Lorraine Kelly
In 2025, perfume stopped being a guilty pleasure and turned into a full-blown global arms race. And according to a new five-year data deep-dive from Fresha, search demand for celebrity perfume is exploding in the run-up to Christmas – with a very different set of stars now running the show.
The short version? The kids have nicked the keys to the fragrance cabinet.
Gen Z’s Grip On The Celebrity Perfume Crown
On Fresha’s new global leaderboard, Ariana Grande sits in top spot with a colossal 941,000 searches in the past month, up 65% month-on-month. That’s not a gentle rise; that’s a stadium tour of interest.
Billie Eilish isn’t far behind. Her scent line racks up 672,000 searches, surging 113% in a single month – the fastest growth in the entire ranking and the kind of curve most brands would sell their souls (or at least their makeup contracts) for.
Sabrina Carpenter, meanwhile, has gone from “support act” to “headline attraction” with 316,000 searches and a 94% month-on-month jump, making her the biggest breakout story in the data.
Behind them, Kylie Jenner adds further weight to the Gen Z takeover with 120,000 searches and a steady 59% climb, proving that when it comes to celebrity perfume, social reach still converts to cold, hard demand.
The 2025 Celebrity Perfume Top Ten
| Rank | Fragrance | Monthly searches | MoM change | Trend notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ariana Grande | 941,000 | +65% | Five-year holiday spike; now the undisputed global market leader. |
| 2 | Billie Eilish | 672,000 | +113% | Fastest growth on the board; huge Gen Z traction. |
| 3 | Sabrina Carpenter | 316,000 | +94% | Biggest breakout; steepest upward trend. |
| 4 | Britney Spears | 144,000 | +36% | An evergreen classic and still a holiday workhorse. |
| 5 | Kylie Jenner | 120,000 | +59% | Consistent riser; expanding influence across beauty and fragrance. |
| 6 | Paris Hilton | 93,000 | +38% | Major resurgence on the back of full-blown Y2K nostalgia. |
| 7 | Rihanna (Fenty) | 98,000 | +9% | Prestige positioning; steady global demand even without a new album. |
| 8 | Justin Bieber | 19,000 | +52% | A reliable gifting favourite, especially with teens and young adults. |
| 9 | Jennifer Lopez | 18,000 | +29% | One of the longest-running and most resilient celebrity fragrance lines. |
| 10 | Kim Kardashian | 17,000 | -5% | The only decliner in the top 10 following brand repositions and rebrands. |
It’s a split field: Gen Z idols charging up one side, nostalgia powerhouses hanging tough on the other, with one notable name sliding backwards.
The Scent Profile Taking Over 2025
So what are people actually spraying? Fresha’s data says the answer is comforting, sweet and just shy of dessert.
According to Danielle Louise, beauty expert on the Fresha app, the numbers point in one direction: “Warm, sweet, comfort-driven fragrances — vanilla, caramel, marshmallow, amber — are dominating every market. These scents feel nostalgic, they last for hours, and they’re incredibly wearable. Celebrity brands are tapping into that shift perfectly.”
If you feel like every new celebrity perfume launch smells like pudding with a PR budget, you’re not imagining it. The winning brief is clear: cosy, long-lasting and endlessly wearable, with enough nostalgia baked in to feel familiar rather than experimental.
TikTok, Fandom And The New Rules Of Fragrance
Danielle pins the Gen Z surge on three non-negotiables – and none of them involve a glossy department-store counter.
1. TikTok is now the fragrance gatekeeper
“A single viral video claiming a perfume is the ‘ultimate signature scent’ can drive hundreds of thousands of searches overnight.”
One creator, one video, and the search graph for a celebrity perfume can look like a heart monitor. Traditional ad campaigns simply don’t move the needle like a 15-second rave review on a For You page.
2. Fans want to wear their favourite artist’s identity
“Perfume becomes part of the aesthetic. Younger celebrities have built huge communities around that.”
The bottle isn’t just juice; it’s merch you can smell. For Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish and Sabrina Carpenter, fragrance is another extension of the persona fans already copy – from eyeliner to playlists.
3. Price accessibility is non-negotiable
“These scents are affordable, giftable and widely stocked across international retailers, which pushes their search spikes even higher during the holidays.”
In other words, if your celebrity perfume can’t be found in mainstream retailers at a price that works for a Christmas budget, you’re off the pace before you start.
Nostalgia Still Sells: Why The Icons Spike Every Christmas
For all the noise around new launches, the old guard isn’t going quietly. Fresha’s data shows that Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez and Justin Bieber all see strong seasonal spikes year after year.
- Paris Hilton has staged one of the biggest comebacks of 2025, riding the Y2K revival like it’s 2004 all over again.
- Britney Spears remains a go-to holiday bestseller; for many, no stocking is complete without her familiar pink-and-gold packaging.
- Jennifer Lopez continues to pull in multi-generational buyers, with parents and daughters often sharing the same bottle.
- Justin Bieber is still a reliable gifting option among teens and young adults.
Danielle says the staying power of these lines is emotional, not just olfactory: “Legacy scents hold emotional value. People rebuy them because they’re tied to memories — and that sentimentality is powerful around the holiday season.”
So while the headlines go to fresh-faced chart-toppers and their new celebrity perfume releases, the tills keep ringing for bottles that have been around long enough to be part of family history.
A Divided Market – But One Heading In The Same Direction
Look at the rankings closely and the split is obvious:
- Gen Z power players: Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Kylie Jenner
- Resurgent nostalgia icons: Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Bieber
- The decliner: Kim Kardashian, whose search interest is down 5% after rebranding and refocusing.
Danielle’s verdict on the wider landscape is blunt: “We’re seeing the same pattern across the US, UK, Europe and Australia — the celebrity fragrance space is no longer defined by traditional luxury perfume. It’s driven by TikTok influence, comfort-led scent profiles and highly engaged fanbases. Celebrity perfume is having a global resurgence.”
Traditional luxury houses aren’t vanishing, but they’re no longer the only ones dictating what people wear. The centre of gravity has shifted towards personalities with camera-ready lives, direct fan relationships and a knack for selling a whole lifestyle in a single spritz.
Strip away the gloss and the story is straightforward: the celebrity perfume market is bigger, louder and more divided than ever – and in 2025, the real power sits with those who can turn a viral moment into a long-term place on someone’s dressing table.
