Autumn is almost here and what better way to enjoy a cosy night in, than with a selection of pampering treats from the best beauty advent calendars. Cult Beauty is one of the many online retailers to unveil its advent calendar offering for 2025 and its here that we’ve put its coveted box of cosmetic treats to the test.
There are two calendars from Cult Beauty to choose from: the classic curation (£240, Cultbeauty.co.uk) or the limited-edition curation (£240, Cultbeauty.co.uk). Inside the classic calendar, you’ll find 34 products and 20 of these are full size. You’ll find the same number of full size products in the limited-edition version, as well as a few extras, with a total of 40 products included.
Both calendars cost £240 – although this is £5 more than last year, Cult Beauty has promised a few extra full size products this year. According to the beauty retailer, its contents are worth at least £1,100 so you can a expect a mix of mid-range to premium brands behind its 25 doors.
Cult Beauty has showcased the best of its brands with hero products from Charlotte Tilbury, Medik8, Elemis, Byoma, Hourglass and many more included. From lip oils, blush and glowy primers to vitamin c serums, eye masks and hydrating face mists, it’s filled to the brim with skincare, make-up, fragrance and even the odd bit of haircare to enjoy during the festive season.
Our beauty experts have been busy putting this season’s best beauty advent calendars to the test. If you can’t decide who you want to countdown to Christmas with, we’ve also put the Selfridges beauty advent calendar, Sephora advent calendar, Lookfantastic advent calendar and more to the test.
How I tested
I’ve broken all Christmas countdown traditions and unboxed every door on the Cult Beauty limited-edition curation advent calendar, so that I can review its contents. As I looked through all the beauty treats inside, I considered the following factors:
Why you can trust IndyBest reviews
Sabrina Sahota is The Independent’s consumer editor, with years of experience in securing the best beauty deals and finding the top make-up, skincare and haircare buys. She has reviewed beauty advent calendars and tested the latest lipsticks, setting sprays and fragrance for IndyBest, so is well placed to review Cult Beauty’s offering. With a keen eye for money-saving, she’ll tell you if this calendar is truly worth its £240 price tag.
The Cult Beauty limited-edition curation advent calendar 2025
Price: £240
Worth: More than £1,200
Number of days: 25
Number of products: 40 (20 full sizes)
Advent calendar highlights: Medik8 c-tetra advanced serum, Hourglass unlocked instant extensions mascara, Gisou honey infused lip oil, K18 leave-in molecular repair hair mask, Summer Fridays jet lag mist, By Terry hyaluronic hydra-powder
Available: Now
Why we love it
- Good variety of make-up, skincare and fragrance
- Plenty of popular brands
- Huge overall worth
- Excellent full size products
Take note
- Haircare offering is limited
Cult Beauty has gone for a contemporary box design on its advent calendar, working with artist Quentin Jones on the lilac and grey collage-style packaging. Personally, I’d prefer something a little more festive sitting next to my Christmas tree, but that’s the traditionalist in me speaking. If you find the classic red and gold tones a bit overdone, this is the perfect antidote. The two doors neatly close thanks to a magnetic circular disc at the front. The boxes are sturdy too, so it’ll hold up well if you want to reuse it in years to come.
I received the limited-edition curation calendar, which is worth more than £1,200 (the classic is worth more than £1,100). Most of the products remain the same, but there are a couple of additions – particularly when it comes to fragrance. For example in the limited-edition version, you’ll find travel sizes of Kayali’s vanilla candy rock sugar (£73, Cultbeauty.co.uk), Kilian good girl gone bad (£225, Cultbeauty.co.uk), the Sol de Janeiro cheirosa 59 perfume mist (£24, Cultbeauty.co.uk) as well three mini-sized perfumes by The House of Creed (Eladaria, Queen of Silk and Carmina). I’ll be popping the Kilian perfume spray into my handbag – it’s floral but not overwhelmingly sweet, with a subtle spiciness that can take you effortlessly from day to night.
As for make-up, I was excited to see plenty of my favourite brands as I went through the calendar. Standouts include Patrick Ta’s double take creme and powder blush palette (£34, Cultbeauty.co.uk) in a deep mocha shade that’s beautiful for warm skin tones, Hourglass’ unlocked instant extensions mascara (£32, Cultbeauty.co.uk), which truly lives up to its name, and Gisou’s nourishing honey infused lip oil in cherry on the cake (£24, Cultbeauty.co.uk). The full size beauty light wand in spotlight from Charlotte Tilbury (£30, Cultbeauty.co.uk) and Natasha Denona mini pastel palette (£24, Cultbeauty.co.uk) are lovely, shimmery additions for the party season.
The skincare offering features lots of viral hits including Summer Fridays’ jet lag mist (£21, Cultbeauty.co.uk), which is my go-to for a midday make-up refresh, Byoma’s budget-friendly phyto-mucin glow serum (£14.99, Cultbeauty.co.uk) and the Laneige bouncy and firm serum (£39, Cultbeauty.co.uk). There are two full size products that really give you your money’s worth – Medik8’s c-tetra advanced (£69, Cultbeauty.co.uk), a hardworking vitamin c serum that’s a staple in my routine, and the Kate Somerville exfolikate intensive exfoliating treatment (£69, Cultbeauty.co.uk). The value of these two products alone is worth is more than half the price of the advent calendar.
I did notice that there were five lip oils and treatments included, such as the Fenty Skin plush puddin' intensive recovery lip mask (£20, Cultbeauty.co.uk) and the Dr Dennis Gross derminfusions plump and repair lip treatment (£25, Cultbeauty.co.uk). I’ve usually got a sea of lip products floating at the bottom of my handbag, but even this felt a tad much for me.
Comparatively, the haircare offering is a bit thin on the ground, with only three products included. However two of these are full size – the Philip Kingsley overnight scalp barrier serum (£31, Cultbeauty.co.uk), which didn’t particularly excite me, and the more impressive, K18 leave-in molecular repair hair mask (£70, Cultbeauty.co.uk). We named the latter the best leave-in hair mask and it’s worth almost 30 per cent of the calendar’s price.
When it comes to the final box on 25 December, Cult Beauty has not held back with its beauty treats. Rather than one product, you get seven make-up and skincare products to enjoy, leaving you plenty to try well into the new year. My favourite of the bunch is the travel size By Terry hyaluronic hydra-powder (£42, Cultbeauty.co.uk) – as for the rest, you’ll have to wait until Christmas Day to see.
At the time of writing, Cult Beauty’s limited-edition advent calendar is sold out. You can either join the waitlist or, if you just can’t wait, the classic version is still available to buy now.
Buy now £240.00, Cultbeauty.co.uk
Is the Cult Beauty advent calendar worth it?
Depending on the version that you choose, you get at least £1,100 worth of products included in the calendar for £240. While unboxing, it was rare to come across a brand I didn’t recognise, with lots of viral favourites such as Summer Fridays, Byoma, Hourglass and Gisou included. You really get your money’s worth with the full size products too – these can often feel like filler in beauty calendars, but here you get hero products from premium skincare and haircare brands like Medik8 and K18. Overall, it’s an excellent curation of Cult Beauty’s bestselling mid-range to high-end brands, so if you’re beauty obsessed, there’ll be lots for you to enjoy.
Looking for more festive inspiration? Here’s everything inside Charlotte Tilbury’s beauty advent calendar
