Why I Decide to Cancel My 1 Year Subscription of BirchBox

In my previous posts I mentioned I purchased a year subscription of BirchBox. I was super excited the box it came in was so beautiful.

I do love the items I got except the perfume. I selected skincare as my preference and they catered very well to it. So why did I cancel?

If you order a year subscription you can cancel in the first month only. Behind my reasoning to quit was this. 

1. I didn't see the value.

The reason I quit was because I didn't see the value in the box. What it comes down to is you are in a sense paying two dollars per item in that box. So ask yourself, are you willing to pay $2 for every one of those items?

The only item I would have paid two dollars to try was the Real Chemist peel. I wasn't super interested in the Templespa balm, it looked like something you would get at a hotel amenities package and the other two items, the Supergoop and Jane Iredale lip and cheek stain were just too small to be worth the value.

I did a lot of research on Boxycharm and might consider that one instead. That box is $21 and has fill size products which supposedly retails for $80+ that is pretty crazy. Only problem is they are very heavy on make up items and I am a skincare junkie, not so big on the makeup.

2. I have easy access to try skincare and cosmetics.

I would buy the box if I lived somewhere where it wasn't so easy to find or try new skin care/cosmetics items. However, I live in New York city and samples are easy to come by. Also, if you want to test the product there Sephora and so many stores where you can walk in and swatch the product. The TempleSpa is what I consider a standard sample size, but the Supergoop was so ridiculously small you can probably try about the same amount free in a store.

So to find new products I think the do online research and then go test the products in store before purchasing is probably my best bet.

3. Mandatory perfume samples.

I also didn't like the fact that you are basically forced to receive perfume samples. I don't like or wear perfume, it makes me dizzy. When you answer the Birchbox survey you select between an option to receive less than 6 perfume samples a year or more than 6. It would be great if they had a no perfume sample option.


So that is basically why I canceled my Birchbox subscription. I did get great value after my cancellation. Apparently you get to keep all your Birchbox points, my friend got to keep her referral points, and I got to keep my free rms lip balm (value of $25) at no extra charge.

The customer service was good and fast. I requested a cancellation right after my box came and I was unhappy with the sample sizes. I email them asap because I joined Birchbox late into the month and didn't want them to ship my 2nd months box. I received a response and cancellation within 24 hours.

Overall, I think their box designs are pretty, but they don't add any value to me because I'm probably just going to end up throwing them out. I have too much clutter. The products are not low end brands and they cater pretty well to your preferences. I think if someone lived in an area where its difficult to sample new makeup and skin care items, this is a great subscription, but not in my case.