Search MCoBeauty vs Sol de Janeiro and you get TikTok, two dupe-comparison apps, and a lot of coverage of the lawsuit one brand has filed against the other. What you do not get is anybody who owns both bottles saying what happens when you wear them.
I own both. They are photographed above, on the same slab of concrete, in the same light, five minutes apart. Here is what I found, and the short version is that the bottles have far more in common than the fragrances do.
One clarification before we start. I am comparing MCoBeauty No.4 Vanilla & Macadamia against Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 68. Those are the two I own and the two I photographed. They are not the closest scent match in either range, and I will explain why that matters.
The Case in One Paragraph
In November 2024, Sol de Janeiro filed suit against MCoBeauty in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, case number 1:24-cv-08862. It alleges that MCoBeauty’s fragrance mists copy Sol de Janeiro’s trade dress, which it describes as a transparent bottle with bold, colour-coded labelling, a rounded metallic or pearlescent cap, and a heavy sans serif displaying the scent number and name. An amended complaint filed on 25 November 2025 expanded the case to eight products and added false advertising claims over “smells exactly like” comparisons. MCoBeauty has denied the allegations, arguing the features are functional and non-distinctive and that third-party reviewer comparisons are not its responsibility. No court has ruled on the merits.
That is the legal position as it stands. Everything below is about the products.
1. The Bottles: Where the Resemblance Is Real
Stand them next to each other and the similarity is not subtle. Both are tall transparent cylinders. Both use a bold colour-coded label keyed to the scent. Both put a number front and centre in heavy sans serif type. Both are hair and body mists in the same size bracket.
This is the part of the comparison where I understand why a lawsuit exists. I am not qualified to say whether that resemblance is legally actionable, and the point of trade dress law is precisely that reasonable people disagree until a court decides. But as a person holding both objects, the family resemblance is obvious and I would not pretend otherwise.
There are differences. Sol de Janeiro’s cap is rounded and pearlescent; MCoBeauty’s is a flatter white with a gold collar. The Sol de Janeiro bottle prints its notes directly on the glass. MCoBeauty’s front label carries the scent name and the size and leaves the description to the back.
2. How They Smell: Not the Same Thing at All
This is where the dupe framing collapses.
Cheirosa 68 is a fruity floral. Pink dragonfruit and lychee open it, Brazilian jasmine carries the heart with hibiscus and an ocean air accord, and there is only a sheer vanilla at the end. It is bright, floral and a bit aquatic.
MCoBeauty No.4 is a gourmand. Warm, buttery, sweet vanilla with a creamy nut accord. No florals worth mentioning, nothing fresh, nothing aquatic.
Sprayed on opposite wrists these do not read as versions of one another. They read as two different categories of fragrance. If you bought No.4 expecting to save money on Cheirosa 68, you bought the wrong thing.
Worth saying plainly: in scent terms, No.4’s sweet nutty vanilla sits much closer to the register of the pistachio and salted caramel Cheirosa 62 that made Sol de Janeiro famous. I do not own 62, so I am not going to claim I have tested that pairing. But anyone shopping on scent rather than packaging should know that 68 is not the reference point No.4 is chasing.
3. The Perfumery Reason a Dupe Cannot Be Identical
There is a structural reason budget versions of prestige fragrances land close but never on target, and it is not about effort.
Frank Voelkl, the Firmenich perfumer behind Le Labo Santal 33, explained the mechanism to us:
“When a team of scientists discovers a new molecule, it will protect it with a patent to avoid any other company copying or manufacturing that same ingredient. So it’s a powerful concept, as captive means exclusive.”
A captive molecule belongs to one fragrance house. If the original was built using one, nobody outside that house can reproduce the effect exactly, whatever their budget. They have to approximate it with something else.
Olivier Cresp, who created Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue and Mugler Angel, put the consequence more bluntly when describing his own most-copied work:
“Featuring some wonderful captive molecules from Firmenich [the company he works for], the fragrance can be imitated, but never perfectly reproduced.”
That is the honest ceiling on every dupe ever made. Close is available. Identical is not.
4. Longevity, Sprayer and Size
Both are mists and both behave like mists. Two to three hours on skin for each, longer in hair and on clothing.
The sprayers are not equivalent. Sol de Janeiro’s throws a genuinely fine, wide mist that suits hair and fabric. MCoBeauty’s is wetter and coarser and you feel the droplets land. Over a whole bottle that difference is more noticeable than any single spray suggests.
On size, be careful comparing prices. My MCoBeauty is 90 ml, confirmed on the label. My Sol de Janeiro is the travel size, and Sol de Janeiro sell Cheirosa 68 in more than one format. A per-millilitre comparison against the travel size flatters MCoBeauty considerably more than a comparison against the full size would. Check which format a listing is quoting before you decide anything is a bargain.
5. What the Labels Say About Origin
Sol de Janeiro is a Brazilian-inspired brand headquartered in the United States. MCoBeauty is Australian owned, with product made in China.
The interesting wrinkle is internal to MCoBeauty. My No.4 says “Proudly Australian Owned. Designed in Australia, Made in PR China.” My No.6 Coconut Cream says “Manufactured for MCoBeauty Pty Limited” and “MADE IN CHINA”, with no Australian-owned line at all.
Same brand, same Sydney address, same product line, two different framings of the same supply chain. Neither is untrue. Only one is flattering.
The Bottom Line
If you want to save money on Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 68, MCoBeauty No.4 is not the answer, because it is a different kind of fragrance. That is the single most useful thing in this comparison and almost nobody says it, because almost nobody has both bottles open at once.
If you want a cheap warm vanilla mist and do not care what it resembles, No.4 is fine on its own terms. If you want the bright jasmine and dragonfruit thing specifically, only Cheirosa 68 does that, and the better sprayer is a real part of what you are paying for.
On the bottles, I will say only what I can see: they look alike, more so than either looks like anything else I own, and a court in New York is going to decide what that means. Buy on the smell, not on the silhouette.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is MCoBeauty a dupe of Sol de Janeiro?
MCoBeauty markets affordable alternatives to prestige beauty products, and Sol de Janeiro has sued it over the trade dress of its fragrance mists and over advertising claims. On scent, MCoBeauty No.4 and Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 68 are not close: one is a sweet gourmand, the other a fruity floral.
Does MCoBeauty No.4 smell like Cheirosa 68?
No. Cheirosa 68 is built on pink dragonfruit, Brazilian jasmine and an ocean air accord. MCoBeauty No.4 is a warm vanilla with a creamy nut accord. Worn side by side they read as different categories.
What is the Sol de Janeiro lawsuit about?
Sol de Janeiro filed suit in November 2024 in the Southern District of New York, alleging MCoBeauty’s mists copy its trade dress, described as transparent bottles with bold colour-coded labels, rounded metallic caps and heavy sans serif numbering. An amended complaint in November 2025 added false advertising claims. MCoBeauty denies the allegations and no court has ruled on the merits.
Which lasts longer, MCoBeauty or Sol de Janeiro?
Both last two to three hours on skin and longer on hair and clothing. Neither has a meaningful longevity advantage, because both are low-concentration mists rather than eaux de parfum.
Is Sol de Janeiro worth the extra money?
For the sprayer and the jasmine, yes, if that is the fragrance you want. For a generic warm vanilla, no, because MCoBeauty does that competently for less. The answer depends entirely on which scent you are actually after.
Related Reading on Everfumed
- Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 68 Review: the full first-person review.
- MCoBeauty No.4 Vanilla & Macadamia Review: the other half of this comparison.
- MCoBeauty No.6 Coconut Cream Review: where the origin wording differs.
- What Does Brazilian Crush Smell Like?: the Cheirosa 62 original.
- Perfumer Olivier Cresp Interviewed: on being imitated but never reproduced.
- Perfumer Frank Voelkl Interviewed: on captive molecules and why exclusivity works.
- What Are Gourmand Scents?: the category No.4 belongs to.
- How Long Does Perfume Last?: why both of these fade in three hours.
Selena Marc is a fragrance enthusiast, freelance writer, and dog mom living in Houston, Texas. When she's not writing about her favorite new perfumes, you can find her enjoying yoga or a morning hike.
