We Asked our BEAUTY Squad: When Is It Worth Spending More on Beauty?

We all have that one category we refuse to skimp on and that other category where any drugstore dupe will do. Turns out, the Beauty Buddy Squad feels exactly the same way, and their answers this month gave us a seriously clear picture of where the splurge is worth it and where it just isn't.

We asked the community about their beauty spending habits, and the results prove one thing: nobody's a fixed "luxury shopper" or "budget shopper." Everyone's mixing it up, category by category, and being pretty intentional about it too.

Some Categories Are Just Worth It

When we asked what's actually worth spending more on, two categories rose to the top with zero hesitation.

Skincare takes the crown, with 80.5% of the Squad saying it's worth splurging on. Fragrance wasn't far behind at 76%, and foundation & base rounded out the top three at 62%.

Makes sense, right? These are the things that sit on your skin all day (or define how you smell to everyone in a 3 foot radius). The Squad's logic is simple: invest where it actually shows.

But Lip Products? No Regrets Going Budget

Flip the question around, and the picture changes fast. 67% of the community happily buys budget lip products with zero compromise felt. Haircare came in at 47%, tools & devices at 44.5%, and even foundation & base, despite being a splurge category above, still saw 40% of people comfortable going budget depending on the product.

The takeaway here isn't "cheap is bad." It's that the Squad has figured out exactly which categories reward the extra spend and which ones don't, and they're not afraid to mix and match.

Does Luxury Even Perform Better? Jury's Out

Here's where it gets interesting. When we asked if luxury beauty products actually perform better than their budget counterparts, opinion was genuinely split. Only 46% agreed, while a full 42% said they felt neutral on the whole thing.

And here's the kicker: 65% of the Squad has felt buyer's remorse over a full price luxury product at least occasionally. That gap between what something costs and what it actually delivers is exactly why dupe culture has so much room to grow.

As for how much people are willing to spend before a skincare product starts to feel "too expensive," most landed in the £26 to £50 range (33.5%), with £51 to £100 close behind at 27.5%. Only 17% said they'd go over £100 without blinking.

TikTok Is the New Dupe Detective

So where is everyone actually finding these budget swaps? Short form video, hands down. 68% of the Squad discovers budget alternatives through TikTok, with Instagram close behind at 66.5%. Friends and family still play a role too, at 51%, and 45.5% say they've found great dupes right here in the Beauty Buddy community.

If you've ever fallen down a "dupe alert" rabbit hole at midnight, you are extremely not alone.

Does the Brand Name Even Matter?

Turns out, not as much as you'd think. Most of the Squad (44%) said the brand name is only "somewhat important" when deciding what to buy. Just 13% called it "extremely important." The name on the bottle is one factor among many, not the deciding one.

What This Means for How You Shop

If there's one thing this survey makes clear, it's that being a savvy shopper doesn't mean picking a lane and staying in it. It means knowing your own priorities: where quality actually changes your results, and where a smart swap saves you money without sacrificing a thing.

Curious how your own spending habits stack up against the rest of the Squad? Download the Beauty Buddy app and see how the community rates their favorite splurges and swaps, category by category. And if you've got a dupe the Squad needs to know about, we want to hear it. 💕