What Do You Get in Your First IPSY Bag? Full Breakdown of 2025 Contents

When you sign up for your first IPSY bag, you’re not just getting a few beauty samples-you’re stepping into a personalized beauty experiment. It’s like opening a surprise gift box, but every item is picked just for you based on your beauty profile. And yes, it’s totally different from what your friend got. That’s the whole point.

How IPSY Picks Your First Bag

IPSY doesn’t throw random products into your box. When you sign up, you fill out a quick quiz: your skin type, tone, hair texture, makeup preferences, and even what you hate. Did you say you’re oily but hate matte foundations? Or that you love bold lips but never know which shade to pick? IPSY uses that data to match you with products that actually fit your needs.

Your first bag usually includes five items. That’s not a lot, but each one is chosen to give you a real sense of what works. You might get a full-size product, but more often, you’ll get travel-sized versions of high-end or new-to-market brands. The goal? Let you test before you buy.

What’s Actually Inside Your First IPSY Bag

Here’s what you can realistically expect in your first IPSY Glam Bag (the basic plan) in 2025:

• One skincare item - Maybe a hyaluronic acid serum from a brand like The Ordinary, or a gentle cleanser from Dr. Jart+. It’s usually something you wouldn’t normally splurge on.
• One makeup item - Could be a lipstick, a mascara, or a cream blush. Think Rare Beauty, Fenty Beauty, or a lesser-known indie brand testing the market.
• One hair or body product - A shampoo sample, a body lotion, or even a hair mask. These are often from brands like Olaplex or Maui Moisture.
• One tool or accessory - A makeup sponge, a lash curler, or a mini brush set. These are practical and often from brands you’ve never heard of.
• One wildcard - Sometimes it’s a nail polish, a fragrance sample, or even a skincare tool like a jade roller. These vary wildly.

The total value? Usually between $40 and $70. You pay $13 a month for the Glam Bag, so you’re getting more than triple your money’s worth in product value alone.

Brands You’ll Actually Recognize

Don’t expect only obscure brands. IPSY partners with major names to give you access to their new launches. In 2025, you’re likely to find products from:

• Fenty Beauty - Especially their new lipsticks or complexion products.
• Rare Beauty - Soft glam blushes or liquid lipsticks.
• Drunk Elephant - A mini version of their popular vitamin C serum.
• La Roche-Posay - A gentle moisturizer for sensitive skin.
• Hero Cosmetics - Their Mighty Patch acne stickers are a recurring favorite.

But you’ll also get surprises from smaller brands like Bybi, BeautyStat, or Uncommon Beauty. These are the ones you might never find in a drugstore. That’s where the real discovery happens.

What You Won’t Get

It’s just as important to know what’s not in your bag. IPSY doesn’t include:

• Full-size luxury products (like a full Chanel lipstick or Dior foundation)
• Products with alcohol, sulfates, or parabens if you marked them as "avoid" in your profile
• Items that don’t match your skin tone or hair type
• Products you’ve already reviewed as "hated" in past bags

IPSY’s algorithm learns from your feedback. If you rate something poorly, you’ll rarely see it again. That’s why your second bag often feels even better than your first.

Why This Works Better Than Buying Full-Size Products

How many times have you bought a foundation online, only to realize it’s two shades too dark? Or bought a lipstick that looked gorgeous on the screen but turned out to be a weird orange? That’s why sampling matters.

With IPSY, you’re testing products in your real life - under your bathroom light, during your morning rush, while wearing a mask. You’re not just reading reviews. You’re experiencing the product in your own skin.

One user in Wellington told me she discovered her perfect lip color through IPSY: a mauve-pink from a brand called Elvie. She’d never have bought it on its own. Now it’s her everyday go-to.

How to Get the Most Out of Your First Bag

Don’t just toss the samples in a drawer. Here’s how to use them wisely:

1. Write down your first impressions - Did the moisturizer feel greasy? Did the lipstick dry out your lips? Note it.
2. Use each product for at least 3 days - Some things need time to show results, especially skincare.
3. Rate everything in the IPSY app - This tells the algorithm what you like. The more you rate, the better your future bags get.
4. Try mixing products - Maybe the serum from one brand works better with the moisturizer from another. Experiment.
5. Don’t feel pressured to love everything - If you hate something, that’s useful feedback. Not every product is for you, and that’s okay.

Upgrading Your IPSY Experience

If you love your first bag, you might consider upgrading to the IPSY Glam Bag Plus ($28/month). It gives you 7-8 items, including at least one full-size product. You also get access to exclusive items and early releases.

Or try IPSY Spark - a monthly box focused on clean, sustainable beauty. It’s perfect if you care about ingredients and packaging.

But for most people, the original Glam Bag is the sweet spot. You get variety, value, and real discovery without the commitment.

What Happens After the First Bag?

Your second bag? It’s usually better. Your third? Even better. By the fifth, you might start spotting repeat favorites - or realize you’ve built a whole new routine around samples you loved.

One woman in Auckland told me she stopped buying foundation altogether after her third IPSY bag. She found three different shades she loved and now rotates them by season. She saves over $200 a year.

IPSY isn’t just a subscription. It’s a low-risk way to explore beauty without the clutter of unused products gathering dust in your bathroom.

And if you’re still unsure? Try it for one month. You’ve got nothing to lose - and a whole new world of products to discover.