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Birchbox Vs Ipsy – October 2015

Liz Cadman
ByLiz CadmanNov 11, 2015 | 18 comments

Birchbox vs Ipsy

Birchbox
3.7 overall rating
657 Ratings | 188 Reviews

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-oct-2015-items

Birchbox October 2015 (Check out the full Birchbox review)

Number of items: 5

Full-size items: 0

Deluxe size items: 2

Brands featured: Clinique, Darphin, Estee Lauder, Smashbox

Categories featured: Skincare (3) Makeup (2)

Total Value: $79!

Ipsy Review – October 2015 items

Ipsy October 2015 (Check out the full Ipsy review)

Number of items: 5

Full-size items: 2

Deluxe size items: 1

Brands featured: MICA Beauty Cosmetics, theBalm, BWC, Lavanilla, Royal & Langnickel

Categories featured: Makeup (2) Skincare (1) Tools (1) Perfume (1)

Total Value: $36.50

Verdict: It is pretty hard to go up against Birchbox this month - the box is worth almost $80! I really enjoyed the Estee Lauder collaboration box from Birchbox - it was my favorite for October. (Any other month Ipsy probably would have won - I was really impressed with the brands I received from them!)

What did you think of the October Birchbox and Ipsy boxes? Which one was your favorite?

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Birchbox was one of the very first beauty subscription boxes—we’ve been reviewing it since 2012! Each month, subscribers get a new mix of 5 beauty samples, such as makeup, skincare, haircare, and fragrance items. Birchbox lets you choose whether you’d like a box of items picked just for you (incl... read more.

Liz Cadman
Liz Cadman
Liz is the founder of My Subscription Addiction. She's been hooked on subscription boxes since 2011 thanks to Birchbox, and she now subscribes to over 100 boxes. Her favorites include POPSUGAR Must Have, FabFitFun, and any box that features natural beauty products!

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18 comments

Denise

I’ve never gotten a birch box that nice. It’s always tiny samples. And I get the same things over and over. I’ve gotten at least 4 of the travel size white cans of dry shampoo and at least 2 or 3 other brands. It’s a waste.

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Cristina

Couldn’t agree any more. Birchbox had an amazing box this month! I loved the box and all the products I received ( I also selected the same box). Personally, I usually prefer Birchbox over Ipsy.

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Jessvii

Birchbox was the clear winner for me in October. I got the curated box. With Ipsy, I got one good shadow brush, three samples I hated (cheap eye shadow, vanilla perfume, and a bad lip gloss), and some lotion. I changed my Ipsy profile and am getting good stuff in November. However, my Ipsy profile had been the same a few months ago when I got a good Ipsy bag so I’m not sure why the same profile would yield some good and some bad boxes. I feel like my Ipsy boxes are either A’s or C’s (either awesome or lackluster) whereas my Birchboxes are consistently B’s (acceptable).

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Krista

I only just this month (November) got the choice of picking the curated BirchBox (because prior to this I had the 2 full size add on option and you couldn’t get the curated box with that) but typically before this I always really liked what they picked for me. I know people love their Ipsy but the brand selection doesn’t typically wow me from them.

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Tamara

I feel exactly the same way about Ipsy. So many boring brands!

Several months ago, I compared what I got from Ipsy versus Birchbox over the same time period. I found that I discovered a lot of new products from BB and NONE from Ipsy. I also found that I simply had more use for the products from BB than Ipsy.

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Khaleesi142

Me too, curated is the way to go with Birchbox. I joined them in July and loved all my boxes except my “surprise” box in September. My GlamLife box is perfect. I love both serums, the lip treatment, dry hair shampoo and the eye shadow 🙂

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Katie

I have BB, and I can never figure out how to pick curated boxes! Is there a tip sheet or something to help me out?

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Joy

Katie, you should be receiving sample choice emails, if not, call customer service and they can fix it. When you click on the link to choose your sample, there is a second pull down menu for selecting the curated box that is usually further down the page from the sample choice pull down menu.

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Wendy

I have more success with the curated boxes, when I forgo the curated and choose a “Surprise” box, except the one sample I was able to choose from the list its normally disappointing and not anything I would use or the same few brands Birchbox tends to feature over and over again. The October and November curated Birchboxes have been out of this World amazing. Just received my November Glam Life Guru curated box and everything is incredible.

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EC

I had to avoid the curated BB boxes since they featured EL. I don’t purchase EL due to their continued use of animal testing outside the US. It’s a shame since they were definitely the high value boxes I rarely see with BB.

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Brandy

Definitely getting rid of ipsy once I get off the wait-list for Macy’s and Sephora. Too much of a hit and miss each month.

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JoyW

Me too! Dumping Ipsy for either Sephora’s or Macy’s!

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Virginia

The Birchbox shown was only for new subscribers for that month. It had been on sale on the Birchbox site for $35.00. I subscribe to Birchbox and I am still trying to figure out the different types of boxes they have and which one I will actually get.

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Dom

The Birchbox shown was one of the curated boxes that you could pick from during that month. It’s the same one I picked for that month and I love it. Make sure that you are signed up to recieved Birchbox newsletters because they will email you the option to pick your next box. Usually you can 1 sample out of a selection of featured samples (the rest of the box is a surprise) or you can pick the curated box for that month. The full contents of the curated box is revealed beforehand. If you don’t get the emails or you don’t pick, they will pick out your items for you.

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Veronica

Oh, okay, I am pretty confused now. I get emails from them, but never to choose anything, just offers to buy more of whatever.

brandy

NO it wasn’t only available to new subscribers. I received this exact box and I’m not a new subscriber. This is a curated birchbox.

Veronica

Wow your birchbox was way awesome. I had dry shampoo, water spray, a pomegranate face mask, smashbox primer, and a mini stila mascara.

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Kristin

I would love to see a regular Birchbox and what they get! I just started with Birchbox last month and picked the same box as you because of the product samples, but I have no idea what the surprise boxes are like as compared to Ipsy.

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