Ipsy Subscription Review

What is Ipsy? 

Ipsy offers several different varieties of beauty bag subscriptions, customized for each subscriber. This Ipsy subscription review will explain how Ipsy works, how it compares to other brands, and what customers say about Glam Bags, to help you decide whether or not Ipsy is right for you. Get ready for some glitz and glamour.

Overview of Ipsy 

Ipsy was founded in 2011 by Michelle Phan, Marcelo Camberos, and Jaconetti Goldfarb, to inspire people and help them express their beauty as individuals. Ipsy is a particularly popular beauty subscription box, because of Ipsy’s ability to be customized based on your colouring and comfort level, its longevity as a brand, and its popularity with various beauty vloggers.

Michelle Phan was one of the first Youtube beauty vloggers, and has over 8 million Youtube subscribers herself. Ipsy itself, had 3 million subscribers as of 2017. Ipsy currently has over 800,000 Twitter followers and over 2 million Instagram followers. Talk about influence!

Ipsy ships you luxury beauty samples every month, customized based on responses to a Beauty Quiz. These are the types of questions Ipsy asks:

• Your skin colour, eye colour, and hair colour
• Your comfort level with wearing makeup, and your preferred beauty brands
• How often you would like to receive each type of beauty product, and how often you would like to receive each type of skincare, haircare, and nail care product
• What shades of eyeshadow, eyeliner, lip colour, and nail polish you prefer and how often you would like to receive them
• What fragrance notes you prefer
• Where you normally purchase beauty products
• What your concerns about you skin are and how you would describe your hair concerns

Ipsy Beauty Profile

Ipsy offers a wide range of beauty products depending on your responses to the quiz. Subscribers receive mascara, eyeshadow, eyeliner, brow products, lipstick, liquid lipstick, lip gloss, lip plumper, lip liner, primer, foundation, tinted moisturizer, concealer, powder, blush, highlighter, bronzer, contour, brushes, tools, and so much more.  

As an Ipsy subscriber, you can receive cleanser, cleansing oil, moisturizer, sheet masks, wash off masks, exfoliants, serum, face oil, toner, mist, eye treatments, nail polish, hand cream, body scrub, self tanner, lip balm, acne treatment, fragrance, hair styling products, and hair treatment products. 

Based on the hundreds of items offered by Ipsy, it may seem overwhelming to approach the subscription. The beauty quiz takes away all that wondering and time spent pondering products so you can focus on self-care.

Beauty Products: Shades

In this Ipsy subscription review, we’ll give you a sense of what comes up as preferences in the Beauty Quiz in terms of shades:

• Eyeshadow: neutrals, smokeys, blues, greens, plums, and more adventurous shades
• Eye liner: black, brown, plum, gold/bronze, and more adventurous colours
• Lip liners and gloss: reds, berries, neutrals, and more adventurous shades
• Nail polish: reds, berries, neutrals, darks, pastels, and more adventurous colours
• Blush: pinks, peaches, mauves, neutrals, and more adventurous shades

What’s great about the Beauty Quiz is that you can select your shade preferences for each product. Take eyeliner for example. If you love classic black and want to receive most of your samples in that shade, you can respond that you wear it ‘often’.

But what if every once and a while you want to step out of your comfort zone and try some coloured liner? There’s an option to choose ‘sometimes’ for that category. The same goes for all other beauty products and the shades they come in.

Fragrance Notes

As you go through the Beauty Quiz, you’ll reach the delectable fragrance section. You have the option to select which scents you like, based on five categories:

1. Fresh: scents like lemongrass, aquatic, bergamot, and citrus
2. Spicy: scents such as nutmeg, clove, saffron, and cinnamon
3. Floral: scents including violet, rose, gardenia, and jasmine
4. Earthy & Woody: scents such as amber, sandalwood, cedar, and patchouli
5. Gourmand: scents like honey, caramel, vanilla, and cacao

These categories are really helpful, since most of the time, perfumes have names that aren’t very informative in terms of their scents. Like what does Midnight Summer even mean? Instead of spending time in the perfume aisle spraying your arm endlessly with samples (which all end up smelling the same anyway), Ipsy does the work for you.

Problem-Focused Products

Parts of the Beauty Quiz target any issues you might have with your appearance, which gets to the heart of the subscription’s functional aspect. In the hair section, you select from a range of mane related struggles like frizziness, split ends, and lack of volume. Same goes for the skin category, which lets Ipsy know whether or not they should send you products that target acne, wrinkles, scarring, and such.

Once the quiz is finished, you’ve created your Beauty Profile! You can update your answers to the quiz at any time. Now that you’ve gotten a sense of how products are selected, this Ipsy subscription review will take a look at the benefits and downsides to the brand:

Pros

• Ipsy Glam Bag offers products from many different brands, rather than a single brand or a select few
• Ipsy Glam Bags offer a wide variety of beauty products, rather than just fragrances or makeup
• Ipsy Glam Bags include a new makeup bag every month to contain your products

Cons

• You don’t get to choose your exact samples
• Ipsy’s cancellation procedures are very difficult to understand
• It is very difficult to contact customer service, as they do not have an option to phone or email

How Does Ipsy Work?

The Ipsy box subscription includes an Ipsy Glam Bag. Signing up for an Ipsy Glam Bag subscription can be complicated if you’re not familiar with the subscription box process, so we’ll go through the sign up process.

Ipsy Subscriptions 

When you sign up for Ipsy, you first fill out your Beauty Quiz. Your Ipsy Glam Bag, Ipsy Glam Bag Plus, or Ipsy Glam Bag Premium will then be delivered. You’ll usually receive your order the following month (patience is a virtue), but sometimes Ipsy can send you a Glam Bag sooner, depending on when you ordered.

Ipsy Glam Bag Review

Ipsy Glam Bag, the original subscription choice, contains five sample size products every month. The estimated retail value of products offered in the Ipsy Glam Bag is over $50, while the subscription itself costs only $12/month. Your products arrive in a bag to store them in. They’re really cute and it’s always practical to have extra ones on hand.

Ipsy Glam Bag Plus is a good choice if you are looking for full-sized products, rather than the sample sizes offered in the original subscription. Ipsy Glam Bag Plus subscriptions will send five full-size products in a new makeup bag every month. Ipsy Glam Bag Ultimate is for the true beauty lovers and collectors of fine things: subscribers receive 12 full-size products in their monthly makeup bag.

Every month, subscribers can also opt for a Mystery Bag, if they ever want to be surprised by their products for a discounted rate. Keep reading for detailed customer feedback on the Ipsy Glam Bags.

How Much is Ipsy?

Ipsy price points differ depending on the option you choose. Ipsy Glam Bags cost $12/month. Ipsy Glam Bag Plus costs $25/month. Ipsy Glam Bag Ultimate, the most premium option currently offered by Ipsy, costs $50/month. 

Ipsy Subscription Review: What Customers Think 

For a real-deal Ipsy subscription review, we have to look into what customers have to say. Women who submitted Ipsy reviews have very lots of praise for Ipsy and the Glam Bag subscription. Ipsy reviews usually talk about the high quality of the products and brands available in Ipsy Glam Bags. Many customers appreciated that Ipsy Glam Bag subscriptions were more affordable than other beauty box subscription plans. 

The main criticism in the average Ipsy subscription review seemed to be that Glam Bags for some customers seem to have fewer hair products or fragrances, which may be an issue with the options offered in the Beauty Quiz. Some customers have experienced shipping issues, and many have had problems reaching customer service.

Overall, Ipsy reviews submitted by customers were appreciative of the wide variety of products, and the diversity of the products they received. Customers were also positive about the high quality of Ipsy products and how exciting it is to always have new brands to try arriving at their door.

Ipsy Competitors 

Ipsy isn’t the only subscription beauty box on the market, with many other options for you to consider. Here are the rival brands found in this Ipsy subscription review:

• Scentbird: Scentbird is a specifically fragrance-based beauty subscription. New subscriptions currently cost $11.25/month, although they usually cost $14.95/month. When it comes to Ipsy vs Scentbird, Ipsy offers more versatility in terms of products offered. On the other hand, Scentbird is slightly less expensive.
• BirchBox: for $15/month, BirchBox will send you a box of deluxe makeup, hair, and skincare. Like Ipsy, BirchBox is curated for you based on a beauty profile. 
• TopBox: Another beauty subscription box, TopBox, costs only $15/month, but only offers four samples and little in the way of customization.
• BoxyCharm: BoxyCharm offers full-sized beauty products, rather than sample sizes, for $25/month. BoxyCharm is not customizable, and usually sends all subscribers the same products. 
• FabFitFun Box: Unlike most subscription boxes, the FabFitFun Box is only delivered four times a year. It also costs $49.95/month, but offers a wide range of different products, not just beauty products.

Is Ipsy Worth It? 

When it comes down to this Ipsy subscription review, it’s clear that whether or not Ipsy is worth the price depends on what you want personally. If you’re looking for a diverse range of beauty products, Ipsy Glam Bags could be a subscription for you to try. Ipsy is on the lower end of the price range for beauty subscription boxes, and Ipsy customer reviews are largely positive about their product offerings. 

And, if you’re antsy about what may be coming next, there’s a way to satisfy your suspense (sort of ): every month, Ipsy gives you a list of 20-25 products that could be featured in your Glam Bag. These Ipsy spoilers turn things into a fun guessing game and give you a hint of what’s to come.

Ipsy Promotions & Discounts 

An Ipsy subscription review found that Ipsy offers a points program to help you get more bang for your buck. You gain points by referring friends to Ipsy, following Ipsy creators on social media, reviewing each product available in your monthly Glam Bag and reviewing your entire monthly Glam Bag. These points can be redeemed for free Ipsy products, so if you’re into social media, this is a great way to save.

Where to Buy Ipsy  

At this point in the Ipsy subscription review, if you’re itching to get your Glam Bag ASAP, you can sign up via their website. 

FAQ

When Does Ipsy Ship?

Glam Bags are shipped out in the middle of each month and usually arrive within 10 business days of shipping. That being said, the shipments are sent in batches that vary each month, so deliveries can arrive in the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th week of each month.

Wait times in Alaska and Hawaii can be somewhat longer, and wait times in Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands can be significantly longer.

Tracking codes are emailed around the middle of each month, and is also available when you log in on the Ipsy website. 

Glam Bags containing products with shipping restrictions, such as aerosol sprays, can also be delayed in the shipping process.

How to Cancel Ipsy Subscription  

Mistakes happen, and Ipsy gets that. To unsubscribe Ipsy, follow these steps:

1. Log into your Ipsy account
2. Under Edit Settings click on Membership
3. Go to Manage Membership
4. Click Help Me Stop My Membership
5. Select Continue Cancellation

You’ll be sent an email link to confirm your cancellation. You must be logged into your Ipsy account to click the link, or your cancellation will not be processed. You have to cancel your membership before 12pm Pacific Time on the last day of the current month, or you will be charged for the next month.

Shipping Policy

Ipsy currently ships Glam Bags to the US and Canada, including APO, DPO, and FPO boxes.

In the United States, shipping is done via either FedEx and the US postal service or DHL.

In Canada, Glam Bags are shipped using Landmark Global. 

Shipping is free to the United States, and $2.95 to Canada.

Return Policy

Returns and exchanges are not offered for Glam Bags. Luckily, if you’ve opted for the standard Glam Bag, you’ll just have a sample or two that you won’t use.

If an item or items are missing or damaged, the replacement policy is good for 45 days after the shipping date. If an item or items is missing or damaged, you can contact Ipsy on their website.

Contact Ipsy  

Ipsy can be contacted on their website help form or through Twitter:

• Contact form
• Twitter

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Having finished this Ipsy subscription review, check out our research on other top beauty subscriptions:

Birchbox

Scentbird

Glossybox

Boxycharm