Shop details for Cosme-De
Cosme-De, based in Hong Kong, is one of the largest online companies dealing Cosmetics, Scents, and Personal Care in the world. Currently ranked among the top 75,000 most-visited website in the world, Cosme-De sets the standard for all other online cosmetics shops. Since its founding 10 years ago, Cosme-De has become the store of choice for fashionistas all over the world. The shop is particularly in the United States and Brazil.
Cosme-De is one of the largest online cosmetics shops in the world.
Experience with Cosme-De
Cosme-De is unrivaled, at least in terms of Chinese webshops. Prices on Cosme-De are much higher than we are used to seeing in many other China-based webshops, but it's also the only one among them to deal exclusively in name-brand cosmetics, fragrance, hair- and skincare products.
While the prices are higher than you may find in some other wholesale fashion webshops, Cosme-De differentiates itself by offering only name-brand products at lower prices than you find in most other places for the same products. The most popular products on Cosme-De are from Asian Brands such as Etude House, Shiseido, Shu Uemura, Kao, etc., but there is also a decent selection of American and European Brands as well.
Like every other webshop that manages to break the top 100k most-visited sites globally, Cosme-De is very professional and packages all orders very carefully. Our test order arrived earlier than expected, packed perfectly secure and declared well for customs. If you're still not convinced that Cosme-De should be your next stop for all of your cosmetics needs, read on for an in-depth site review and learn what it's really like to order from Cosme-De.
Pros
Cons
Payment
Customers from outside of Asia may only pay with PayPal or Credit Card (Visa and Mastercard only).
Cosme-De requires that you create an account before completing your order, but once that's done the payment proceeds the same as it does on any other webshop. We always recommend paying with PayPal on international orders to take advantage of the Buyer Protection program.
Supported Payment Methods
| PayPal | Our recommendation for all International Orders: their internal Buyer Protection program gives you peace of mind in case anything goes wrong with your order. |
|---|---|
| Credit Card | Credit Card payments on Cosme-De are as easy as ever: just plug in your card info and wait for your order! |
| AliPay | Only for Asian Customers. This is China's answer to PayPal. |
Shipping Costs and Delivery Times
No major webshop would be complete without a Free Shipping option and Cosme-De does deliver on that front, although with a catch. Select the Regular Mail shipping option to have your order delivered within 7-14 business days for free only on orders over $40.
If that sounds like too long to wait for your new shampoo and foundation, Cosme-De also gives you an Expedited Mail option which will rush your order to you in 3-5 business days and charge you $10-30 (depending on the delivery address) for the convenience.
For our money, we don't understand why you would pay for the expedited shipping when you could just wait to get it for free, but what do we know?
Cosme-De and Customs
As I mentioned before, our Cosme-De test order arrived well within the 14 workday delivery time frame and had no problems getting through customs.
That being said, we always recommend reading up on your country's rules and regulations regarding international shipping and customs fees in case your order makes an unexpected stopover at your local customs office.
For shipments entering the US, extra taxes and fees on your product are possible. Not every item is taxed when entering the country, and the majority are only subject to a nominal processing fee of between $2 and $9 in the case of a random customs stop. The amount to be paid, however, can vary widely depending on the product and how it’s sent. If you are concerned about your item, or are planning to order goods in excess of $500, it is worth it to check with the Customs Office at the port of entry to confirm any extra fees.
Any extra taxes or duties on your shipment will either be paid at your door when the mailman drops it off, or the package may be held at your local post office. In which case, you will need to go pick it up and pay any applicable fees in person.
Return Policy
Cosme-De allows its customers to return any unused items within 30 days of delivery. It's very important that any tubes, cremes, bottle, etc. are unopened and unused, otherwise Cosme-De will reject the return and not refund your money.
All returns must be reported to Cosme-De Customer Service beforehand. They will then process your request and provide you with the return address and a restocking number when your request has been confirmed. Cosme-De does not reimburse any return shipping costs. They also do not support any direct exchanges, so if you would like to get a new product you'll need to wait for your refund and place a new order.
Special Features
Cosme-De features a huge selection of many big-name cosmetics producers, including Dior, Clinique, and Yves Saint Laurent.
Conclusion
Skin-care freaks, cosmetics fans, and anyone who likes to look and smell young and fresh would do well to check out Cosme-De. Although the prices are higher than a lot of other Chinese shops, the wide selection of name brand articles and Free Shipping mean that you may just be able to squeeze out some savings (at least over the make-up counter at Macy's) on your next Cosme-De order.
Alternatives
Cosme-De is pretty much the only site we've reviewed so far that specializes exclusively in name-brand cosmetics, so it's hard for us to think of Alternatives from our list of Chinese discount webshops. Below, we've listed a few shops whose cosmetics selections are wider and more varied than the average fashion shop, even if most of them won't have the same name-brand quality you will get at Cosme-De. But, in exchange for the name brands, you will definitely save some money over Cosme-De.
| Alternative 1: |  YesStyle | small selection of cosmetics and skin care items, free shipping |
|---|---|---|
| Alternative 2: |  Twinkledeals | Decent selection of cosmetics, no name brands, much lower prices, free shipping |
| Alternative 3: |  Lightinthebox | Decent selection of cosmetics from famous Asian brands, free shipping |
Cosme-De Coupons
Love Cosme-De products, but hate the name-brand prices? Check back here for all the latest and greatest Coupons, Discount Codes, and Sale Announcements for Cosme-De!