Shopportunist readers share their subscription box service experiences:

I have tried Ipsy, Birchbox and Love with Food. It’s always fun to get a package in the mail and even better to be able to try out items you wouldn’t normally purchase. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) through Ipsy and Birchbox, I received beauty samples more quickly than I could try them so I suspended my account.

—MM

I really liked Birchbox but I couldn’t use the samples quick enough so I didn’t renew it. Now I have a

stockpile which I still enjoy perusing... Tried Hello Fresh. Forget it. I thought I could throw the ingredients in a pan. There were way too many steps for this girl. Overall I really enjoyed getting these in the mail and trying them out. They are the perfect gift idea particularly when you don’t know what to get someone.

—Allison

Dollar Shave Club is a good one - not expensive and the products could be used by men and women.

—Jen R

I particularly like to try meal plan boxes. I say “try” because most of the time I do a single one before canceling. They offer such good prices to get that first box it is totally

worth the 18 bucks to try three different meals for 2 people. I have also tried Graze snack boxes (for completely free), Harry’s Razors and Dollar Shave Club (both for way less than you could buy razors in store for).

—CRL

I’ve tried several of the beauty ones but unsubscribe after a few months for a few reasons. They often send wacky colors of lipsticks or eyeliners and while some may enjoy trying these out, I was stuck with a bunch of things I would never use. My favorite box out of all that I tried was Boxycharm. It’s a little more expensive ($20-ish per month) but each of the products are full size!

—Laurencm