Birchbox Vs Ipsy – January 2015
The Birchbox vs Ipsy post series compares my Birchbox and Ipsy subscription every month to give you a good idea what you can expect from the two most popular beauty subscription boxes. (And since both boxes are $10 a month, it seems fair to stack them up against each other).
FYI – I pay for both of these subscriptions, and as a regular customer I get one of many variations available each month. So while one month alone might not be enough info to make a decision, looking at the results over several months should give you a good picture of what to expect with each box.
Birchbox January 2015 (Check out the full Birchbox review)
Number of items: 6
Full size items: 0
Deluxe size items: 2
Brands featured: Teapigs, Manna Kadar, Briogeo, Balance Me, Perlier, When
Categories featured: Haircare (1), Skincare (2) Body (1) Makeup (1), Tea (1)
Total Value: $38
Ipsy January 2015 (Check out the full Ipsy review)
Number of items: 5
Full size items: 3
Deluxe size items: 2
Brands featured: Coastal Scents, Elizabeth Mott, Probelle, Malin + Goetz, Pacifica
Categories featured: Makeup (3) Tools (1) Nail Polish (1)
Total Value: $31
Verdict: My favorite item from Birchbox this month is the Balance Me Eye Cream – I’m almost out of it already! For Ipsy it is a tie between the Malin + Goetz lip balm and the Pacifica eye shadow. I’ve been a fan of the mojito lip balm thanks to other subscription boxes, but I’m always happy to have more. The Pacifica eye shadow was a nice surprise since I had tried their formula before in a past ipsy bag and found it to be very low-pigmented. This new version is perfectly pigmented though, and the shade I received is perfect as a brow bone highlighter.
I’m having a hard time picking a “winner” this month – both boxes sent a good variety of items, and the sizes of the samples are great as well.
What did you think of Birchbox and Ipsy this month? Do you have a favorite for January?
Written by Liz Cadman
I subscribe to birchbox but I want more beauty products like makeup and polishes not face washes and hair supplies. But that’s all I’ve been getting. Does ipsy give more beauty supplies or should i just stick with birch box ?
I find that Ipsy does give a lot of makeup at least 3 in every bag and I’ve been getting them for about a year now =)
I’m a huge fan of Ipsy. As long as you customize your profile properly, you usually get items you would want. For example I don’t do liquid eyeliner but I like pencil eyeliner, so I say I don’t want eyeliner at all to minimize the risk of getting useless products. I’ve never received anything that I wouldn’t want to try. My neighbor uses Birchbox and we happened to run into each other in the hall, we compared items and past items and I’m really glad I didn’t get Birchbox.
I received the same Birchbox and a few of the same Ipsy items. I would have to say my Birchbox was the winner. I too was excited about the Malin+Goetz lip balm until I read the ingredients. They are horrible, for some reason I thought this company had natural ingredients? The only disappointment in my Birchbox was the small size of the lip gloss.
Ipsy failed for me, which is odd. I got the Hikari eye liner, beautiful color, a silvery gray, but it is hard and waxy and flakes off. Manna sheer glow, was excited but the sheer was so little, it didnt show even on my pale skin. The eco-beauty moisturizer is fine (weird packaging) and Pacifica eye color is not my color. The is the biggest miss for Ipsy in my year of being subscribed, so no big deal. I am looking forward to next month and avoiding the spoilers!
Liz….and anyone who cares about natural ingredients:
I fell in love with the mojito balm too, til I read the ingredients. 🙁 Bummer, but I don’t want all those chemicals on my mouth.
Same with that baume de rose we got in the BB vanity box. I LOVED it and immediately ordered a full size. And then I looked at the ingredients.
I’m now using an all natural rose lip balm I found on amazon. (Something botanicals? Sorry, blanking…) and also making my own with beeswax and coconut oil and essential oils. Easy, fun, cheap.
I’m probably going to let Ipsy go after my 12 months is up. I haven’t found anything in these 9 months that I was very excited about. And this bag sent me a nail polish (which I hate getting) and two lip balms, which I don’t see as a great value.
I’m wondering if the bag from Ipsy wouldn’t technically count as the sixth item? I’d place more value on it than I would on tea bags, personally. But then again, I don’t drink a lot of tea.
The Teapigs tea was such a hit with me that I had to order more. I’m giving it to Birchbox this month.
Very surprisingly it’d have to be Ipsy for me this month. Normally Ipsy is such a major letdown I swap nearly everything. This month I kept most items, but I LOVE the mojito lip balm and pacifica eyeshadow in treasure is a gorgeous color. Birchbox was the curated box for me and I picked it because I love the dry shampoo and Whish.
I love them both so much! I think if I HAD to let one go it would be Ipsy just because I love the convienience of birchbox with their point system and being able to buy directly from them rather than going through another website as you have to do with Ipsy. BUT I think I found more product I love through Ipsy. So I have to have them both 🙂