trying out a deeply woody scent.
Best Dark and Spicy Sandalwood Scent
Valentino Uomo Noir Absolu For Men Eau de Parfum 3.4 Oz
It starts off with spicy notes of cinnamon and pepper, with the signature Valentino Uomo iris note, and a resinous quality. The spiciness subsides somewhat after 10 minutes.
Then, there is a somewhat powdery sweetness, underneath it all. During the dry down, is where the sandalwood, really takes hold.
It’s sandalwood with spice, incense smokiness, and iris. Not too heavy of a sillage and a good long performance. This gives you something a bit different from others on this list, while delivering a great sandalwood note. Uomo Noir Absolu Review
Update: This is seemingly more difficult to get a hold of. I wouldn’t overpay for it in the secondary market, if the prices are crazy.
Best Men’s Colognes started back in 2013, as a way to share my learning experiences with the different fragrances that I’ve owned, as I dove head first into the hobby. Since then, that new hobby grew into a consistent passion, helping millions of readers along the way. I have personally written reviews for well over 800 perfumes and colognes for both men and women. This is along with writing hundreds of other in-depth fragrance guides. You can also follow me on: YouTube, Instagram, and Tiktok!
– A classic dating back to the early 1970s, this Chanel has seen many incarnations over the years. However, one of the constants has been the iris that is paired with green woodsy notes, like vetiver and oak moss.
– Dry cedar and iris that starts out packing quite a punch. Very woodsy and has a bitter quality at times, but Hiris is a very clean, and interesting use of the iris note.
– A sweet at the start, citrus floral take on the iris note. Iris Nobile starts out with orange, bergamot, and star anise. After that, it dries down into a creamy floral, with bits of spice to go along with iris and a great tuberose note.
– Athalia is a wonderful iris fragrance by Parfums de Marly. It opens up with an awesome blend of bitter orange, orange blossom, incense, and a bit of rose.
– Yes, this one is a men’s cologne. However, while it leans masculine, it can definitely be worn by plenty of women without problem. This is actually my main everyday wear and one of the best uses of the iris note in a men’s fragrance.
– Hyacinth and iris dominate this interesting floral perfume, that really embodies a garden environment. Very green and floral with a cold powdered aroma that stays through the entire wear.
– Creamy mix of sandalwood and iris flower, more of the actual flower than some derivative. Iris Poudre is warm and bright with a solid musk note in the heart of the perfume. 
– Less of a heavy powdery iris note here, but one that is very clean, fresh, with lovely citrus notes in support.
– A more affordable options with spices and smooth tonka bean. Iris Noir from Yves Rocher pairs iris with patchouli and pepper, among other notes. Earthy patchouli and tonka flank the iris note, which gives off its usual powdery fragrance.
