If you love beauty products, you likely shop at Sephora. With their incredible selection of products and amazing sales, you may wonder if there are any other ways to save on your name-brand beauty products besides Sephora coupons.
There is and it’s called the Sephora Beauty Insider. Is the loyalty program worth the hype? What can you get for using it?
Here’s what you must know.
What is Sephora Beauty Insider?
Sephora Beauty Insider is Sephora’s loyalty program. You earn points for every purchase that you can turn into cash off your purchase when you reach a certain level. You can also use your points to ‘purchase’ items in the Rewards Bazaar. New rewards drop every Tuesday and Thursday and the ‘cost’ starts at just 100 points.
Beauty Insider has 3 tiers, the first of which is free and the other two which require a certain spend.
How Does it Work?
Sephora pays Insiders one point per dollar spent. You can earn points shopping in-store, online, or at Sephora inside JCPenney. Once you’re signed up, just provide your email address at checkout in-store or online and you’ll receive credit for your purchase.
Occasionally, Sephora offers bonus points for specific purchases too. Watch your email for these opportunities as they are only for a limited time.
You can earn points on any merchandise bought in-store or online (including Sephora for JCPenney online). You can also earn points for in-store services including:
- Dry Bar Services
- Brow Bar Services
You do not earn points on gift cards, e-gift cards, FLASH shipping subscriptions, tickets for special events, taxes, or shipping unless otherwise noted during bonus point periods.
Once you earn 500 points (spend $500) you earn $10 off your in-store or online purchase. To redeem your points, tell the cashier you want to use your points or select ‘redeem my points’ if you’re shopping online. Sephora’s website gives you a couple of chances to redeem it in case you forget to select it when you log in.
You can use Insider rewards with other promotions including product discounts and Sephora coupons.
What are the Beauty Insider Tiers and What are the Perks?
All members start as asredeemBeauty Insider. It’s free to join (no minimum spend required), and you’ll earn:
- One point for every $1 you spend
- $10 off your purchase with 500 points
- 10% off during Sephora’s two seasonal shopping events for members
- Free shipping on $50+
- End-of-year member savings
- Exchange your points for discount events
- Free birthday gift
- Trade your points for samples (new samples drop every Tuesday and Thursday)
- Access to point multiplier events to earn more points on our purchases
- Sweepstakes opportunities
- Chances to redeem points for meet-and-greets and certain services
Once you spend $350 in a calendar year, you earn VIB status, which earns the same rewards as above plus:
- 15% off purchases with 500 points instead of $10 off
- Free shipping on $35 instead of $50
If you’re a real Sephora enthusiast and spend $1,000 in the calendar year, you’ll hit Rouge status and enjoy everything above plus:
- 20% off purchases with 500 points instead of $10 or $15
- Free shipping on every purchase, no minimum
- Turn in 2,500 points for $100 off your purchase
- Access to exclusive events
- Early access to new products
What is the Value of Beauty Insider Points?
All Beauty Insider points are worth $1. Sephora used to pay higher point values for the VIB and Rouge tiers, but today all members earn one point per $1 spent.
Do Sephora Points Expire?
Sephora’s Beauty Insider points don’t expire IF you remain active. Fortunately, their definition of active is flexible. You must make some type of transaction within 12 months to remain active. A transaction could be a purchase, but it could also be redeeming points or claiming a birthday gift.
When Does Sephora Release New Beauty Bazaar Rewards?
To redeem your rewards for anything except cash, you must visit the Beauty Bazaar. It’s important to know when Sephora drops new Beauty Bazaar Rewards, though, because they go fast.
They drop them on Tuesday and Thursday at 9 AM PST. It’s to your benefit to check right away to see if there are any hot products they’re giving away. The products are often sample-sized, which is still a decent size to try a product or bring on your travels. But, sometimes they even offer full-size products, so when you have enough points – always check the offers!
How to Check your Beauty Insider Points Status?
To check your Sephora Beauty Insider points status, tier, or to answer any other questions about your account, log into your account by clicking ‘sign in.’ Click on ‘my account’ and you should see your points value at the top of the page as well as any other available benefits.
Always check your email for special offers too. Mark Sephora as ‘safe’ so the emails don’t go to your spam.
What are the Advantages?
- It’s free, you don’t need a minimum spend to be an Insider
- All members get a free birthday gift
- All members earn one point for every $1 spent
- You can earn extra points at multiplier events
- Redeeming points counts as a transaction to keep your account active
- You can redeem points for products in the Bazaar or cash off your purchase
- Free shipping at each level, but the purchase threshold changes
What are the Disadvantages?
- The conversion to cash off your purchase isn’t as valuable as trading points for samples
- All tiers only earn one point per $1 spent
- Only Rouge members get early access to new products
How to Join Beauty Insider?
It’s easy to join Sephora Beauty Insider and as we said above, it’s free. Here’s how to join.
- Click here and select ‘join now’
- Enter your first and last name
- Provide your email address
- Create a password
- Provide your phone number (optional)
- Enter your birthday (don’t skip this so you get the free birthday gift)
- Enter your zip code so you’re made aware of local events
- Click ‘Join Now’
Using and Earning Beauty Insider Points at Sephora for Kohls
Only some of the Beauty Insider benefits are available at Sephora for Kohls. They include:
- Using Beauty Insider Cash ($10 off your purchase)
- Seasonal savings events
- End-of-year discounts
- Free Birthday gift
- Free sample rewards
Sephora Beauty Insider FAQs
Do Sephora Beauty points expire?
Sephora Beauty points only expire if you aren’t an active member. To remain active, you must have some type of activity on your account. Making a purchase and providing your email address to accumulate points counts, as does redeem a birthday gift or converting points into a Reward Bazaar gift.
What happens if you return a product you earned Sephora Beauty points on?
If you return a product you earned Beauty points on or your online order was canceled, you will not receive points for that portion of the order.
Do you have to pay for Sephora Beauty Insider?
Sephora Beauty Insider is free, but if you want to move up to the higher VIB or Rouge tiers, you’ll need to meet the annual spend requirements. The VIB level requires $350 in calendar year spending and Rouge requires $1,000 in calendar-year spending.
Does your Sephora Beauty Insider status reset each year?
The Sephora Beauty Insider status is good for the year you qualify (spend at least $350 or $1,000 in the calendar year) and the full year following. After the full year following the year you qualified, you must requalify for the status by meeting the minimum spend requirements.
How old must you be to sign up for Sephora Beauty Insider?
You must be at least 13 years old to sign up for Sephora Beauty Insider. If you’re a minor (under 18), you must also have parent permission to sign up for the program.
Final Thoughts – Is Sephora Beauty Insider Worth It?
Sephora Beauty Insider doesn’t cost you anything – so is Sephora Beauty Insider worth it?
You have nothing to lose and a lot to gain. If you regularly shop at Sephora, you’ll enjoy plenty of perks, most notably the free product samples and sometimes full-size products. If you love trying new products, this is the way to do it – you don’t pay anything out-of-pocket, except the money you choose to spend on products to earn points.
Even if you don’t make VIB or Rouge status, everyone earns the same number of points per $1 spent, so it’s worth providing the little bit of information they require so you can earn free stuff – if nothing else, enjoy your free birthday gift – it’s usually a pretty great gift!
