As a beauty editor, I've seen my fair share beauty gift sets hit the shelves during the holiday season—but very few actually live up to the hype. While some offer hard-to-resist festive packaging and curated minis, I'm all about the ones that actually save you money. Think full-size sets with bonus products or value duos that cost less than buying both individually.
As such, every year, I not-so-patiently wait for what I deem Sephora's hidden gem: the Sephora Favorites Holiday Perfume Sampler. It features this year's hottest scents—like sweet vanillas, warm musks, fresh florals, and niche tea notes—from luxury brands like YSL, Valentino, and Burberry. Besides of course getting it for myself, it's the one gift that truly never misses for the pickiest fragrance lover or hard-to-shop-for friend.
The $98 sampler might look like an overpriced cute pouch filled with 20 tiny perfume vials at first glance, but it can legitimately save you money if you use it wisely. You get a curated set of sample-sized perfumes, plus a voucher to redeem a free full-size bottle of your favorite. That's where you have to get savvy:
The retail prices of the featured fragrances range from $78 to $128, and the voucher can save you up to $30 on a standard size perfume—but only if you redeem it on the right one. My advice? To get the most out of the voucher, use it on perfumes that retail for $98 or more. Because I'm here to help, here are the perfumes that'll get you the most bang for your buck:
- Juliette Has a Gun Miami Shake Eau de Parfum ( $115): our go-to summer scent
- Kayali Vanilla | 28 Eau de Parfum ($100): our favorite vanilla perfume
- Prada Beauty Paradoxe Eau de Parfum ($110)
- Rabanne Million Gold For Her Eau de Parfum ($98)
- Burberry Her Eau de Parfum Intense ($118): an intense fragrance for our 'beast mode' era
- Carolina Herrera Good Girl Blush Eau de Parfum Intense ($102)
- Gucci Flora Gorgeous Gardenia Eau de Parfum ($111): a classic floral we adore
- Tom Ford Café Rose Eau de Parfum ($125)
- Valentino Donna Born in Roma Eau de Parfum ($110): an editor favorite and go-to date scent
- Versace Bright Crystal Absolu Eau de Parfum ($128)
- Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb L'eau de Parfum ($105): an editor loved 'i smell pretty' scent
- Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium Eau de Parfum ($99): a Cosmo-editor deemed iconic scent
If you happen to like a fragrance that retails for less than $98, buy it with your own money rather than using the voucher, otherwise it would end up being a loss.
The Holiday Perfume Sampler isn't the only sampler gift with a redeemable voucher that you can snag from Sephora Favorites. The Next Big Thing Sampler Set features indie and up-and-coming brands like Skylar, Henry Rose, and Glossier—perfect for those who want something niche.
For a more curated collection, the Holiday Deluxe Perfume Sampler Set includes seven display-worthy, deluxe-size perfumes. There's also a cologne version for the men in your life, featuring Yves Saint Laurent Y Eau de Parfum, Tom Ford Ombre Leather Eau de Parfum, Rabanne Million Gold Eau de Parfum Intense, and more.
If all of those are out of budget, Sephora Favorites also has two affordable samplers for just under $40 that come with a voucher for a 10 ml. travel-sized perfume: The Holiday Travel Spray Perfume Sampler Set features this year's most popular and bestselling scents, while the Box of Treats Mini Samper Set specifically highlights gourmand scents for anyone who wants to smell edible.
The Best Sephora Favorites Fragrance Sampler Sets
Anvita Reddy (she/her) is a Commerce Editor at Hearst Magazines. She contributes commerce content across Hearst’s portfolio, including Elle, Harper's Baazar, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Country Living, Cosmopolitan, House Beautiful, and more. She has over four years of experience in the commerce space, including writing detailed first-person product reviews, trend and best-of round-ups, deals and sales coverage, and more. Previously, she was an assistant editor for PS Shopping, covering beauty, home and kitchen, fashion, tech, travel, wellness, and lifestyle. In her free time, you can find her catching up on everything from reality TV to reruns of classic sitcoms, testing out viral beauty products, sharpening her cooking skills, working out, or traveling.
