5th Avenue by Elizabeth Arden
Women 1996
Main accords
Description
Elizabeth Arden 5th Avenue is a floral fragrance for women. Launched in 1996, this composition was created by Ann Gottlieb. The top notes unfold with linden blossom, valley lily, lilac, magnolia, bergamot and mandarin; the heart reveals jasmine, neroli, ylang-ylang, Bulgarian rose, peach, violet, carnation and nutmeg; while the base notes settle with musk, iris, sandalwood, amber, vanilla and cloves.
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When to wear it (votes)
Key notes
-
Top
linden blossom
-
Heart
jasmine
- Base musk
Community
10,091 votes
- Positive 78%
- Negative 15%
- Neutral 6.4%
The olfactory pyramid
A guide to the opening, heart and lasting trail of the fragrance.
The community speaks
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In the collection
Leading answer I owned it
23,591 votes
What do you think?
Leading answer Like it
10,091 votes
Season
Choose severalLeading answer Spring
8,633 votes
Time of day
Choose severalLeading answer Day
4,864 votes
Each question has its own vote count. You can choose several seasons.
Fragrance profile
About 5th Avenue
Elizabeth Arden 5th Avenue is a floral fragrance for women. Launched in 1996, this composition was created by Ann Gottlieb. The top notes unfold with linden blossom, valley lily, lilac, magnolia, bergamot and mandarin; the heart reveals jasmine, neroli, ylang-ylang, Bulgarian rose, peach, violet, carnation and nutmeg; while the base notes settle with musk, iris, sandalwood, amber, vanilla and cloves.
Flowers White flowers Fruits, vegetables and nuts Spices Woods and mosses Musk, amber and animalic
It may remind you of
Ranked by what the community voted.
More from Elizabeth Arden
Related editions
More from Ann Gottlieb
How it wears
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Longevity
Leading answer Moderate
3,365 votes
Sillage
Leading answer Moderate
3,501 votes
Character
Leading answer Traditionally feminine
1,799 votes
Value perception
Leading answer Good value
1,691 votes
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Community reviews
40 reviews
Share what you noticed: opening, drydown, sillage and the moments when it works for you.
I finally bought it with high hopes, but I still can’t quite decipher it. Of the listed notes, I only detect lilac and valley lily at the start, nothing in the heart, and perhaps a hint of musk at the end. I expected more potency given it’s a vintage, with neroli dominating like the magnolia, but after several sprays, I detect nothing else. It feels poor in projection and trail, although I hope it improves with the heat. For now, I wouldn’t recommend it blindly 🙁
Fresh and floral, pleasant but slightly sharp with a vintage touch that works well. The projection and trail are scarce. It’s an easy floral, nothing memorable, but a good gift for someone who loves feminine fragrances; accessible and dispensable.
Beautiful, my spring classic. A sweet, realistic floral that smells like a garden or a clean river. On me, the jasmine predominates with rose and neroli in the background. At first, it brought me joy and didn’t seem urban, but rather a natural, candid cocktail. Gradually, I discovered its elegance thanks to the amber and sandalwood, a class that modern perfumery has lost. It lasts and projects well, and although my bottle is old, the brand remains accessible. Highly recommended if you like sweet, natural, and classic florals.
If you ask me what the most feminine woman smells like, I answer without hesitation: 5th Avenue. A charming scent for charming women. The longevity and trail are medium.
Stunning, light, natural, and fresh. It smells like a bouquet of flowers in spring. The downside is that it doesn’t last at all, and under the pretext of allergies, the fixation is getting less and less every day. What a pity. Despite the proliferation of perfumes today, few are so well balanced. It no longer lasts and is expensive for what it offers, but it is beautiful. If they improve the longevity, I’ll buy it even if the price goes up.
I love it. It’s delicious. I hadn’t bought it in years, and now that I have it, I use it daily. It’s a marvel.
So many promised notes, and in the end, it smells like old body cream. I’ve never owned it, but my mother did, so I know what it smells like. It’s soft, subtle, and vintage.
It’s May 2025, and at forty, I’ve become sentimental; I don’t usually repeat fragrances, but since modern scents are poor in quality, aroma, trail, and longevity, I return to my home. I bought this in 2017/2018; it’s a sweet floral with excellent longevity and trail.
I tried it years ago and forgot how well it smelled, until I tried it again and had to buy it. It’s very pleasant, elegant, for everyday wear, and timeless. I don’t see it for young girls.
I love it, I’m looking forward to buying it again, and the price is also good.
To me, it’s a fragrance that never goes out of style; it’s the best of the best. ❤️🩹
It was my first designer perfume at 16, gifted to me by an aunt. I loved it and still do; it brings back lovely memories. It’s super floral and elegant, giving off vibes of a sophisticated older lady.
It smells like expensive soap and a clean, elegant lady. I bought it for my transition from youth to adulthood and it was a hit. I like it for daily wear. On my skin, it lasts about two hours, but perhaps it’s due to my activities; I re-applied when I got home and I could still smell it after five hours.
My mum, who is 68, uses this the most. It’s floral, simple, and a bit synthetic, but understandable given its affordable price. It’s a classic from 1996 that doesn’t stand out as much today, though it saves the day in a pinch. It’s versatile, though it tends towards the formal. More for day than night, though to be frank, it suits almost any occasion. A valid first step on your perfume journey.
White and yellow floral, fresh and sweet. It’s very easy to wear. If you like perfumes like Anaïs, Don Algodón, or Organza, you’ll surely love this. I wear it to sleep. It has a soapy, clean note, typical of older perfumes. I’m glad it’s still available.
A floral, fresh, elegant fragrance with personality yet wearable and versatile. A beauty that doesn’t lose its sensuality or femininity. I wear it at any time and place; it’s not heavy and very flattering. On my skin, it has moderate projection and lasts five hours. Nothing so beautiful can’t be solved with a re-application to continue the day. Perfume beauty.
I was surprised by the poor quality of the bottle. For a fragrance that has survived the test of time, they should care more about those details. The scent isn’t striking at all, the longevity is minimal, and there’s no projection. I wouldn’t recommend it.
This perfume reminds me of my childhood in the 90s. I didn’t know it belonged to the famous 5th Avenue by Elizabeth Arden; I tried it out of curiosity and was amazed. It smells delicious and subtle, delicate and soft like flower dew. I thought it would be a heavy floral bomb given the notes, but it’s very well balanced. I love vintage perfumes; it was great in cold weather and I would definitely buy it again. It’s an ageless scent, perfect for young girls or mature women. It looks super good for a romantic date, a pleasant aroma for male noses too 🤭. Don’t be afraid to get it; you’ll love it and won’t regret it.
The quintessential classic. It has no age, always exuding elegance without being heavy or dated. Ideal perfume. Wish the fixative was stronger.
A rounded, timeless, and exquisite aroma, but with minimal longevity and no projection. Quality is questionable, and the bottle is of very poor quality too. A pity given how well it smells.
It is floral, with a broad, bright lily of the valley. Ideal for gifting to engagements or keeping in the wardrobe: discreet, never intrusive. Very friendly for staying calm without risking too much, like that correct grade that offers little satisfaction. Giftable if you don’t know someone’s tastes, like Tous or Gabrielle.
The scent of sophistication? Every time I see it, I think of a cosmopolitan city in autumn. Elegant and delicate; my mother gave me the bottle, as she prefers powerful perfumes and saw this as very simple. It is floral with a citrus touch only at first and some spices. What defines it is its moderation: neither too floral nor too sweet, good taste. It could have smelled like a 90s runway or Carrie Bradshaw’s flat.
Elizabeth Arden was born as the ‘Red Door’ salon on Fifth Avenue, Manhattan. That street is iconic, not just for being a shopping and fashion centre, but for its museums and film locations that define modern urban culture. According to Wikipedia, Arden targeted middle-aged women who felt unattractive, promising youth and beauty. This helps explain Gottlieb’s intention in creating 5th Avenue in the 90s, a complex decade with low birth rates, single-parent households, individualism, and women’s struggle for power positions. How to unite elegance, maturity and independence in a scent? I am not sure I achieved it entirely, but it is an urban aroma with subtle flowers, designed to give charm and sophistication at work without losing professionalism. Away from pretension, it is emblematic of its era; perhaps anachronistic today, but it remains a great option for women who want to look smart, dynamic and executive.
I have had a 10ml mini for ten years and it still smells the same. I used only half because something did not convince me. Today I tested it again: I like it. It smells clean, unique and sophisticated, but soft, perhaps that is why I left it for so long. It feels very good on the skin. I will not use it up until I buy a larger one; I want to keep it in the collection but use it like the others. Yes, I recommend it despite the lack of great sillage, because it is timeless, rich and elegant. A classic that I will integrate permanently.
I did not expect a fragrance bomb for the price and I am grateful, but I also did not expect that I would not like it. I expected something fresh, wearable, citrus with white flowers that others love… for me it smells like insecticide on the skin. Luckily it does not have much sillage; I bought 30ml and I am glad. It seemed pleasant in the store when testing it, the opening is acceptable, but as I tested several at once, my sense of smell got confused. Immediately it became unbearable. It should be applied once and then go for a walk. Haha.
🌼🍁 POST-REMEMBRANCE of this perfume from my beloved and recovered ja ja 5th Avenue by E. Arden. Just yesterday while chatting with someone I told them that in the neighbourhood where I grew up in CABA there were full of linden trees and I dreamed of a perfume like that for those perfumed afternoons; in fact I already thought about planting one in my country house, something unthinkable before in my flat 🤣🤣. And the next day this partial arrives. Yesterday I had to go to work and as always when putting on something new I looked for the notes and ¡there was LINDEN! Especially as soon as you spray it. For me it is more than anything green. But more than a perfume I use, it is the one my mother used to go to the orchestra and it is what is “elegant” because it lacks (for me) some sensual or sexy touch, it is elegant, period. And that I love for work. It evokes luminosity in a city like NY 🍂. Smelling it is smelling my mother’s curls when I went to rehearsals 🎻 at Teatro Roma in Avellaneda. Elegance and if I had to say what it represents in a phrase: the working woman.
This perfume was part of my adolescence. It was very elegant for my age at that time and I still used it. What pleasant memories.
It is a fragrance that I love, soft, floral and sweet but with the right balance. I bought it recently thinking of the one I used in the 2000s but it has been reformulated; it seems more like an EDT than an EDP. It already has a softer sillage and lasts much less on the skin. A pity.
My favourite perfume, it has no rival. It is the only one I repeat over and over and I have never found a moment where it does not fit. It seems pure elegance, without stridency, but not timid either. It is perfect. I thought Prada La Femme would surpass it, but no. I try and try and this is my perfume. So far, only other very different ones have taken the spotlight in my choices. Almost all the perfumes I adore have a bit of fuss, but this is just right. The day they discontinue it I will be very upset.
One of the perfumery’s old-school monsters… The opening is brutal, with galbanum, jasmine, and magnolia at full volume, accompanied by vanilla, rose, and assorted florals. This lasts at least 2 or 3 hours without losing intensity or trail, which in my case exceeds 2 metres. Then it settles; the woods add depth, but it remains a sweet, juicy floral for another 10/12 hours. By then, the citrus really shines through until the very end. In my case, it’s definitely over 24 hours. Why do I call it a monster? Obviously because of its sheer olfactory size. It’s clearly a perfume made the old-fashioned way, with EA quality. I tried it yesterday after years and they haven’t changed it a bit!!!