Beauty advent calendars 2024: Are they worth it? NationalWorld debates whether you should buy one this December

Advent calendars are the hit seasonal product in the beauty industry, offering multiple products to consumers wrapped up in Christmas-inspired packaging. While their popularity has boomed and they have become commonplace in homes across the country, others feel that they have gone too far...

NationalWorld writers Natalie Dixon and Heather Carrick have gone head-to-head on why they thing beauty advent calendars are a good or bad idea for the Christmas season.

Natalie Dixon

I am a self confessed beauty addict. I love beauty products and when major brands launched the first beauty advent calendars a few years ago my name was at the top of the waitlist.

After growing up with picture advent calendars the thought of getting a beauty product each day in the lead up to Christmas sounded like - and is - the best idea in the world for beauty lovers like me. Every year I treat myself to the LookFantastic Beauty calendar - it may seem expensive at £85 however, this is an absolute bargain as all the entire contents of the calendar is worth over £415. It features full size bottles as well as fun size products of high end well known brands. The Boots Limited Edition 24 Days of Beauty Christmas Advent Calendar £99 (worth £365.97) is also one of my faves this year. 

The main reason I think beauty advent calendars are well worth it is because it's a great way for you to try beauty brands that might be too expensive to buy. I mean you don't want to spend all your money on a product only to find it's not what you expected or it just doesn't work for you at all.

But also if you use these brands anyway a beauty advent calendar will save you a lot of money. I love opening my beauty advent calendar and getting a new product to try daily in the lead up to Christmas. It's a little treat for me everyday and as a mum I rarely get treats all to myself.

Heather Carrick

Sometimes I feel like I’m in a minority that really doesn’t get the appeal of beauty advent calendars. I would describe myself as a beauty fan - I’ll jump on some trends, spend on topping up my makeup bag when needed and I have a tried-and-tested skincare routine I swear by, but spending almost £100 on a piece of cardboard stuffed with beauty products that I didn’t choose and have no idea what they are sounds like my worst nightmare. 

In an age when we’re trying to be mindful of over-consumption, the beauty advent calendar is the absolute antithesis of this. Getting a beauty product every day for the best part of a month is mind-boggling in this sense. Unless you’re a make-up artist burning through your kit at a rapid pace, I really don’t see the appeal of being “gifted” a full new eyeshadow pallet everyday for example, just for it to then gather dust after the initial dopamine boost of opening a present passes. 

For those generous beauty calendars that offer sample sizes to combat this - why are customers still paying up to and even above £100 for the pleasure? I can’t help but feel that those customers are being short-changed all for the sake of a bit of Christmas branding and stock the company couldn’t get rid of during the year. 

The pleasure of the chocolate advent calendars that I’ve always had is that you spend £5 on a calendar for the month and even if you’re having a rubbish day, you always have a little chocolate boost to perk you up and it doesn’t lie in a drawer for years. And it’s not just chocolate - there are calendars for tea fans, coffee drinkers, and other food items that are intended to be used there and then as you open the door. Even better, you’re more likely to be able to pass it on to someone else if you’re not a fan of that day’s flavour or treat, unlike makeup which is often required to be personalised to skin tone, skin type, hair colour...

So even if I am in the minority, just leave me be with my basic calendar this December and I’ll be very happy.