What We're Looking For In A Neroli Portofino Dupe

Neroli Portofino by Tom Ford is a popular unisex fragrance that was initially launched in 2007 in a private collection and re-released in 2011. It quickly rose to the top of the charts of favourite scents due to its enticing fresh citrus-heavy formulation.    

The genius behind the fragrance is Rodrigo Flores-Roux, who created a heady product that immediately impacts the senses.   

A good Neroli Portofino dupe would need to contain at least some of the premium perfume oils contained in the original, but we would expect it to be far more cost-effective than the £130-ish price tag of the 30ml branded Eau De Parfum.  In short we're looking for a high quality citrus lead scent, that's relatively complex.

Tom Ford Neroli Portofino Scent Profile

High Notes: Citrus!!!!, Bergamot, Bitter Orange, Lemon, Mandarin, Lander

Mid Notes: Neroli, Jasmine, Pittosporum

Base Notes: ​Amber, Ambrette (Musk Mallow) and Angelica

There's a lot going on here. 

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What Else Makes A Good Tom Ford Neroli Portofino Clone

The catch when making a neroli portofino clone is that this is a very, very complex scent. So, what we're looking for is balance. A lot of impersonators tend to go to heavy on the lavender or the neroli meaning that as the top notes of citrus fade you're left with a confused scent that feels like you've walked into a perfume store rather than are wearing an luxury eau de parfum by Tom Ford. A lot of Neroli Portofino dupes fail here, and honestly we've only found a couple that hold a candle to the original past the first few seconds of wear.

Tom Ford Neroli Portofino Dupe Review FAQ

Want to know more about neroli portofino?

How Long Does Neroli Portofino Last?

A single spray of Neroli Portofino will last between eight and twelve hours. You would expect this from a top-quality branded Eau de parfum because they are made using expensive perfume oils.

You don't get the same longevity from an aftershave or eau de toilette, which is one of the main reasons why these versions of classic scents are so much cheaper.

Our favourite Neroli Portofino dupe does contain natural perfume oil, so it will deliver the same longevity as the original Eau de parfum but without the hefty price tag.

The Best Neroli Portofino Dupe - Neroli by Copycat

So we tried the various Neroli clones from the UK's leading dupe fragrances makers, match, the essence vault and copycat. Copycat came out on top, no questions asked. This is generally a trend as they just seem to be that bit better 8 times out of ten. ​Their neroli comes in at £50 for 100ml lasting as long as the original (which makes it comparible to the premium essence vault option here, also at £50s. So, the question is, what actually makes the copycat version the best of the UK's dupes.

Copycat Neroli is "inspired by" (has copied) the citrus top notes contained in the Neroli Portofino formulation pretty much note for note. Copycat includes an irresistible blend of Bergamot, Mandarin, and Musk that gives you a heady citrus hit, followed by a warming afterglow of middle and base notes.    

Honestly it's basically the same as Tom Ford's Neroli Portofino, and we found it nearly identical in our over time side-by-side comparisons. Our testers found Copycat Neroli very fresh, and the scent lingered well after several hours of application. It was perhaps a little busy in the first couple of seconds, but it settled nicely.  

After about five hours in the office, our testers could still smell some of the warmer citrus notes, but the top citrus notes had bottomed out somewhat to allow the middle and base notes to come through, which is incredibly similar to the original. All in all a win for Copycat hands down.