Beauty Subscription Boxes: Worth It?

In the past 3 years or so, subscription boxes have taken over the world. Subscription boxes started out as a major hit for beauty and makeup products. Now they offer food, clothes, grooming tools, and other refillable products such as contacts, shaving kits, and feminine care items.

The rise of beauty subscription boxes has allowed beauty addicts to step up their beauty game. These subscriptions range from $7.00-50.00 dollars, and there are different boxes for different preferences, whether you need all-natural products, acne products, vegan products. Choose your preferred routine and get them delivered straight to your doorstep.

Here's the breakdown of some of the most well-known and popular beauty boxes!

Under $15/Month: 

Ipsy: You'll get either deluxe and/or full sized products along with a makeup bag each month.

• Personal beauty quiz
• $10/month + free shipping
• 5 items + makeup bag
• https://www.ipsy.com/

Ipsy

Birchbox: Each month you can decide between a box where all the samples are revealed or one sample and the rest will be surprises.

• Personal beauty quiz
• $ 10/month + free shipping
• 5 sample-sized items
• www.birchbox.com

Birchbox

Play! By Sephora:  You'll receive samples of products that you would find in Sephora stores or Sephora.com. One really cool thing about Play! By Sephora is that every month, they include a card which you can take to Sephora and redeem for extra beauty points when you make a purchase. 

• No personal quiz
• $10/month + free shipping
• Sample sizes only
• https://www.sephora.com/play

Play! by Sephora

$15 or more a month: 

Allure Beauty Box:  You'll receive samples and full-size products.

• No personal quiz
• $15/month + free shipping
• 5 items + free mystery items at sign-up
• https://beautybox.allure.com

Allure Beauty Box

Boxycharm: 

• No personal quiz
• $ 21/month + free shipping
• 5 full-size products monthly
• www.boxycharm.com

Boxycharm In Depth: I'm a current member and can offer personal insights on Boxycharm.

• I've received items from Tarte, Cover FX, Becca, Mac
• I loved getting full-size palettes, consecutively for the last few months (yes, you read that right, full-size palettes!) 
• Boxycharm also sends out beauty tools, like brushes and beauty tools
• Boxycharm allows you to review the products you received in your box for charms. Earning charms allow you to buy even more makeup from their charm shop. The charm shop sells items already in previous boxes and others from the same brands

Boxycharm

Glossybox:  You'll receive high-end, niche, and trendy beauty products in deluxe travel sizes.

• No personal quiz
• $ 21/month + free shipping
• 5 deluxe and full-sized products
• www.glossybox.com

Glossybox

Here's the quick recap!
Beauty Subscription boxes vary in price ranges, sizes and brands. There are different boxes for different beauty routines and addictions: monthly lipstick club, Morphe brushes club, vegan beauty, acne treatments, custom skin care regimens, etc. If you normally spend monthly to explore and buy new products each month, then it may be worth it to check out at least 1 or 2 subscription services mentioned here. If you don't buy makeup monthly or stay loyal to your favorite brands, then the beauty boxes may not make sense. 

Subscription Pros:

• You get to test out products before purchasing full-sizes
• The small/deluxe samples are great for traveling so travelers will love them
• You get the element of surprise every time you open a new box 
• You can get really good deals with high-priced items offered via subscriptions at low cost
• You rarely get the same thing twice, but it happens
• You get introduced to many brands

Subscription Cons:

• You may not get enough product to test out
• You may get products you don’t like
• You may get too many of the same type of product (too many eyeliners or too many lipsticks, too many highlighters)
• You don’t really have control over what products you'll get or what colors you'll receive 
• Not everything will look good on you or work on your skin type

Contributor:

Julie is a twenty-two year old full-time student studying a double major in criminal justice and sociology. While she's on the pre-law track, she's always loved makeup and beauty related things. She's dreamed of having her own blog and has finally made that dream a reality! Connect with Julie! Instagram @alwaysandforeverjules Website www.alwaysandforeverjules.com
Twitter: @alwaysforeverjx