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For this men’s fragrance comparison, we are going to be taking a closer look at two insanely popular fragrance from the 1990s, Azzaro Chrome vs. Acqua di Gio. Which of these citrus aquatic scents, is the better wear? Which lasts longer? Which should you buy? I have worn, tested, and reviewed each and will break them down by category before declaring an ultimate winner.

Tale of the Tape: Chrome vs. AdG

Acqua di Gio

Notes include: bergamot, tangerine, neroli, jasmine, rosemary, patchouli, rock rose, hyacinth, persimmon, marine notes

Click here to try: Acqua Di Gio By Giorgio Armani For Men. Eau De Toilette Spray 3.4 Ounces

Read my review: Acqua di Gio

Azzaro Chrome

Click here to try: Men’s Chrome by Azzaro Eau de Toilette Spray – 3.4 oz.

Notes include: neroli, lemon, bergamot, rosemary, pineapple, musk, woods, and jasmine

Read my review: Chrome Review

Opening

Acqua di Gio opens up with a nice citrus blend of tangerine and bergamot. These two top notes are joined by marine notes of an ocean quality, and then, floral notes of neroli and jasmine.

It’s nice with the sea notes and the citrus. I like the addition of the jasmine, in particular, and the spices which gradually arise during the wear. Having come back to this fragrance after a long absence, the citrus and jasmine really struck me as being fantastic.

Chrome opens with lemon and pineapple, which is a sharper pairing, than is found in AdG. It too, has jasmine and neroli, in the beginning.

Do the two smell similar? Ehh, there are somewhat related but, AdG has a spicier and less sharp profile. Chrome is bright with a vaguely aquatic aroma lurking in there, with more of a soapy/woody scent.

Which is better? It’s really close, as I enjoy both of these colognes and how they start. Ultimately, I think I prefer Acqua di Gio’s opening act, a bit more. The oceanic sea breeze, with the tangerine and bergamot, is what I think gives it a slight edge.

Edge: Acqua di Gio

Projection

Chrome can strike me as pretty bold, right at the start, but later settles down into a moderate. It’s a pretty similar experience with Acqua di Gio, which is also, fairly moderate. I really don’t see much separation with the current sillage of each.

Older editions may have had a marked difference. Nowadays, they’re basically equals.

Edge: Push

Longevity

With Acqua di Gio, I get about 6-7 hours of wear, on my skin. It’s respectable, but not amazing. Azzaro Chrome will get me 7-8 hours of wear. It’s not a huge difference, but Chrome is better with how long it lasts.

Update: Trying AdG some more, it seems to be a 5-7 hour range. A few times, I don’t think it reached the six hour mark.

Edge: Chrome

Versatility

Both of these colognes are great in the warmer months of the year. They really do smell fantastic, when the temperatures rise, but can go year round without issue. Both are good for casual wear, daily office wear, or even to school for younger men.

Neither is much of a nighttime fragrance exclusively, but can venture into that world. Again, there’s not much separation, and they occupy the same niche essentially.

Edge: Push

Overall Scent

Each of these fragrances, has been a best seller since the 1990s, and there’s good reason for that.

Chrome is a great daily wear cologne, that has a lot of fans, and it does get plenty of complements. It is fresh, upbeat, with aquatic and woody undertones.

It has a soapy clean smell with a unique metallic edge. It’s really easy to just grab and spray on, without much though, and has good performance.

However, if I’m just going on smell alone, I’d give the edge to Acqua di Gio. It is more interesting to me. I like the spiciness, the floral undertones, the oceanic influence, and those awesome citrus notes. It would be my choice, if each were priced the same.

I will say, that you can usually get Chrome for a cheaper price (sometimes, it’s reversed). If that were the major deciding factor, I’d buy that over the Armani cologne. Nonetheless, AdG is the winner of this match up for me. They are extremely close and it’s not a clear cut choice.

Winner: Acqua di Gio

Best Men's Colognes

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.

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Continuing with our recent restarting of more fragrance reviews on this site, I thought I should take a closer look at some of the more popular colognes out there, that I haven’t touched upon yet.

One such fragrance is the ever best selling, Armani Code by Giorgio Armani. Armani is a brand with some major hits in its catalog of men’s fragrances, how does Armani Code stack up with the rest?

Armani Code EDT Overview

Notes include: citrus, lavender, apple, leather, tobacco, star anise, woods, tonka bean

Click here to try: Armani Code By Giorgio Armani For Men. Eau De Toilette Spray 4.2 Oz.

My Full Wear Review

The opening of Armani Code is quite sweet, with the fruit notes taking center stage. during the first thirty minutes to an hour.

This isn’t some girly or candy-like sweetness mind you, rather, one which is soft and sort of creamy/powdery. It is highlighted by citrus, The leather and tobacco notes really begin to shine after that point and fully develop this fragrance’s identity.

The newer bottles of Code seem to have a stronger tonka bean influence, which would lend itself to the sweet semi-creaminess of the fragrance. It’s actually very nice when paired with tobacco and leather.

However, the initial opening is more about the spiced aspect of Code, which stems from the star anise. Anise, citrus, and leather. Followed by tonka bean and tobacco, which gain in strength to replace the anise and citrus on the hierarchy.

Code is a very dark and sensual sort of fragrance, but isn’t bombastic or heavy in any way. It is a subtle, versatile, and refined.

I like that I could wear this for any occasion and it wouldn’t seem out of place. Also, this is one of those scent that women seem to enjoy and want to get closer when you wear.

As it wears on it develops more into the dark and clean scent and moves away from the sweetness/spiciness that can be found in the opener.

I am a fan of leather in fragrances when it’s done well and it is done quite well in Armani Code. The woods come in to the picture, sitting at the base, with a freshness a slight smoky edge.

Ultimately, I am left with leather, tonka bean, and tobacco. These notes are flanked by some very light citrus and whatever spice is still there. All sits on a base of wood.

Sillage, Longevity, Versatility

The sillage is still fairly strong, upon first application. Not a super powerful projector or anything like that, but, it does a very nice job for the first few hours. After that, Code settles down, into something that is near the middle of the pack in terms of its strength.

The longevity on newer bottles, doesn’t seem to be as good. Older ones could go 8 or so hours, but the newer formulation, doesn’t seem to hit that same level. Maybe, somewhere around 6, now.

Is Code versatile? Yes, as a moderate to colder weather fragrance, you can pretty much wear it whenever. It is fine for the office or casually or during the nightlife. Not great in the hotter weather, but any other time, this Armani works out.

Again, it is well-liked by women, and will generally get positive comments from those around you consistently. While the performance is just decent now, Code still has a great degree of wear-ability. It’s also not worn by everyone to the same degree that it used to be, as guys seemed to have moved on to other scents.

Overall Impressions of Armani Code

Overall, Code is a great and versatile buy for almost any guy. It is safe and moderate and smells really nice. It has good longevity and the projection while not overpowering is quite good as well.

It is very popular, so it really won’t be unique but it is definitely worth a buy. That is, if it were the only option from this line.

Armani Code has spawned numerous flankers over the years, which have surpassed it in greatness, both Profumo and Absolu. Absolu is now my favorite and is the peak of the Code namesake.

Update: Add Code Parfum to the mix, if you want another great one. The above two are discontinued now.

So, if price isn’t the only factor, I would pick either of those before the original. Though, the original can usually be found for cheaper. In the end, Code is a once great cologne, that is still very good…but has mostly been surpassed since its release.

In most cases, you can’t go wrong with wearing Code. It’s a classic that has cemented its place in history.