Fragrance note guide

What Does Fig Smell Like in Perfume?

Fig in perfume usually smells green, milky and softly sweet, with fruity, leafy, creamy and woody sides. A fig note can represent the ripe fruit, the broad green leaves, the milky sap or the whole tree. Some fig accords are lush and fruity, while others are dry, leafy and almost woody. Fig is mainly used near the top.

Ripe purple figs, green leaves and a cut stem on a pale apricot-grey background

What Does Fig Smell Like?

Ripe fig can suggest soft red fruit, honey and gentle jam-like sweetness. Fig leaf is greener, sharper and slightly bitter, while fig sap can feel milky or coconut-like. Perfumers often combine these impressions to create a full fig-tree accord rather than copying only the fruit.

Where Does Fig Come From?

The common fig is Ficus carica, native from the eastern Mediterranean through parts of western and Central Asia. The plant produces a milky latex, but modern fig perfume notes are normally constructed from fruity, green, lactonic and woody materials. Stemone is one fragrance molecule used to create realistic fig-leaf effects.

How Fig Is Usually Described

  • Green
  • Milky
  • Fruity
  • Leafy
  • Creamy
  • Woody

How Is Fig Used in Perfume?

Fig is used in fruity, green, woody, floral and gourmand fragrances. It blends well with citrus, blackcurrant, coconut-like lactones, violet leaf, jasmine, cedarwood, sandalwood, musk and amber. It can make a woody fragrance feel greener or add creamy natural texture to a fruit accord.

Notes Commonly Paired With Fig

White jasmine flowers and green leaves against a soft blue green background
Fragrance note

Jasmine

Jasmine in perfume usually smells rich, sweet and floral. It can also seem creamy, green, fruity or slightly spicy, depending on the type of jasmine and the other...

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Golden labdanum and benzoin resins used in amber perfume accords
Fragrance note

Amber

Amber in perfume usually smells warm, sweet and resinous, with soft vanilla, balsamic, powdery or slightly smoky sides. It is not normally taken from fossilised amber. In perfumery,...

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Fresh bay laurel leaves and dark berries on a dusty pink-grey background
Fragrance note

Bay Leaf

Bay leaf in perfume usually smells green, herbal and spicy, with eucalyptus-like, woody and slightly medicinal sides. It is drier and more aromatic than many soft leafy notes....

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Ripe blackcurrants with green leaves and unopened buds on a pale sage background
Fragrance note

Blackcurrant

Blackcurrant in perfume usually smells dark, tart and juicy, with green, leafy and slightly sharp sides. It can suggest ripe berries, crushed leaves or a rich fruit syrup,...

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Cedarwood pieces with wood shavings and fresh cedar foliage
Fragrance note

Cedarwood

Cedarwood in perfume usually smells dry, warm and woody, with resinous, slightly smoky or pencil like sides. Some cedarwood notes feel smooth and creamy, while others are sharper...

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Sliced lemon, orange, grapefruit, lime and bergamot with green leaves on a pale sky-blue background
Fragrance note

Citrus

Citrus in perfume usually smells bright, fresh and zesty, with juicy, bitter, green and peel-like sides. The term does not describe one fruit because lemon, bergamot, orange, mandarin,...

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Ambrette seed pods and white flowers representing soft musk notes
Fragrance note

Musk

Musk in perfume can smell soft, warm, clean and slightly powdery, often with a smooth quality that is compared with fresh skin or clean fabric. Some musk notes...

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Pale sandalwood pieces with smooth wood shavings and green leaves
Fragrance note

Sandalwood

Sandalwood in perfume usually smells warm, creamy and softly woody. It can also have milky, balsamic, powdery or lightly spicy sides. Unlike sharper woods, sandalwood often feels smooth...

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Fresh violet leaves with water droplets and a small purple flower on a pale apricot-blue background
Fragrance note

Violet Leaf

Violet leaf in perfume usually smells green, watery and cool, with metallic, leafy, cucumber-like and earthy sides. It is very different from the sweet powdery smell associated with...

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Luxaro Perfumes With Fig as a Top Note

These fragrances introduce Fig near the opening of the scent.

Related Fragrance Notes

Dried figs, apricots, dates, raisins and prunes on a pale sage-grey background
Fragrance note

Dried Fruit

Dried fruit in perfume usually smells rich, sweet and concentrated, with raisin, prune, date, apricot and honeyed sides. It is darker and less juicy than a fresh-fruit note....

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Pear, peach, berries, plum and pineapple representing fruity notes in perfume
Fragrance note

Fruity Notes

Fruity notes in perfume can smell juicy, sweet, tart, green, creamy or syrupy depending on the fruits being represented. The term is a broad category rather than one...

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Crushed leaves, snapped green stems, cut grass and a violet leaf representing green notes in perfumery
Fragrance note

Green Notes

Green notes in perfume usually smell like crushed leaves, cut grass, snapped stems and fresh plant sap. They can be crisp, watery, bitter, herbal or slightly metallic. Green...

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Accords and Fragrance Families Connected to Fig

Vetiver roots, patchouli leaves, dry hay and a fig leaf representing an earthy accord in perfume
Fragrance accord

Earthy

An earthy accord usually smells dry, woody, rooty or slightly damp, with a grounded quality that contrasts with brighter floral, citrus or fruity notes. Some earthy accords have...

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