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Today, I want to take a closer look at and compare two hit unisex fragrances from the 1990s, CK One and CK Be. These Calvin Klein perfumes were best sellers of their time and are still going strong two decades later. The question begs however, which of these scents is better? Which has the best scent? Lasts longer? Is the better buy? Please continue below as I break down this head to head match up of the Calvin Klein family of fragrances.
Comparing Calvin Klein’s CK One and CK Be
CK Be Tale of the Tape
Notes include: magnolia, peach, lavender, musk, sandalwood, bergamot, mint, vanilla
Click here to try: Ck Be by Calvin Klein for Women, Eau De Toilette, 3.4 Ounce
CK One Tale of the Tape
Notes: papaya, pineapple and jasmine. green tea and amber
Try CK One: Ck One by Calvin Klein for Men and Women, Eau De Toilette, 1.7 Ounce
Opening
The opening of CK Be is a fresh blend of mostly lavender, with citrus, mint and sandalwood notes, which feels very familiar and clean. The orange note here, is a very light touch, especially when compared to the bold citrus found in One.
As it moves a bit further along, Be starts to take on more of its floral character. It’s got a musky clean, sort of soapy quality, with the introduction of mostly freesia.
CK One is also very fresh and clean but instead utilizes the citrus, pineapple, and green floral notes to create a light yet quite attractive aroma.
CK One starts off with an initial burst of its citrus and tropical fruit notes. Lots of pineapple, papaya, lemon, and bergamot. This is joined by a nice little green tea note, and the slight warmth of cardamom.
One has a very citrus opening, that has a watery, almost aquatic feel. This is flanked by its tea influence and musk.
It depends on your tastes, but I think One is the winner. To me, it’s opening act, is just more interesting. Hell, its an extremely famous smell at this point. I do love the fruity notes, but the green tea, is just an added delicious touch.
Edge: One
Projection
Neither one of these scents is a monster in terms of how it projects. These are lighter, casual fragrances, meant to be inoffensive and universally enjoyed.
That being said, CK One is the stronger scent of the two. Be can be a very light almost skin type of fragrance. At first, Be is pretty good, but it gets quite light.
I think CK One is a light to moderate sillage perfume. You’re going to notice, that it is there, much more so than Be. The opening hour or so, with One is fairly strong, and definitely projects itself a decent distance.
Edge: One
Longevity
CK Be has longevity issues. Like, it will last around 4-5 hours…I’m pretty sure that reformulations took away some of its staying power from how it used to be.
CK One gives decent longevity, again, it’s not a beast by any means but it gets the job done fairly well. The most recent bottles that I’ve tried out, still lasted 6-7 hours, on my skin.
Again, both of these used to be better, but One was always the better performer of the two. CK Be, used to get, about what One achieves nowadays.
Edge: One
Versatility
Both of these fragrances are casual wears, that seem to work best in warmer weather. Neither is a nighttime or date night type of scent. Really no difference in this regard.
Each of these perfumes, skews toward a younger audience. These were and still are to some extent, staples in the world of high school and college age.
Yes, anyone can indeed wear these fragrances, but don’t expect some super formal usage out of either.
I’d stick to both being more of a daily wear for younger people or something to throw on casually, if you’re someone older who enjoys how they smell. That’s how I’ve used either, in the past.
Edge: Push
Overall Scent
I like how both of these fragrances smell. They are both unisex and as such they enjoy a wide appeal from a great number of people.
CK Be, while smelling quite nice, has some pretty noticeable longevity issues which only serves to undermine its case here. I do like the warmth of this composition, as well as the lavender cleanliness.
It has enough of a spicy kick from fresh notes like mint and juniper to keep it interesting. It does have a bit of depth, with its fairly short lived, floral period.
Ultimately, it’s a nice smelling perfume, that has seen better performance days. It does have a more unique formula than One, which has been imitated more so over the years, and lost some of its unique status.
CK One on the other hand, is still a classic, and while you won’t be wearing a niche scent in using it…One gets the job done as a solid casual fragrance.
I love its balance as a fragrance, it truly is one of the all-timers, for a unisex wear. The fruity opening is great, along with the green tea. It still shines during its dry down, as it becomes a greener, a bit muskier, with a super fresh cedar finish.
Yes, it’s lost a bit of its punch, but for the prices you can find it at; I still feel that it has plenty of value as a casual fragrance for men or women. It’s still among the best Calvin Klein has ever produced.
Winner: CK One
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Best Men’s Colognes started back in 2013, as a way to share my learning experiences with different fragrances, as I dove head first into the hobby. Since then, I have written hundreds of reviews and other pages about perfumes and colognes.