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5 Unique Perfumes That Smell Like Alien
Mugler’s Alien is jasmine turned up until it glows, and few perfumes come close. These five take different parts of it. Start with Ajmal Sacrifice for Her if you want Alien’s jasmine with more sweetness, Valentino Born in Roma for its structure in a softer form, and Milton-Lloyd Stars as the cheap pick.
What Makes Alien Smell Like Alien?
Three materials. Mugler’s Alien Eau de Parfum, by Dominique Ropion and Laurent Bruyère (2005), is built on jasmine sambac, cashmeran and a white amber accord. Sambac jasmine is the Arabian kind, fruitier, greener and more indolic than the classic French grandiflorum, with an almost tea-like freshness. Cashmeran is a synthetic that smells of warm wool, musk and pine. White amber is a clean, woody-ambery accord.
Turned up together, jasmine and cashmeran give Alien its strange, radiant, slightly solar feel. The perfumes below share one or two of those three pieces, and swap the rest. Alien EDT, Goddess and the other flankers are different compositions, so use the EDP as the reference.
| Perfume | What it shares with Alien | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Ajmal Sacrifice for Her | Jasmine, amber, musk | Adds aquatic notes, orange blossom, vanilla |
| Valentino Born in Roma | Jasmine sambac, cashmeran | Bourbon vanilla in place of white amber |
| Milton-Lloyd Stars | Jasmine, white amber | Orange blossom, violet, patchouli |
| Mugler Alien Fusion | White amber | Ginger, cinnamon, tuberose, vanilla |
| Katy Perry Purr | Jasmine, white amber | Peach, apple, rose, vanilla orchid |
5 Alien Alternatives
Ajmal Sacrifice for Her
Ajmal describes Sacrifice for Her with jasmine and aquatic notes, orange blossom and vanilla, then amber and musk. It’s Alien’s jasmine and amber made sweeter and wetter: the aquatic notes give it a dewy opening, and vanilla softens the end. One wearer finds it Alien-like but sweeter. Buy Sacrifice for Her Eau de Parfum; Sacrifice for Him and the body spray are different.
Valentino Born in Roma
Born in Roma for women is jasmine sambac, cashmeran and bourbon vanilla. That’s two-thirds of Alien’s formula, with vanilla in place of the white amber. The result is the same glowing jasmine, made creamier and sweeter, and much less strange. Not marketed as anything to do with Alien, but the notes say a lot.
Milton-Lloyd Stars
Stars is a Parfum de Toilette that retailers describe as orange blossom and citrus, then jasmine, rose, violet and spice, over sandalwood, patchouli and white amber. Jasmine and white amber are the Alien link, and violet adds a soft powder. Two wearers who compared it with Alien recognised the resemblance; one who owned both found Stars close later on but quieter. It’s a fraction of the price.
Mugler Alien Fusion
Alien Fusion keeps the white amber and swaps the jasmine for tuberose and orange blossom, with ginger and cinnamon on top and vanilla below. It’s Alien warmed by spice, a white-flower perfume for winter. Pick it if you like the Alien family but want something cosier.
Katy Perry Purr
Purr opens with peach nectar, apple and green bamboo, then jasmine, pink freesia and Bulgarian rose, over vanilla orchid, white amber, sandalwood and musk. Jasmine and white amber are the shared pieces; peach and apple make it a fruitier, more playful perfume. The loosest link on the page, and the most fun.
More Jasmine and Amber
For jasmine on its own, see our jasmine perfumes. The amber list goes warmer, and our dupe guide explains how perfumes like these get made.
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