Fragrance shopping can be tricky. Scent is so personal that even if you get a glowing recommendation from someone, when it gets on your skin, it may end up not suiting your taste. And if you want to bypass mainstream fragrances for niche ones, if you're not in a big city it can be difficult to find a place where you can test the fragrance first.

This is where the internet comes in. Not only can you order pretty much any fragrance online these days (even rare or discontinued ones), you can also find plenty of affordable samples and indie fragrance lines. But shopping online can be tricky, too. To state the obvious, because you can't smell the scent. But once you get over that, your options are endless. There is so much out there, though, it can be difficult to know where to start, what to look for, and who to trust.

This is where we come in. Read on for everything you need to know in your personal online-fragrance-shopping starter kit.