N°5 L'Eau Chanel 2016 Eau de Toilette

7.9 / 10 567 Ratings

A popular perfume by Chanel for women, released in 2016. The scent is floral-fresh. It is still in production.
Pronunciation

Main accords

Floral

Fresh

Citrus

Powdery

Creamy

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Lemon

Aldehydes

Mandarin orange Orange

Orange

Heart Notes

Rose

Ylang-ylang Jasmine

Jasmine

Base Notes

Musk

Vetiver

Cedar

Perfumer

Olivier Polge

Videos

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Ratings

Scent

7.9567 Ratings

Longevity

6.8490 Ratings

Sillage

6.3493 Ratings

Bottle

8.7480 Ratings

Value for money

6.9201 Ratings

Submitted by CPL, last update on 07/29/2025.

Interesting Facts

The face of the advertising campaign is model Lily-Rose Depp.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

N°5 L'Eau All-Over Spray

N°5 Eau Première

Chatte

N°5 Parfum

Nuée Bleue (2019)

In Love

Reviews

20 in-depth fragrance descriptions

03/09/2017

K1
121 Reviews

K1

Helpful Review 4

Light aldehyde - lemony - musky

A brilliant flanker that brings classic No5 to today's generation with harmony of lemon waft and soft aldehydic edition, without brutal animalic side. Instead of civet, musk delivers a smooth and soothing soapy aerial vibe to it. Splendid young, positive, chic and posh fragrance. The dry down is out of this world.
4/5

02/14/2022

4
Pricing 10
Bottle 3
Sillage 4
Longevity 10
Scent

Anamandy
106 Reviews

Anamandy

Helpful Review 3

An Effervescent Happy Scent

I really love L’eau and find it can go from day to night with ease, but I just wish it performed better than it does now. When I was running low on my first bottle, I debated whether to forgo buying it at all and just stick to Eau Premier, as I get much better silage and longevity with that. But I so love the creamy citrus vanilla combo in L’eau. It is so uplifting and makes me feel fresh and clean no matter how muggy it gets outside. For that alone it is worth it for me especially during the dog days of summer.

05/23/2024

7
Pricing 8
Bottle 8
Sillage 9
Longevity 8.5
Scent

Ringtale
129 Reviews

Ringtale

2

A nice surpise!

I was so stupid: Yesterday I had asked for a sample of Gucci Flora Gorgeous Magnolia but I didn't know the sales assistent had added a sample of Chanel No5 L'Eau so when I took out the sample, without looking at the card that was attached to it (silly, I know :-)), I thought it was the Gucci and was very surprised because I really found it a beautyful scent.
This morning I had to take something else out of my bag and discovered the untouched sample of Gucci Flora.
So what I had been testing yesterday, was not the Gucci Floral Gorgeous Magnolia, but Chanel No 5 L'Eau!!
Maybe this was a good thing because I'm a little prejudiced towards Chanel No 5: I don't like any of the other chanel No 5 flankers I know of.
But this is so different than those! Much more kind and flowery.
Though I find this very 'clean/soapy', I did not get as many aldehydes as in other flankers, probably because it is sweetened and softened by the florals. Now I don't mind aldehydes, they are in many of my perfumes, but in Chanel No 5, I always found them too agressive and unkind (the way I find those unkind in Arpege). Not in this one though.
I am surprised by the low ratings for longevity. The scent still lingers this morning. It's funny, because I did think of Guerlain's Nahema for a brief moment, but because I thought I had been wearing Gucci, that didn't make sense (no rose in there). Here I can detect the rose, but far less prominent than in Nahema, it's more of a soapy rose (and - apart from the sweetness - very different from Nahema in all other aspects too, but the association was not that strange after all). I always find lemon very different from citrus, I perceive lemon much less 'çitrussy' and sharp, but here it does add up to the brightness and coolness of the opening I think.
Though I find this a beautyful scent, I'm not sure if I will save up for a full bottle. Not sure if I can appreciate the 'distinctness' of the scent. I like my perfumes a little more changing in the process of development and while it certainly changes from opening to drydown, it doesn't change from drydown to skinscent in my opinion.
I will use my sample more often though and it could well be that I'll change my mind on that.

01/11/2025

5
Pricing 5
Sillage 5
Longevity 5
Scent

LastWonder
483 Reviews

LastWonder

2

Middle Age Modern Woman in the City

This is the more mature version of Coco Mademoiselle and more modern take on the regular No 5. This is Carrie Bradshaw in her 40s, still fun but not as flirty. Her shenanigans are a little less crazy and she knows how to present herself a little more seriously at work and functions. This is an aldehyde blast, giving it a very fancy soap scent right from the start. The orange and lemon add a juicy bite that keeps the aldehyde from veering into "grandma" territory. After the top notes dissipate, the scent goes into generic floral territory. After smelling Mademoiselle just the day before, I can't help but compare the two. These fragrances smell nearly identical once the you move past the top notes. This leans a little more mature and soapy, Mademoiselle is fruitier and bright. I have to say, I like the Mademoiselle version better.

This is a light fragrance, there is some aromatic qualities but mostly its soft like a skin scent. It has average longevity, about 4 hours on my skin. It gives you the opportunity to freshen up or switch to something else. There are several sizes and prices available starting at 35ml for $108, 50ml for $138, and 100ml for $172. Its a perfectly average scent that does offer some "affordable" options if you are really into this.

08/23/2021

2
Pricing 6
Bottle 3
Sillage 2
Longevity 4.5
Scent

Oriane
139 Reviews

Oriane

2

The Perfume for People Who Do Not Really Want to Wear Perfume

I received a sample of L'eau with an order from Chanel. I am sorry to say I am unimpressed. This is another Oliver Polge fragrance that is amazingly mundane, and performance is terrible.

L'eau starts off with a bright citrus burst that is quite lovely. Soon it dries down to a nice floral skin scent. Projection and sillage are weak, and longevity is abysmal. I have some chemist shop fragrances that perform better than L'eau. L'Eau strikes me as a perfume for people who do not want to wear perfume. This is one of the weakest fragrances I have ever tried.

L'eau is wearable in virtually any venue at any time. I cannot imagine anyone being put off by this fragrance if s/he is able to smell it. Really and truly, Guerlain make a much nicer citrus fragrance, Fleurs de Cedrat, with better performance and a much more accessible price point at the discounters. Even department store prices for Fleurs de Cedrat are not unreasonable for the quality.

Sorry to everyone who loves this fragrance, but I cannot recommend it. This is definitely one to try before you buy.

Fragrance: 5/10
Sillage: 3/10
Projection: 2/10
Longevity: 1/10

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