While you might be busy enjoying the last few weeks of summer, Christmas has come early in the beauty world. Brands including Liberty, Space NK and No7 are already looking ahead to the festive season by unveiling this year’s beauty advent calendars.
Forget chocolate countdowns; these calendars are becoming an excellent – if expensive – alternative. But while heavy hitters like Liberty, Harrods and Selfridges come with a hefty price tag, M&S’s cult-favourite calendar tends to set you back less than £100.
A sell-out hit year after year, the high street stalwart has just unveiled its line-up for 2025. An indulgent edit of winter beauty essentials from household names – think Benefit, Clinique, Percy & Reed and This Works – the line-up boasts an overall value of more than £300. This year, British fashion designer Bella Freud has designed the calendar packaging, fresh from her sell-out fashion collaboration with M&S.
I’ve been reviewing beauty advent calendars for years, testing brands from John Lewis and Lookfantastic to Boots and plenty more. However, M&S remains my favourite. Not only is it affordable, but the contents promise plenty of variety and include brands you can really trust.
The retailer has finally revealed the brands and products on its roster for 2025 – as well as the price and launch date. Here’s everything you need to know about M&S’s beauty advent calendar.
When can you shop M&S’s beauty advent calendar 2025?
M&S’s bestselling calendar is returning online and in-store from 9 October 2025, so mark this date in your calendars.
How much will M&S’s beauty advent calendar 2025 cost?
M&S has revealed that its calendar will cost £60. It’s much cheaper than some of the competition – Liberty’s beauty advent calendar (£275, Libertylondon.com) costs more than four times as much. However, M&S’s offering is £10 more than last year.
As always, you can shop the calendar when you spend £35 in-store or online on beauty, home and clothing.
What products could be inside M&S’s beauty advent calendar 2025?
So far, M&S has announced that there will be 25 products in its calendar – eight full-size and 17 travel-size. The retailer has also stated that it will feature brands including Clinique, Estée Lauder, Benefit, Weleda and Nuxe.
Spoilers ahead, but the silhouette on M&S’s site also reveals Color Wow, This Works, Cowshed, Floral Street, Percy & Reed and Nails Inc. There also appears to be a gua sha in the mix, fragrances from M&S’s in-house fragrance line and perhaps a mascara (which looks suspiciously like a Clinique one).
This year, M&S’s calendar comes in a traditional box – a departure from previous offerings, which were packaged into a reusable velvet vanity case. The black design with gold printing is recognizably Bella Freud, with her signature typography (“relax”, “sulky”, “relax”) and playful star illustrations.
Packaging aside, there’s a lot to be excited about. The retailer says the products span restorative hair treatments, soothing skincare (think Estée Lauder’s advanced night repair serum), party-season make-up and fragrance.
Zooming in on the silhouette, I’ve spotted Colour Wow’s dream cocktail carb volumiser (£25, Colorwowhair.com), Cowshed’s relax bath and shower gel (£22, Marksandspencer.com), This Works deep sleep body cocoon (£25, Johnlewis.com), Percy & Reed’s hair primer (£23, Marksandspencer.com) and Floral Streets sweet almond blossom (£29, Marksandspencer.com).
So, can the 2025 M&S beauty advent calendar top last year's? Watch this space as more details are revealed.
From Harrods to Liberty, beauty writer Lucy has rounded up all the best beauty advent calendars to know about in 2025
