Two Kinds of Ingredients
The ingredients used in perfumes are divided into two groups: natural and synthetic. Natural ingredients are raw materials obtained from plants, flowers, resins, woods, or fruits. Bergamot oil, rose, vetiver, or patchouli can be given as examples. Synthetic ingredients, on the other hand, are scent molecules created in a lab. Some of them imitate a smell found in nature, while others create completely different scents that do not have an exact counterpart in nature.
Not a Quality Hierarchy
One of the most common misconceptions here is that natural ingredients are always higher quality, while synthetic ingredients are lower quality. In reality, that is not true. Natural ingredients can generally have a more complex and layered smell, while synthetic ingredients give the perfumer more control when creating a scent and allow them to create different kinds of smells.
Why Synthetics Are Used
There are also other reasons why synthetic ingredients are used. Some smells are very difficult to obtain naturally, very expensive, or not ethically right to obtain. Musk especially, and some animalic smells, are mostly created with synthetic materials today. Synthetic molecules also play a major role in a large part of modern amber and woody notes.
Performance Isn't Decided by Origin
Being natural or synthetic does not determine performance on its own either. Some natural ingredients can evaporate very quickly, while some synthetic molecules can stay on the skin for hours or even much longer. In the same way, some synthetic ingredients can seriously increase the projection of a perfume. So, just because a perfume uses more natural ingredients does not automatically mean it is higher quality, longer-lasting, or stronger.
What Actually Matters
Today, most perfumes are already created by using natural and synthetic ingredients together. In my opinion, what really matters here is not whether an ingredient is natural or synthetic, but how well it is used in the formula and how it blends with the other ingredients.