How to Score Free Shipping on Beauty Products
I have been revisiting some of my earlier blog posts and boy has a lot changed over the past five years. One of my first blog posts was called “Beauty Brands With Free Shipping – No Minimums!” where I highlighted Canadian-friendly beauty brands that offer free shipping without having to hit a spend threshold. I later published a part two to this post highlighting even more brands and retailers with the same perk. I recently reviewed the two posts and the changes are alarming. Of the 17 brands I mentioned, 10 no longer offer free shipping and 2 no longer ship to Canada! Those that continue to offer minimum-free shipping include Clinique, Moroccanoil, Darphin, Aveda, and Jo Malone. Getting free shipping on beauty products sure has changed!
So where does that leave us? I certainly refuse to pay shipping on any order so I have put together some tips and observations on how to avoid those non-value charges. Here is my guide on navigating free shipping on your beauty orders.
Look For “Free Shipping” Promotions
It pains me to acknowledge “free shipping” as a promotion. A promotion is one where I should be saving money on the cost of the product and not on shipping. The reality is though that more and more brands are running these types of promotions. It is probably because they have baked some sort of shipping charge into the product price. Regardless, these free shipping offers are an optimal time to try a product that you have been curious about that you can’t get in stores. Depending on the brand you may be able to combine it with a first-time buyer discount which would be ideal. Some brands even combine this promotion with a sitewide discount which is the ultimate goal.
Examples of brands that run free shipping promotions include ColourPop, Fresh, Skinfix, ATTITUDE, Ember Wellness, e.l.f., Vivier, Caudalie, Clarins, L’Occitane, Marcelle, Murad, The Inkey List, and VERB.
Examples of brands that combine the free ship promotion with a sitewide sale include Laura Mercier, Lise Watier, and Cheekbone Beauty.
Shop at Sephora When It Makes Sense
Back when Sephora first entered Canada you needed to reach a certain tier to unlock free shipping. That sure has changed. Sephora now offers free shipping in Canada for all registered Beauty Insider members with no minimum purchase required. All you need to do is sign up for a free Beauty Insider Account to automatically unlock free standard shipping on every order. This is an exceptional perk which becomes even more meaningful during their sales including the very popular bi-annual Sephora Savings Event.
This means you can order that $10 lip liner without worrying about any shipping charges. I should point out though that there are rumours that Sephora has banned people’s accounts who have taken excessive advantage of this perk.
Look for Brands With Low Free Shipping Thresholds
While I would love to see every brand offer free shipping with no restrictions I appreciate those that offer it with a low spend threshold. It isn’t necessarily the spend threshold that matters but rather the spend threshold relative to the average cost of the product. For example, MAC offers free shipping if you spend $35 which is pretty easy to hit given that many of their products are $35 or more. Another example is Charlotte Tilbury. They offer free shipping if you spend $50 which is extremely easy to hit unless you only want to buy one of their minis.
I find it very frustrating when brands have a shipping minimum that isn’t aligned with their prices. For example, e.l.f. used to have a free shipping spend threshold of $35 on their website which they decided to increase to $50 in 2026. To give you context, you would need to buy almost 17 of their lip liners to hit this threshold. I have a lot of respect for the e.l.f. brand. The quality of the products relative to their price points is actually quite incredible. Their Canadian shipping policy, however, is not shopper friendly. It feels impossible to create a cart valued at $50 in one go given the average price of their products. As a result, I usually wait for their launches to hit Shoppers Drug Mart or Walmart before picking them up.
Examples of brands with shipping minimums that make sense include NARS ($35), Caudalie ($50), Lancome ($50), Shiseido ($50), Beautysense ($35), Bumble and bumble ($45), and The Ordinary ($25).
Consider Higher End Brands
Okay, hear me out. One observation that I have made is that a lot of higher end brands offer complimentary free shipping on all their orders. As a consumer that is the least that I would expect given how much I am dishing out to buy their products. Regardless, it is a nice perk and creates an elevated experience when shopping on their website.
There are exceptions to this rule. Luxury brand, Valmont, requires that you spend $400 to get free shipping. Have they lost their minds? Not all of their products are over $400. For example, their iconic and bestselling Prime Renewing Pack is $375. Do they really expect me to pay for shipping if I am already spending $375? The brand Chantecaille is the exact same. While I respect the fact that Chantecaille is known to run 25% off sitewide sales I don’t love that I need to spend $240 to get free shipping. A majority of their makeup falls under the $100 price point so it makes it challenging to pick up a couple of their lipsticks.
Examples of higher end brands with complimentary shipping include SkinCeuticals, Darphin, Clé de Peau, Jo Malone, Sisley Paris, La Mer, Dior, and Hermès.
Consider Shopping for Beauty at Mass Retailers
One way to avoid ever paying shipping is to obviously shop in person. Stores like Shoppers Drug Mart and Walmart offer a broad beauty selection and are usually easily accessible. The major drawback for me is that I can’t always find the products and shades I am looking for at the stores closest to me. As a result, I usually place an order online and never struggle with hitting shipping minimums. Both Shoppers Drug Mart and Walmart require that you spend $35 to get free shipping. If I can’t hit that threshold with beauty alone then I just order some cleaning products or toilet paper. Voila – I get free shipping.
Other similar options include e-commerce websites like Amazon and Well.ca. Both have very low free shipping minimums and sell almost every product category so getting free shipping is pretty easy. The drawback to these sites is that they tend to be a bit slower when it comes to getting new beauty releases.
I also feel the need to say that if you are a drugstore makeup and skincare lover then make sure you check Amazon and Walmart. Their regular prices tend to be significantly lower than drugstores and brand websites and they frequently run sales. I have done many price comparisons on new beauty launches and you would be amazed by the difference between stores like Shoppers Drug Mart and Walmart. Walmart wins every single time and it even edges out the almighty Amazon.
Stick to Shopping at One Place Where It Makes Sense
As someone who loves a deal I typically will buy my products from the site that offers the best price. This is usually during a sale. I have been tracking deals for a long time that I know when and where to buy a product to get the best deal. With that said, there are exceptions where I strategically pay more for a product (gasp). Many brands offer loyalty programs with tiers and some of the higher tiers are quite appealing. I will order products at a slightly higher cost from a brand website when I am close to hitting a new tier. I do the math and the perks always outweigh the one time higher cost.
Let me give you an example. I enjoy Lancôme skincare and while I can get their products at many places I always buy them on their Canadian website. They have a Loyalty Program and depending on your tier you can get free shipping with no minimum spend. I have been a Gold or Platinum member for years which comes with this perk. The other benefit is the additional discounts. Lancôme is known for their 25% off sitewide sales and Platinum members typically get an additional 10% off. It is well worth getting to Platinum status if you love this brand.
Examples of brands with loyalty programs offering free shipping include Clarins, Kiehl’s, Caudalie, Nudestix, ILIA Beauty, Anastasia Beverly Hills, Charlotte tilbury, VERB, and Boutique Skin Envie.
Redeem Points for Free Shipping
Similar to loyalty programs some brands have a points or rewards program where you can redeem points for free shipping. They don’t have tiers but rather you accumulate points with each purchase which can be redeemed for different perks. There is no question that I would rather use points towards an additional discount but using them for free shipping can be helpful especially if you can’t stack discounts during a sale.
Examples of brands with points programs offering free shipping includes Vasanti and MAC.
Final Thoughts
Clearly I don’t like to pay for shipping and it is very rare that I ever do. There are so many ways around it and I hoped you picked up some tips from this post. If there is a brand you love and are wondering where the best place to order it is please feel free to leave a comment or message me. Happy Shopping!
