You can find amazing deals on authentic Korean skincare online on dozens of Asian marketplaces but where on earth do you start? I’ve been shopping for k-skincare for almost ten years now; these are the best shops and marketplaces for landing a great deal on some Korean skincare!
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9 Places to Buy Korean Skincare Online
There are literally hundreds of online stores listing Korean skincare. When you are shopping online it’s important to make sure that you’re buying from a trusted source. Counterfeit Asian skincare has been an issue that’s increasing every year! These websites are places that I’ve personally bought from and are guaranteed to be authentic:
- Althea
- Korean Skincare on Amazon & Ebay
- Beautynetkorea.com
- YesStyle
- Jolse
- Soko Glam
- iHerb
- Peach & Lily
- Kollectionk
1. Althea – Budget Friendly Korean Skincare & Beauty Shop
Finding a good price on Korean skincare online, with reasonable shipping, without worrying about counterfeit products is a lot to take on all at once! Althea is my personal go-to place to buy Korean skincare. Check out my in-depth Althea skincare haul review here. They’re an online Korean skincare and beauty shop that I’ve come to trust with all my k-skincare needs.
Why I love shopping at Althea:
- Free shipping on orders $50+
- They list full ingredient lists for each product.
- The promotional images are uploaded with English translations under the product listings.
- No fuss returns and great customer service!
Althea sources 100% of their products either directly from the manufacturers or via reputable distributors in Korea. They have free international shipping for orders over $50, otherwise, it’s based on weight. So you won’t break the bank shipping one or two items! I hate having to save items for a later purchase because the shipping fee is more than the item itself. I get especially annoyed with things like sheet masks that weigh almost nothing; a ton of sites will charge 5-6 dollars to ship something the weight of an envelope. They offer international shipping as well!
Althea has a 30 day no muss no fuss return policy + they cover any return shipping fees which is awesome!
If it’s your first order with Althea you can use the code “NEW15” for 15% off your order; I was able to squeeze in a few extra products with this code in my last Althea haul 🙂 They also run limited-time deals on various items that change all the time so it’s easy to find a bargain on something you’ll love! You can find their sales listed here.
2. Buying Korean Skincare on Amazon & Ebay
I’ve written pretty extensively about this because cheap Korean skincare and mindlessly scrolling Amazon for deals are my top biggest vices. I’ve actually dedicated a full article to Cheap Korean Skincare Products under $15 on Amazon! Amazon and Ebay are a very easy places to find great deals on authentic K-skincare. Here are a few tips to make sure you’re not getting ripped off:
How to Avoid Buying Counterfeit Korean Skincare
- Look at the seller, is it the brand or a third party? If it’s a third party look into their reviews to check if anyone has complained of low quality products.
- Is the price suspiciously low? This can sometimes be an indicator of faux skincare.
- Many brands have stickers of authenticity to prevent fraud. For example, the brand Elizavecca places these stickers on all their products. Look at the review images to see if the packaging has one of these marks.
- Does the packaging have a mix of English and Hangul (Korean)? Be wary of items which have high volumes of grammar inconsistencies. One error here and there is not a red flag as translations errors can occur even with legit companies.
- If you find a really good deal but are worried about the legitimacy of the listing look up other listings of that product online to compare the packaging. Does it look slightly off?
3. BeautyNetKorea – Online Korean Skincare Mega Marketplace
BeautyNetKorea is my favorite place to find extremely cheap deals on Korean sheet masks but they also have a vast arrangement of every other variety of skincare product!
I’ve played around quite a bit on the BeautyNetKorea site and have found that the shipping is based solely on weight and it’s very reasonably priced considering it’s shipping from overseas. Shipping to the USA for a single sheet mask was around $2.00; with masks coming in at under a buck you’ll still come out spending far less than when buying from a brick and mortar store. My latest package took 3 weeks to arrive using the cheapest shipping method. They also offer faster shipping rates, but I’m fine with waiting a bit longer to save some cash.
BeautyNetKorea constantly runs sales and coupons that you can check out here, but their everyday prices are some of the lowest ones available.
You always have to factor in shipping when deciding on whether something is a good deal. Many online sellers will mark the product down but boost the shipping fee so be wary of suspiciously cheap listings!
4. Korean Skincare on YesStyle
YesStyle is an Asian online marketplace that’s famous for its cheap clothing but it’s also home to a smorgasbord of Korean skincare! They run constant sales so it’s a breeze to find a great deal on some k-skincare. Many Korean skincare products have dozens of reviews so it’s just a matter of scrolling down to see what people think about the product that you want to buy.
YesStyle is also one of the few sites that actually lists the full ingredient list of the product on each product page! Having to track down a second website just to look at the ingredient list is always a pain in the neck.
YesStyle has a reasonable shipping fee setup which offers free shipping for all orders over $35. I feel like 35 bucks is actually a realistic amount that you could easily spend in one shopping cart without trying to add extra products just to hit a shipping minimum. They also frequently throw in free samples with your order which is always a nice touch.
*FYI* Shipping fees and times have been drastically impacted by Covid-19 and may be different than what is normally offered.
5. Jolse- Korean Skincare & Beauty Online Shopping
Jolse offers a broad range of popular and lesser known Korean skincare brands. This website is a breeze to navigate and the checkout experience is easy as well. My only complaint with Jolse is that not every product listing has an ingredient list, and the promotional images listed under the products do not have English translations. It’s difficult to translate these image banners and it is a frustration that many non-fluent K-skincare lovers have to deal with.
They also have a huge selection of Korean beauty products as well! Their shipping is based of weight and is very reasonably priced and they also offer coupons and advertise sales/discounts every day!
6. Soko Glam – a U.S.A Based Online Source for Korean Skincare
Soko Glam was founded by Charlotte Cho, a South Korean-American esthetician in 2012. You may have also heard of TheKlog.com, it’s the brainchild of Soko Glam! They offer a wide range of products and have an in-house skincare concierge quiz that will try to generate products tailored to your skin type.
They also offer complimentary texting sessions with skin consultations but there is very limited availability so I was not able to test this out myself. The skincare quiz gave a basic range of products but unfortunately every single thing it recommended to me had fragrance, essential oils, and citrus compounds even though I answered 5+ questions stating I have sensitive and reddened skin. 😥
If you want in-depth help in creating a routine and with finding fragrance-free + budget-friendly recommendations take my “How to Build a Skincare Routine Quiz.!
They currently offer free US shipping on orders $35+. The ingredient lists of each product are easily found on the right hand side of each product listing along with detailed instructions on how to use the product. Soko Glam’s prices are not the lowest when compared to other Korean skincare sellers but their beautiful website and easy navigation experience help make up for that small shortcoming. They also include texture shots of each product so you can easily see what consistency the product has from the comfort of your couch!
PS: They also have an adorable Instagram account that you should follow:
7. iHerb – Get Great Deals on Korean Skincare
I had actually done a fair amount of shopping for non-Asian skincare on iHerb before I realized that they also have an amazing selection of Korean skincare for sale!
iHerb shipping is lightning quick and insanely cheap! They offer “Flat $4 shipping or Free for orders $20+”?! Their pricing is right on par with YesStyle and Althea but with even lower shipping prices, you just can’t beat that!
iHerb also clearly states the expiration date of each product for sale which I have never seen done before. Receiving expired products can be an issue when shopping online and having the peace of mind that you’re receiving a freshly manufactured product is just wonderful.
8. Peach & Lily Korean Skincare Store
Peach & Lily sells its various in-house brands along with dozens of other popular Korean skincare brands. The selection available includes some rather high end lesser known Korean skincare brands along with commonly found fan favorites.
You can expect free shipping on all orders $50+ as well as some free samples with each package. They offer an easy-breezy site navigation experience and you can shop by skin concern, brand, or skincare product type.
They also have a no questions asked return policy. If you are not satisfied with your purchase, you can return it to Peach and Lily for a full refund within 30 days of the purchase date, and return shipping is free of charge!
9. KOLLECTIONK– Korean Skincare Shop
KOLLECTIONK has a modestly sized but affordably priced selection of Korean skincare as well as other Korean makeup and hair products. They were founded in 2011 and are based out of Seoul, Korea. They have a rewards program where you can build store credit and they also frequently have deep discount sales where you can snag a good deal!
They offer standard shipping with free shipping (via USPS) on orders over $60 USD(after promotional codes are applied) and $4.95 USD on orders less than $60 USD. Delivery typically takes up to 5 – 20 business days from ship date. KollectionK also ships worldwide!
They list ingredients on some product pages, but not all which is frustrating. The pricing on KOLLECTIONK is about the same as other sites like Jolse or Soko Glam. They have a rather strict return policy, you are only permitted to return items purchased at full price that are unopened within 7 days of shipment so be careful with your purchases! You are also expected to cover return shipping costs which is a stingy requirement when compared to most return policies.
