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Comparison

Layton vs Baccarat Rouge 540

Side by side. Scored honestly.

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Notes overlap

Side by side

Comparing the originals — price, breadth, listed-note depth.

Original price
$400
Layton
$360
Baccarat Rouge 540
Season coverage
3/4
Layton
2/4
Baccarat Rouge 540
Note depthtied
6
Layton
6
Baccarat Rouge 540
What Layton smells like

Opens with a bright bergamot-apple accord that's crisp without being candied, then softens quickly as geranium and jasmine push it into a clean floral heart with real warmth. The dry-down is where it earns its reputation — vanilla and sandalwood settle into a creamy, slightly sweet base that projects confidently for hours without going loud. Sillage is generous but controlled, leaving a smooth gourmand-woody trail that reads polished rather than heavy — a year-round crowd-pleaser best suited to dates, offices, or anywhere a well-composed masculine makes an impression.

What Baccarat Rouge 540 smells like

Saffron opens sharp and slightly medicinal, then almost immediately dissolves into a warm, luminous blur of jasmine and amberwood — the signature move that made this famous. The heart is less floral than it sounds; the jasmine reads more as a sweetened airiness than a recognizable bloom. Dry-down is where it lives: cedar and fir resin ground a soft, skin-close amber that radiates rather than announces itself, with sillage that lingers in a room long after you've left — Fall and winter wearing, for anyone who wants to smell expensive without being loud about it.

How they overlap

Layton and Baccarat Rouge 540 share exactly one note (jasmine). The overlap is real but narrow — most of the wear experience will diverge.

The buying decision

Baccarat Rouge 540 is the cheaper original at $360 compared to $400 for Layton — about 10% less. Layton covers 3 seasons (spring, fall, winter) — wider weather range than Baccarat Rouge 540, which leans fall/winter-only.

The closest match for each

The match each fragrance’s own page ranks first, with its own price and scores.

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