YSL Y Eau de Parfum
The sharp-dressed man in a bottle. Crisp apple, herbaceous sage, and a warm amberwood dry-down — YSL Y EDP is the scent equivalent of turning up to the office looking absolutely nailed-on.
★★★★¼ 4.3 / 5
The sharp-dressed man in a bottle. Crisp apple, herbaceous sage, and a warm amberwood dry-down — YSL Y EDP is the scent equivalent of turning up to the office looking absolutely nailed-on.
YSL Y EDP launched in 2018 as the Eau de Parfum flanker to the original Y EDT — and it's the version that put this line on the map for most blokes. Where the EDT was pleasant but forgettable, the EDP cranks up the intensity and gives you something with real backbone.
The opening hits you with crisp green apple and bergamot — bright, zingy, almost effervescent. It's the kind of opening that makes you feel like you've just stepped out of a cold shower. Within ten minutes, a wave of sage and geranium rolls through the heart, adding an aromatic, herbaceous quality that keeps it from going too sweet or too clean.
The real star is the dry-down. Amberwood, cedar, and a subtle fougère accord create a warm, slightly sweet base that sits beautifully on the skin for hours. It smells modern, put-together, and — crucially — like you spent a lot more than you actually did. This is designer fragrance done right: mass-appealing without being boring, confident without being loud.
If you work in an office, this might be the best £60 you ever spend on yourself. Y EDP is the ultimate 9-to-5 fragrance — professional enough for meetings, interesting enough that your colleagues will notice, and inoffensive enough that nobody's filing a complaint with HR.
But it's not just an office scent. Chuck this on for a Saturday in town, a casual dinner, or drinks with mates and it works brilliantly. The versatility is genuinely impressive — it slots into almost any scenario except maybe a sweaty festival or a black-tie event where you'd want something heavier.
This is where Y EDP earns its keep. Longevity is a solid 6 to 8 hours on skin in most conditions, with some lads reporting up to 10 hours in cooler weather. On clothes, you'll get even more. That said, there are batch variation rumours — some newer bottles allegedly don't last as long. If you get a weaker one, a spritz on your scarf or collar sorts it.
Projection is moderate to strong for the first 2-3 hours — people within arm's length will absolutely smell you — then it settles into a comfortable skin scent. It's not a beast-mode projector like Dior Sauvage, but it doesn't need to be. The sillage is appropriate and compliment-worthy.
At £57-77 for 100ml depending on where you shop, this is properly good value. You're getting designer house quality and performance at a price that won't make you wince. The bottle is smart too — heavy glass, clean lines, that Y branding looking sharp on any shelf.
In the "clean, modern office fragrance" category, Y EDP goes head-to-head with Bleu de Chanel and Dior Sauvage. Bleu de Chanel is drier and more citrusy — perhaps more sophisticated but less approachable. Sauvage is louder, more peppery, and polarising. Y EDP sits neatly between them: more interesting than Sauvage, more accessible than Bleu.
Against Prada L'Homme, Y EDP is fruitier and more youthful. Against Chanel Allure Homme Sport, it's warmer and less sporty. And against the cheaper Versace Pour Homme, it's noticeably more refined. For the money, YSL Y EDP is hard to beat as a daily driver.
YSL Y EDP is that rare thing in men's fragrances: a safe pick that's actually good. It won't rewrite the rulebook or make a niche snob nod in approval, but it'll make you smell sharp, clean, and put-together every single day for months on end — all for less than a decent pair of trainers. If you're building a fragrance collection and you need a reliable everyday scent, this should be in your top three. If you only own one cologne and want to upgrade, this is the upgrade.