How is the human olfactory system integrated with central brain networks, and does this integration differ from that of other senses? In this study, we attempt to characterise the profile of connectivity between the piriform cortex and higher areas. To this end, we use a stepwise functional connectivity (SFC) approach developed for fMRI by Sepulcre et al. (2012). The SFC method tracks patterns of functional activity correlations that emerge from seed regions (e.g., primary sensory areas) and unfold in a sequence of connectivity steps. The pathway from a piriform cortex seed was investigated in a sample of 100 healthy adults who underwent resting-state fMRI. In comparison to previous findings in other sensory systems, we found that early olfactory areas are separated by fewer connectivity steps from higher cortical regions. This SFC outcome is in line with previous findings in rodents in which direct projections have been observed between early olfactory areas and regions responsible for high-level cognitive functions. Our results suggest that olfactory centres in the human brain have retained a relatively direct access to higher cortical nodes. Our work helps understand how olfactory information is adaptively transformed across sensory hierarchies to bring about changes required for complex behaviour. The research was funded by the Swedish Research Council (2020:00266) to JKO.