Beauty Calculators

Drugstore vs luxury skincare.

For each product in your routine, enter the luxury version and the drugstore version: price and size, plus how much you use and how often. See price per ml, what each costs over a year at your pace, and what swapping would save. This compares cost only, not how well either works. Runs in your browser; nothing is sent or stored.

Advertisement

Your routine

Use the same unit for size and amount per use (ml or g). Yearly cost is price per unit of size times what you use over 365 days, not the cost of whole bottles; the bottle counts are shown separately.

Yearly saving

Fill the form and press Calculate.

Worked example

Cleanser: luxury $38 for 150 ml, drugstore $12 for 200 ml, 3 ml twice a day = 6 ml a day, 2,190 ml a year. Luxury: 2,190 x 38 / 150 = $554.80; drugstore: 2,190 x 12 / 200 = $131.40; saving $423.40 (76%). Moisturizer: luxury $90 for 50 ml, drugstore $18 for 50 ml, 1.5 ml a day = 547.5 ml a year: $985.50 vs $197.10, saving $788.40 (80%). Together: $1,540.30 vs $328.50, a saving of $1,211.80 a year (79%), about $100.98 a month.

How it works

annual use = amount per use x uses per day x 365. Yearly cost = annual use x (price / size). Saving = luxury yearly cost - drugstore yearly cost. Bottles per year = annual use / size, rounded up.

Cost per year assumes you use the product at the pace you enter and finish every bottle. If you would not finish a bottle before it should be thrown out, the real cost is higher; check the cost per use calculator and the PAO calculator.

A lower price does not mean the same formula. Active ingredients, concentrations, fragrance and your own skin all vary, and this tool says nothing about them. Treat it as a budgeting view.

Every figure is arithmetic on numbers you type. No prices, sizes or amounts are assumed, and nothing is sent or stored.

Sources: none needed. Prices, sizes and usage are your own inputs.

FAQ

How much can I save by switching from luxury to drugstore skincare?

It depends entirely on the prices and your usage. Enter both versions of each product and the tool shows the yearly difference. In the example, two products save $1,211.80 a year.

How is the yearly cost worked out?

Amount per use times uses per day times 365 gives the amount you use in a year. Multiply by price divided by size to get cost.

Why does the tool also show the number of bottles?

You buy whole bottles. The bottle count shows how many purchases a year your pace needs.

Is a drugstore product as good as a luxury one?

This tool cannot say. It compares cost only, not ingredients, results or suitability for your skin.

What if the drugstore version costs more?

The saving shows as a negative number, meaning the swap would cost you more.

Advertisement
Advertisement