L’Homme vs La Nuit by YSL Comparison

I can’t believe that I had never done this comparison, up until now. But, better late than never. For this cologne comparison entry, I am going to be taking a closer look at two scents from YSL: La Nuit de l’Homme vs. L’Homme. Which perfume smells better? Which has better performance? Which projects well? Ultimately, which is the better buy?

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Tale of the Tape: L’Homme vs La Nuit

L’Homme

Notes include: Virginia Cedar, Ginger, Violet, Citron, White Pepper, Basil Flower, Ozone, Tonka Bean, Sandalwood, Vetiver

Click here to try: L’homme By Yves Saint Laurent Eau De Toilette Spray For Men 3.3 oz

Read my review: L’Homme Review

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La Nuit

Notes include: cardamom, bergamot, vetiver, lavender, cedar

Try it out: Yves Saint Laurent La Nuit De L’homme Eau de Toilette Spray, 3.3-Ounce

Read my review: La Nuit de l’Homme

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Opening

L’Homme opens up with a light citrus blend of bergamot and citron, with ginger and basil. It is clean and fresh, with a light herbal spice, and a slight green aroma. A bit later, you get the violet leaf, but L’Homme maintains a balance of sweet and fresh.

La Nuit starts off with cardamom and bergamot. The bergamot isn’t too heavy and is soon replaced by the lavender note, for the most part. This one has a pretty big dose of cardamom at the top.

Which is better? It’s really close in my mind and I actually like both. However, I have always really enjoyed the start of L’Homme, and prefer it slightly here.

I love the smell of L’Homme at the start, it’s so good, that even other great scents can be hard pressed to touch it.

Edge: L’Homme

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Projection

Neither of these colognes has a monster sillage. L’Homme is pretty light and airy throughout the wear. La Nuit starts out moderate and then goes light after an hour or two. So, it has more power.

This is the main complaint with either of these fragrances, they don’t have much strength. Some of their flankers do, but they usually smell completely different from the originals.

Edge: La Nuit

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Longevity

The biggest problem that I’ve had with L’Homme, has always been its lack of staying power. On my skin, it will last 4-5 hours tops. Yep, it’s a letdown.

Update: With my 2021 bottle, L’Homme is now in the 2.5-3 hour range of longevity. The sillage is about the same, but the longevity is somehow even worse. The performance on skin, just isn’t good at all.

La Nuit is better, but not amazing, either. It is in the 6-8 hour range, mostly toward the lower end of that range. Update: Newer bottles are a few hours less with its overall range.

It L’Homme had the sillage and longevity, it would probably be a constant in my rotation.

Edge: La Nuit

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Versatility

Seasonally, L’Homme is more versatile. It smells great in the warm weather and can go into the cold, also. La Nuit, is more of a cold weather fragrance, that can venture into the springtime. As to when they can be worn, it is pretty much even, except La Nuit, is a better nighttime wear. Overall, I think L’Homme is slightly more versatile.

Edge: L’Homme

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Overall Scent

This can be a tough one to do, because I like both of these fragrances a lot. L’Homme really does smell great, it is a simple presentation, but the fresh blend of sweet and spicy is awesome. I completely dig the way it smells. It just has no staying power.

I personally, have actually liked the way that L’Homme smells more so than La Nuit. Just crappy performance. Now, I actually have grown to favor La Nuit’s smell more, and L’Homme is pretty atrocious with how it lasts.

This current bottle that I have, is almost certainly my last, that I will ever purchase. I still spray the air with it from time to time, because its a scent that I’ve owned multiple times over the years.

La Nuit, doesn’t start off as good, but I think that it finishes better than L’Homme. The cardamom and lavender combo starts to take off and get good. Once the vetiver note kicks in completely, the aroma is amazing.

The powdery aroma comes in fully and La Nuit just becomes a super pleasant fragrance to wear.

It is warm, slightly spicy, with enough sweetness to keep it interesting. Plus, it has better performance than L’Homme, even if it isn’t great in its own right.

As such, I’m giving the win here to La Nuit de l’Homme. It reaches higher heights of greatness and has the better performance. Unlike it competitor, it still has some life left in it.

Winner: La Nuit