What makes a perfume Thai?

There is no official definition. Most people mean a perfume made by a Thai brand, and the most memorable ones carry something of Thailand in the scent: an ingredient, a dish, a place or a memory. MITH has a Thai Tea scent, Butterfly Thai Perfume makes Mango Sticky Rice, and Parfum Prissana has a scent inspired by tom yum, with kaffir lime, lemongrass and galangal. Ours follow one day on a Bangkok street.

Thai perfume brands to know

A short, alphabetical list of brands you can find in Bangkok. Tatler Asia’s 2026 round-up names 13 if you want to go further.

• Butterfly Thai Perfume: perfumes inspired by Thai lifestyle and memories, such as Mango Sticky Rice and Galanga, plus body oils and home scents. Its 60ml perfumes are listed at 1,395 THB, and it has a store at CentralwOrld.
• Karmakamet: best known for home scent: candles, incense, perfume sachets and aromatic oils, with heritage collections such as Little India and Padang Bazaar.
• MITH: the name stands for “Made in Thailand”. Its scents run from floral and woody to tea and gourmand, and Thai Tea is one of the best known.
• PAÑPURI: a Thai wellness brand known for EXTRACT perfume oils such as Siamese Water, plus body, skin and home products. Its boutiques include CentralwOrld, Siam Paragon, ICONSIAM and Don Mueang Airport.
• Parfums Dusita: founded by a Thai perfumer based in Paris, blending French perfumery with Thai heritage. La Douceur de Siam mixes champaca, ylang-ylang, spices and vanilla.
• Somuti (that’s us): Eau de Parfum from Song Wat Road, including Songwat 5, five scents about one day on the street. 50ml for 1,890 THB, with every scent on testers at our shop.

Prefer to smell before you choose? Every Somuti scent is on testers at our shop on Song Wat Road, Bangkok, open daily 11:00 to 19:00. Find the shop.

How much does perfume cost in Bangkok, and is it cheaper?

For Thai brands, Bangkok is the home market: you pay the local price in baht and can smell the whole range in person. For example, Butterfly Thai Perfume lists its 60ml perfumes at 1,395 THB, and our 50ml Eau de Parfum is 1,890 THB.

Visitors can also claim back VAT at shops that take part in the VAT Refund for Tourists scheme. Spend at least 2,000 THB at the same shop on the same day, ask for the P.P.10 form with your passport, and claim it at the airport when you leave Thailand by air. Ask before you pay, as not every shop takes part.

How to choose a Thai perfume

• Smell it on your skin, not just the paper. Let it settle for a while: the opening fades and the heart of the scent comes through.
• Check the strength. An Eau de Parfum usually lasts longer than an Eau de Toilette. EDP vs EDT explained.
• Think about the heat. Woody, ambery and musky scents tend to last longer in Bangkok weather than citrus. How to make perfume last in hot weather.
• Not sure yet? Start with a discovery set. Ours holds four scents in 3ml vials for 790 THB, and the Songwat 5 set holds all five for 990 THB.

Somuti, a Thai perfume brand from Song Wat Road

In Thai, สมมุติ means to suppose, or to imagine. We bent the word a little, the way Thai slang does, and it became Somuti. We believe a scent has no fixed story. It becomes whatever the person wearing it remembers.

It started with a lotus. As a university student, our founder fell for a candle called Lotus in a Bangkok scent shop, then realised they had never actually smelled a lotus. Thais see the flower every day, in temples and offerings, yet almost no one knows its scent. That gap between what we see and what we smell became Somuti.

Songwat 5 follows a single day on Song Wat Road, from a slow afternoon to an early goodbye on the river:

• Afternoon Habit, pink peppercorn, labdanum and musk
• First Departure, pineapple, green tea and patchouli
• Second Eiffel, freesia, incense and geranium
• Velvet Afterdark, leather, cardamom and peony
• Fading Distance, mandarin, sea water and sandalwood

Our other Eau de Parfum are Arctic Sorbet (amber, grapefruit and cedarwood), Egyptian Candy (vanilla and jasmine), Victorian Email (rose and lily) and Robotic Artisan (cedarwood, oud wood and jasmine). Every one has 20% fragrance oil and lasts around 6 to 8 hours, depending on the weather and your skin. Every bottle is meticulously made in Thailand, to GMP standards, and never tested on animals.

Taking Thai perfume home

A 50ml bottle is within the 100ml liquid limit most airlines set for cabin bags; pack it in your clear bag. How to bring perfume home from Bangkok in your carry-on.

Where to smell Thai perfume in Bangkok

The malls: CentralwOrld has PAÑPURI and Butterfly Thai Perfume, and PAÑPURI is also at Siam Paragon and ICONSIAM. Check each brand’s store list before you go.

The old town: our shop is at 981/5 Song Wat Road, in front of Luang Kocha Mosque, a short walk from MRT Wat Mangkon, Exit 3. We are open every day, 11:00 to 19:00, and every scent is on testers. Plan your visit, and make an afternoon of it with our Song Wat Road walking guide.

Sources: Tatler Asia, 13 Thai perfume brands (Feb 2026); brand websites: Butterfly Thai Perfume, Karmakamet, MITH, PAÑPURI; Revenue Department, VAT Refund for Tourists. Brand details checked 10 November 2026.