How To Shop For The Perfect Beauty Gift

Finding the perfect gift for someone you love is not an easy task, especially when it comes to gifting beauty products as there are so many areas to trip up. You don’t want to spend tons on a complexion product in the wrong shade or you buy the wrong formula for someone with sensitive skin. As we said, it can be difficult! But don’t panic as there are also some fail-safe products and helpful tips that’ll help you avoid one of these gifting disasters. We’ve rounded up all of the best advice we’ve learned over the years, and speaking from experience, they really work!

Tip 1: Think About What They Love

The best place to start when you’re buying a gift is to consider what your special someone loves. Then from there, buy them a set that falls into that category as this will give them a range of products to fall in love with. For example, if you’re BFFL is a skincare fanatic, the WISHFUL Glow Gift Set, $18, includes two adorable mini skincare formulas that are a perfect skincare taster. Or, if your bestie is never caught dead without eyeliner, chances are they’ll love the Huda Beauty Eyes Gift Set, $34, featuring our Life Liner Dual-Pencil and Liquid Eyeliner and our LEGIT Lashes Dual-Ended Mascara.

For more gift suggestions, check out our Huda Beauty Gift Guide to help you find the perfect gift, whether that’s stocking stuffers or finding something for a makeup junkie or the perfume obsessed.

Tip 2: Consider Your Budget

Keeping in mind your budget will help you determine what kind of product you should look for. For example, if your budget is $25, gifting your partner a fragrance might be more tricky… Unless you’ve checked out our roundup of affordable fragrances – you’re welcome. A cute hack you can do to keep costs down is to make a cute stocking with some amazing drugstore beauty products under $5.

Another helpful hack when you’re shopping online is to set the pricing bracket as per your budget to save you from falling in love with a gift that’s outside your price range.

Tip 3: Buy a Special Edition Product

Most beauty brands release limited edition beauty products for the Holidays, which always make for perfect gifts. These Holiday collections often include sets (the fail-safe gifting option), which can even feature limited-edition variants of the brand’s best-selling products (another fail-safe). For example, our Glam Gift Set includes one full-size Liquid Matte in the shade Bombshell, one of our most popular shades, as well as a mini KAYALI Musk I 12. Alternatively, if your bestie loves our WISHFUL Yo Glow Enzyme Scrub, $39, then gift them the limited edition Yo Glow Candy Cane Enzyme Scrub, $21.

Benefit Cosmetics is another brand that always does the cutest Holiday sets that range from mini $15 Christmas crackers packed with mini mascara, bronzer and primer, to $50 sets with full-sized essentials. And finally, does The Body Shop ever disappoint when it comes to cute body sets and stocking stuffers? No! Check out their full collection that starts at $9 here.

Tip 4: Plan Ahead

When it comes to gifting, planning ahead is another great idea. Not only does it help you avoid the dreaded last-minute shopping stress, but it allows you to be more mindful of your budget and even give you the opportunity to shop during the sales. For example, if you start thinking about Christmas gifting pre-thanksgiving, you can shop for your loved ones during the Black Friday sales, and therefore spend less or even buy more. Similarly, if you plan to buy something special for someone, you can start to put aside a little every month so that when it comes to buying gifts, you’re well-prepared.

Tip 5: Go For a Crowd-Pleaser… And Know What To Avoid

When a beauty product achieves cult status, you know it’s loved by editors and consumers alike, so it’s pretty safe to assume it’s a strong gifting option. Take the Pixi by Petra Glow Tonic, $15, as a prime example, any skincare addict will tell you it’s a guaranteed glow up in a bottle. However, some products can be harder to buy unless you have access to their makeup bag. For example, complexion products like foundation or concealer aren’t great gifts as shade matching is an almost impossible task unless you already know their current shade, and even then, if you’re not buying them a restock of their fave product, it’s not a guaranteed success you’ll get the shade right.

Tip 6: Gift an Experience

If you’re totally stuck on what to get your BFF, why not treat them to a voucher for a manicure, pedicure, or spa treatment; because let’s be real, who doesn’t love a pamper sesh?! These are also the kind of treat-yourself moments that people might not typically buy for themselves, so it’s a nice surprise. Plus, if your budget allows, you can join them for the experience, making it a fun day out that you’ll never forget.

For more gift guides, check out our guide to gifting fragrance.

Disclaimer: Every product we review has been independently selected and tested without bias by our editorial team. We never take payment to review products, however, some brands allow affiliate links, so we may earn a commission if you purchase a product by clicking on one of our links.