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Difference between Basenotes and Fragrantica?

Hammy01

Well-known member
Jun 24, 2012
286
2
Disclaimer... this is not a bashing one site or another thread.

I personally like both Basenotes and Fragrantica but one thing has stood out to me and that is the listed notes on fragrances. I have noticed on several if not all Fragrances I look up on both sites the listed notes never match and sometimes they are never close.

From my perspective it seems like Basenotes list the note triangle with the actual notes and Fragrantica list the notes that people tend to notice the most. Now is my perspective right and if not right then which site is more accurate? BTW since I am posting this in Basenotes I am assuming that Basenotes is more accurate.
 

pawful

Well-known member
Aug 31, 2010
821
1
i guess it depends on whether you trust marketing departments or online communities more. In any case, "actual" notes don't necessarily exist. A note is whatever people smell and there's a lot of interpretation involved.
 

furrypine

Community Manager
Staff member
Basenotes Plus
Mar 4, 2007
8,420
363
Hi Hammy, could you give an example of a fragrance where you've seen a huge difference in notes?

I do some work on the directory on Basenotes, and my guess is there is less of a discrepancy between Basenotes and Fragrantica than it used to be, at least on new fragrances, since we get the info from the same press releases. Once a fragrance is launched you will see the same notes being mentioned on all the blogs, usually with the phrases taken directly from the official press release. Fragrantica is always quick to include new releases into their directory, if I can't get a good read on the notes I will wait a bit to see if more info on the scent will appear from another source before I use the form to add it. I don't see the point in being the first site to include a new launch if the info is very sparse.

Another reason the pyramids look different is that the structure of notes is less pliable on Fragrantica with their use of set pictograms; you can't specify a note as "green tea" as they only have a pictogram for "tea". (They make up for the schematic structure by having a more descriptive text, I know! so unclench all Fragrantica members)
 

Rüssel

Well-known member
Dec 23, 2010
12,971
37
I like that on Fragrantica people can vote for the notes they notice, also there is a little more information about the scent and who made it, plus better pictures. All that said, the reviews are better on BN, as is the forum.
 

Larimar

Well-known member
Apr 23, 2010
6,276
110
I like that on Fragrantica people can vote for the notes they notice, also there is a little more information about the scent and who made it, plus better pictures. All that said, the reviews are better on BN, as is the forum.

I agree with the latter statement, although I feel completely opposite as for fragrance notes. It's the same issue with parfumo, the votes make up (mostly) a totally irrelevant picture. As for reviews (which is what I study) it is only or used to be older members' reviews on makeupalley that could rival the quality of BN. The obviously now gone Perfumeoflife forum had a lot of valuable information, too, because it had some very knowledgeable people onboard.
 

ineverwas

Active member
Feb 21, 2010
27
0
I spend most of my time on Fragrantica, but indeed I noticed some of the notes in certain perfumes are missing.

However, in general, the notes are rather accurate. I also like the fact that users can vote which notes are most intense to their noses and thus build a second olfactory pyramid, sorted by the strength of the notes - that's a VERY useful feature, many times better and more objective than reviews.
 

30 Roses

Well-known member
Oct 8, 2007
14,070
554
I like our feedback system! It's easy to use.
But I like that they don't go offline....
 

knit at nite

Well-known member
Sep 5, 2009
6,305
704
I use both sites daily and have since Sept 2009.

On BN I prefer that our collection can be listed in words and sorted several ways without moving around pictographs.
.
On FG I prefer that you can make notes on a fragrance page

On BN I appreciate that the mods can lock a thread but don't delete the whole thing- or an individual's posts in a thread. Also that people can't remove other people's reviews by a thumbs up/ thumbs down method. That drives me insane on FG.

When the notes for a scent are disparate between the two sites, I always use the perfumeintelligence site as the tie-breaker.
 

Jack Hunter

Well-known member
Jul 29, 2009
28,355
4,080
I like the forum the best on basenotes and the reviews section on fragrantica.
 

Ursula

Well-known member
Feb 3, 2010
791
1
Basenotes - lots of intelligent discussions and long debates and elaborations and matching of wits.

Fragrantica - a friendly crowd, very outspoken, but cozy.

Basenotes - frequent maintenance overhauls and slowness of system.

Fragrantica - very visual with possibility to insert pictures of bottles menu into text

Basenotes - the great new feature of "Activity Stream" plus showing of the "Activity Stream" inside of Profile.

Fragrantica - a brand new section for Individual Topics where a member has one chance of starting one individual topic line thread.

Both sites are great - love being and galavanting on both. I hope that my posts are valuable and that I don't annoy anyone.
 

Harmen

Well-known member
Nov 18, 2011
72
1
I like the layout of the forum on BN - it is much more pleasant and organized looking. In addition, I don't think Fragrantica allows the selling or decanting of fragrances.

The reviews on Basenotes often seem like they were written by elitists, as opposed to the ones on Fragrantica which to my eyes appear as they were written by more casual folks.

However, BN goes down for me many times a day for a few minutes each time. A bit annoying.
 

cameron

Well-known member
Oct 17, 2011
5,122
10
Both serve their purposes.

Generally my thoughts are:
Basenotes is for the hardcore intellectuals who take this seriously and Fragrantica is for the hobbyist who enjoys fragrance.

Not a knock on either. I prefer basenotes reviews and discussion but also enjoy the fragrantica reviews.
 

del

Well-known member
Dec 23, 2011
11,224
7
All I have to say is Basenotes is way better than Fragrantica especially in terms of discussions/reviews/fora. It is simple and straightforward, nothing fancy, which I prefer. The only advantage of Fragrantica is on the technical aspect (stable system, more graphical features).

Here, the ratio of positive to negative is readily available on the front of perfume page; each review is also color-coded to easily separate the distinction. The content of reviews are more well-thought, IMO.

Basenotes is also totally-free, with the option to be a supporter. Although Fragrantica is also free, I dislike how the system forces a visitor to register after regular visits.

Like what others have implied, both sites have strengths and weaknesses; but despite its glaring flaws, I'll take Basenotes every day of the week, twice on Sundays.
 

SportsFan

Well-known member
Aug 18, 2010
1,748
2
I like that on Fragrantica people can vote for the notes they notice, also there is a little more information about the scent and who made it, plus better pictures. All that said, the reviews are better on BN, as is the forum.

Regarding "the reviews are better on BN, as is the forum".....I tend to both agree, and disagree somewhat. The forum here is much, much better, I agree....that much isn't even close! But I find that the reviews are about the same, with each place having their pros and cons. Basenotes offers perhaps the more experienced enthusiasts who take it much more seriously with their note breakdown and their detailed description of a scent as it transitions from one phase to the next, etc., while Fragrantica reviews consist of the guy who enjoys fragrances and likes to describe what he thought it smelled like, the type of projection and longevity he experienced, how many and what kind of personal comments or compliments he received, and what type occasions and seasons it is appropriate for, etc.

I will add that one thing I really like about the reviews at Fragrantica is that members can "thumb up or thumb down" THE REVIEW!!! Let's be honest.....at both places, you get some really, really stupid reviews (i.e. - the useless four word "smells like cat vomit" type 'review')....but at least at Fragrantica you can thumb down those stupid reviews. And after enough thumbs down, the "review" (and I'm using that term loosely) disappears. :thumbup:

That said, I think that both places compliment one another and work seamlessly together. You get different opinions from different members of each community....and I think that both sites work well together in helping supply enough information to help consumers make informed decisions....which is what this is (or should be) all about.
 
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Windblownhair

Well-known member
May 9, 2012
87
33
I love the discussions on this site. When looking up reviews while shopping, I tend to use Fragrantica. I don't post much to either simply because I'm a total newbie, and most of my questions have been asked already. Basically, I love both sites:thumbsup:
 

ginofelino

Active member
Jun 25, 2012
25
0
I like Basenotes for reading the forum (long time lurker), but I totally disregard the reviews on the individual fragrance pages here. Too many of them sound like pretentious wannabe novelists and either want to praise a fragrance beyond belief or rip it beyond what it really deserves. Just hard to take a lot of them seriously. I find fragrantica much better for getting a general opinion on a fragrance. I also like the notes voting system since it gives a better idea of what the fragrance smells like rather than listing the notes and not knowing which ones are most prominent.
 
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