Sephora is a happy place for beauty lovers. From testing viral skincare to swatching foundation for mature skin, a trip to Sephora is great for the soul—but not for your wallet! A few impulse buys can easily do a number on your credit card bill.
But as a longtime beauty lover and shopping editor, I’ve got a few tips on how to shop smart and save. And they’re not limited to official saving events. It’s about hacking Sephora’s benefits and timing your purchases right.
Secret #1: Join the brand’s Beauty Insider program for freebies and rewards.
To reap most of the benefits Sephora has to offer, the first step is to join their rewards membership program, which is completely free. When you reach certain spending thresholds, more rewards and perks are available to you, which come in handy during the bi-annual Sephora Beauty Insider Sales (more on that later).
The membership program is broken down in three tiers: Beauty Insider at the first level, VIB at the next and Rouge status at the top. If you spend $350 in a year, you upgrade from Beauty Insider to VIB status—and if you spend $1,000 in a year, you unlock Rouge status. All tiers are eligible for free standard shipping.
For every purchase you make, you earn points that can be used to redeem products from Sephora’s Rewards Bazaar, including free travel-size and deluxe-size samples, accessories and sometimes even full-size products and influencer-inspired experiences. But, you have to act fast to claim them. The Rewards Bazaar changes weekly, with fresh things to try out. However, we recommend saving your points to redeem for Beauty Insider Cash, where you can exchange 500 points for $10 off. As a Rouge member, you can exchange 2,500 points for $100 off.
Additionally, every Beauty Insider at any level of the program can save when their birthday comes around. The beauty retailer will treat you to a birthday exclusive sample set when you spend $25 online during your birthday month. Plus, you get a 20% off code at the beginning of your birthday month, so you can treat yourself to a beauty buy you’ve been eyeing.
Editor’s tip: My mom and I share a Sephora rewards membership account to make it easier to hit the $1,000 threshold and maintain Rouge status. Instead of spending a total of a $1,000 each, we both only need to spend an average of $500 per year (which is less than the cost of a Dyson Airwrap). The only caveat with using a shared account is not being able to have multiple birthday rewards, but in the grand scheme of things, we’re saving cash versus getting a sample-size product.
Secret #2: Plan to shop in the spring and fall.
The best time to shop at Sephora is during its Beauty Insider sale events, which are held bi-annually, in the spring and fall. The first Beauty Insider event of 2025 is happening right now (until April 14) and the second one usually falls around October—just in time for holiday shopping.
Anyone enrolled in Sephora’s Beauty Insider program can get an exclusive discount on their Sephora purchase, no matter what they’re buying—but the discounts are tiered. Beauty Insider members get 10% off their purchase, VIB members get 15% off their purchase and Rouge members get 20% off their and get early access to the sale—just use code SAVEMORE at checkout. Even better, the code can be used multiple times throughout the sale window. Plus, all Beauty Insiders (no matter your tier) score 30% off Sephora’s in-house beauty line, Sephora Collection.
Shop Sephora's Savings Event
Benefit Cosmetics Precisely, My Brow Pencil Ultra-Fine Shape & Define Pencil
Beyond its famous tier-based savings events, the retailer has been rolling out more sales throughout the year, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. In 2024, Sephora had its first Summer Deal Week, where shoppers scored markdowns on various brands and products for one day only, with new deals dropping every day for a week.
The retailer also had a Gifts For All event, where shoppers received a one-time 20% off code for last-minute holiday shopping. Although we aren’t sure of the exact dates of the next big sale, we wouldn’t be surprised if these make a comeback in 2025.
Editor's tip: I stock up on my beauty go-tos and holy grails around these major sale events—and I don’t really shop at Sephora, or any beauty retailer, at any other time. I take into account what’s running low and purchase accordingly to last until the next sale comes around. I know which products work for me, so I try not to add in too many impulse buys and prioritize the picks I know I’ll use and repurchase.
Secret #3: Frequent the sale section to find discounts of up to 50% year round.
Like any other retailer, Sephora’s sale section is riddled with discounted beauty products. There have been plenty of times over the years that I’ve come across an under-the-radar deal that’s a whopping 50% off. Sometimes, these align with brands hosting a sale across all other retailers—and other times, it’s a way to snag products and gift sets that are limited edition or being phased out.
Either way, it’s worth perusing every so often to take advantage of hidden markdowns, especially if it’s a product you’ve been eyeing for a while or a brand you love. I’ve seen brands like Fenty Beauty, Too Faced, Youth to the People, Rare Beauty and more on sale. This is where I snag a few impulse buys and gifts on a budget.
Secret #4: Use your HSA and FSA benefits.
If you didn’t already know, you can use your HSA and FSA funds to stock up on your favorite problem-solving skincare at Sephora. Acne products, sunscreen above SPF 15, and other medicated skin treatments are considered over-the-counter healthcare products, making them eligible for HSA and FSA benefits.
Sephora houses over 200 HSA and FSA-eligible products—and beyond acne treatments and SPF, you can also shop for skincare that help with eczema, keratosis pilaris and psoriasis. Shop acne patches and big-ticket items like LED face masks with your tax-free dollars—just be sure to save your receipt and submit it to your benefits provider for reimbursement. And yes, you still get Beauty Insider points on these purchases. You can read more about the program and the process here.
Secret #5: Use Sephora’s buying guides to your advantage.
Although Sephora’s offerings tend to lean high-end, you can snag plenty of high-quality, best-selling beauty products for under $50. For starters, its main menu online features a Beauty Under $20 section broken down by category type, including dedicated pages for under-$20 makeup, skincare, hair care and more. It’s pretty much like the online version of the checkout aisle with affordable finds and minis, but you can find full-size products here, too.
Sephora also has curated buying guides of affordable beauty products sorted by price point and product type, so you can discover new finds. Here are some quick links to some of these sections:
- Best-selling Skincare Products $15 and Under
- Best Makeup Products $10 and Under
- Best Fragrance $50 and Under
Secret #6: Shop Sephora’s exclusive gift sets to get the most value.
Although it’s not gifting season, Sephora’s gift sets and value sets offer great ways to try new products and stock up on old favorites without splurging too much.
If you’re vying for an LED mask for instance, this Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Bring the Clinic Home FaceWare Pro LED Device Bundle costs the same as the LED mask itself, but it also comes with a full size Vitamin C Lactic Dewy Deep Cream (which retails for $77) and 10 Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel Pads (a pack of five treatments retails for $20), so buying this bundle can technically save you about $117.
Another example that’s great for gifting is the Sephora Favorites Deluxe Perfume and Cologne Sampler Sets, which retail for $95. They’re great for testing out different premium fragrances before deciding which is the best fit. The best part is that each of these sampler sets comes with a voucher to claim a full-size version of your favorite scent, so you’re getting a luxe fragrance that usually retails for over $100. These are great for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, especially if you’re shopping for someone who loves fragrances but tends to be indecisive.
Anvita Reddy (she/her) is a Commerce Editor at Hearst Magazines. She contributes commerce content across Hearst’s Lifestyle portfolio, including Good Housekeeping, Country Living, Cosmopolitan, House Beautiful, and more. She has over four years of experience in the commerce space, including writing detailed first-person product reviews, trend and best-of round-ups, deals and sales coverage, and more. Previously, she was an assistant editor for PS Shopping, covering home and kitchen, beauty, fashion, tech, travel, wellness, and lifestyle. In her free time, you can find her catching up on everything from reality TV to reruns of classic sitcoms, testing out viral beauty products, sharpening her cooking skills, working out, or traveling.
