To picture an ITG editor is to picture dedication incarnate. She’s got her head down, she’s doing research, she’s keeping up on the news—to be honest, who isn’t nowadays? Still, sometimes an editor just gets the urge to throw something up on the site that’s nothing more than a typed-out version of the one-big-eye-one-small-eye-tongue-out emoji. In other words, something for no reason at all. Like today’s story about hand sanitizers. So random. Beyond the fact that there’s nary a lipstick or serum included, a particular, citable reason we’re even thinking about hand sanitizers right now just doesn’t come to mind. So please, indulge us in our passing fancy, and take a look at some chic, good-smelling hand sanitizers that are an absolute pleasure to use. Who knows! You might want to keep one in your bag—just in case.
Alcohol content: between 58 and 62-percent
Smells like: an herby tea
This Aesop rinse-free hand wash is on the expensive side, but it’s still less expensive than Purell is on Amazon, anyway. You get one scent option: Aesop scented. OK, technically the scent is called Resurrection—but doesn’t all Aesop stuff kind of smell a little similar? If you already love Aesop, you’ll love the way their rinse-free wash settles into a planty, herbaceous scent once the acrid smell of alcohol dries down. You also might like: farmers markets, Ayurveda, Weleda Skin Food. And if you don’t, carry on.
Alcohol content: 67-percent
Smells like: everything from vanilla to watermelon to nothing
They say a brand should know their audience, and Touchland’s audience is… everyone. Everyone needs hand sanitizer! Which is probably why the scents really run the gamut: Vanilla Cinnamon for when you wish your hands smelled more like a Bath and Body Works candle a nostalgically-artificial Watermelon that smells exactly like lip gloss, Mint for hands with the freshest breath. But our favorite scents are the more subtle ones, like Aloe, which barely smells like anything let alone your typical hand sanitizer. With a fine, fast-drying mist and easy to use packaging that appeals looks suspiciously like an iPhone, Touchland’s version is probably the easiest to use on a crowded subway.
Alcohol content: 62-percent
Smells like: it’s trying really hard to mask the scent of hand sanitizer, in a good way
The Grapefruit smells like a BURST of grapefruit. The Lavender SCREAMS lavender. It’s kind of brilliant—you don’t get any whiffs of doctor’s office, even though Honest Co. included more than enough alcohol to get the job done. The best scent is Coastal Surf, which is just vague enough to hit all the right scent notes: kind of salty, kind of licorice-y, and fresh without a saccharine edge.
Alcohol content: 62-percent
Smells like: a man wearing Icy Hot
It makes sense that a brand that makes very good hand cream would also make very good hand sanitizer. And, you can thank Suzanne for thinking about how dry your hands must be after this much hand sanitizer use: hydrating glycerin is its third ingredient, and skin-soothing sidekicks like vitamin B5, zinc PCA, and allantoin aren’t far behind. The scent veers cologne-y, mixed with something medicinal. (Must be the arnica.) With a dose-controlled spray bottle that’s the biggest of the bunch, you won’t run out any time soon.
Alcohol content: 62-percent
Smells like: biting into an orange peel
Megababe’s new hand sanitizer looks and feels like a traditional, goopy one but smells like a freshly peeled orange. It’s bright, not too sweet or artificial smelling, and dries quickly with no stickiness. The brand is all about convenient necessities, and this aptly timed new release fits the bill.
Alcohol content: 30-percent
Smells like: expensive fragranced lotion
This isn’t a hand sanitizer, and doesn’t meet the CDC’s recommended alcohol percentage to effectively kill germs, so proceed with caution and maybe keep it on deck for after washing your hands in your office bathroom (or as a fragrance shot after another sanitizer). The milky formula is delicately scented with either Rose, a warm, ambery-y Suede, subtle and woody Vetyver, or Tulipmania, a floral for floral haters. If something that feels luxurious to use and smells very, very good is what you need to actually keep clean all day, this is for you.
Shop our favorite hand sanitizers, from least to most expensive, before they sell out:
Photos via ITG