By Jacquelyn Wenskus, director and fragrance category analyst at Circana

The holiday season is officially underway and, like many shoppers, I’m curating my gift list with fragrances right at the top. Its popularity is more than a personal favorite; it’s a trend backed by data. According to Circana’s 2025 Holiday Purchase Intentions Report, fragrance is one of the most gifted items among U.S. consumers. In fact, roughly one-in-five consumers purchased fragrance as a holiday gift last year, and purchase intentions for this season are trending higher. Couple these findings with the fact that fragrance sales at both prestige and mass retail surge during the fourth quarter (Q4), and you have a pretty bright picture taking shape for how the fragrance market will fare this season.

In 2025, Circana expects that Q4 prestige fragrance sales will post low single-digit growth and once again exceed $4 billion in the U.S. Each year, December drives the largest impact and accounts for about 60% of total Q4 sales. The greatest concentration of December spend is during the week before and the week of Christmas, when stores are crowded with last-minute shoppers. 

For fragrance shoppers in the department and beauty specialty stores, this year’s demand is expected to be fueled by offerings across both the premium and affordable price tiers. This includes higher juice concentrations like parfums and luxury brands, as well as lower priced alternatives such as mini sizes and body sprays. Sales of prestige gift sets typically spike during the holidays, representing over 25% of Q4 sales, an outcome which we expect to repeat itself this year. Prestige fragrance will remain the dominant force in the overall fragrance category, but the double-digit growth in mass retail sales so far this year, through early November, signals that mass scents will play a more significant role throughout the remainder of the holiday season. Thanks to a rise in innovation, particularly among mass body spray brands, these types of fragrances are likely to appear on many wish lists this year. 

Fragrance continues to shine as a holiday favorite, blending tradition with evolving consumer preferences. On a personal note, I love giving and receiving fragrances of all kinds—whether it’s luxurious or less expensive. This year, it will be exciting to see prestige fragrances continue to lead the market, while the growing influence of mass scents promises a dynamic season ahead.