Best beauty advent calendars for 2024, from Harvey Nichols to Harrods

It’s fair to say the Harvey Nichols beauty advent calendar is one of our firm favourites, and the 2024 offering looks impressive. Worth more than £1,000, there are 42 products hidden inside the 25-day countdown, including goodies from Charlotte Tilbury, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Le Labo, La Prairie, Sisley and Fenty. What’s more, for added festive excitement, within one in every 100 calendars, a £250 Harvey Nichols will be hidden inside.

The brand hasn’t veered far from its usual design of a treasure chest and we’d really have liked to see a greater variation and indeed a 24- or 25-day calendar from the brand. But newcomers and fans of Charlotte Tilbury will appreciate the full-size and mini versions of some of the cult favourites. Standouts include a travel-sized version of the airbrush flawless filter (£20, Charlottetilbury.com), which is one of our favourite setting sprays, and the beauty light wand in pinkgasm (£30, Charlottetilbury.com).

Japanese brand Shiseido is making sure your skincare stash is well and truly supercharged in the lead-up to Christmas with its advent calendar. There are 24 products on offer, including its vital perfection uplifting and firming advanced cream, which is said to be an anti-ageing powerhouse, and its purifying scrub mask that gently exfoliates and minimises the appearance of pores. But it also includes a number of make-up favourites too. This really would make a wonderful gift for you or a loved one.

The 12-day hair and body care advent calendar will set you back £99, but it has an overall worth of £310. The countdown is packed full of hair and body favourites, with highlights including a full-size Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 68 mist, Gisou honey infused hair perfume and a £20 voucher for Drybar. It offers the perfect way to sample some of the best brands in the business.

Renowned for its brow products, cult mascaras, and fan-favourite bronzers, Benefit Cosmetics is a favourite – so much so our writer Daisy reviewed the brand’s best make-up products.

The 2024 calendar will not disappoint, with full-sized versions of its signature badgal bang mascara (£27, Benefitcosmetics.com), the brow setter (£26, Benefitcosmetics.com) and the porefessional face primer (£32, Benefitcosmetics.com). But you’ll also find mini versions of the hoola matte bronzer and precisely, my brow pencil.

Read the full Benefit beauty advent calendar review now

The Boots multi-brand advent calendar for 2024 is a hit of the store’s beauty hall roster. Worth nearly £400, yet costing £99, it contains some of the retailer’s bestsellers – think products from Drunk Elephant, Nars, Ren, Laura Mercier, Sol de Janeiro, Fenty and No7. In the calendar, you’ll be treated to 24 products, one for each day of your Christmas countdown, spanning make-up (think bronzers, eyeshadow sticks and blushes), skincare and haircare. At less than £100, it’s among the most affordable multi-brand offerings.

Read the full Boots beauty advent calendar review now

Clarins has delivered big for 2024. The 24-day calendar costs £155 and includes some of our all-time favourites from the brand, such as the beauty flash balm (which is a leave-on chemical peel) and lip oil. The 12-day calendar (costing £95) includes the aforementioned hero products, as well as two mascaras and its exfoliating cleanser. Both offer a great way to try some of the brand’s most popular products or replenish your stock if you’re already a fan.

Once again, the beauty brand is offering a super luxe Christmas countdown. The 12-day countdown is full of bestsellers, think a full-size extra plump lip serum (£25.60, Bobbibrown.co.uk), smokey eye mascara (£24.80, Bobbibrown.co.uk) and a shadow stick in golden bronze (£23.60, Bobbibrown.co.uk), as well as deluxe and mini products. A great pick for make-up lovers.

Mac’s gift of gold advent calendar for 2024 is packed with a mix of products old and new, from the much loved ‘studio’ collection to a gen-Z-approved lip plumper and clear brow gel. The packaging is very glamorous, so much so that it almost doubles as a chic Christmas decoration. Plus, the number of full-size products – a whopping 18 – is impressive. As far as the type of products you’ll get, formulas range from powder eyeshadows to liquid lipsticks, plus some skincare to sample, too. Whether you plan to open the boxes day by day in the December festive lead-up, or you’re thinking of using the whole thing as one big ‘gift of gold,’ you know the lucky recipient will be chuffed with its contents.

Read the full Mac beauty advent calendar review now

If you’re looking to level up your wellness this festive season turn to no other than Espa’s beauty advent calendar. The 25-day countdown includes some of our favourite products from the brand, including miniature versions of the optimal skin pro-cleanser (£32 for full-size, Lookfantastic.com) and the energising bath and body oil (£36 for full-size, Lookfantastic.com). Of course, you’ll also find one of the brand’s festive candles to enjoy in the lead-up to the big day.

Read the full Espa beauty advent calendar review now

The White Company advent calendar is as much a treat for your mum as it is for your twenty-something sister, and it’s no surprise with its selection of bath, body and fragrance gifts. This year, it boasts three products exclusive to the calendar, as well as a whopping 22 items never before included in the brand’s countdown-to-Christmas. Think a full-size pomegranate-scented candle (£22, Thewhitecompany.com), a Seychelles shower gel (£13, Thewhitecompany.com) and, of course, all things The White Company winter, aka our favourite aroma.

With its bold packaging, this advent calendar is a feast for the eyes. As you’d expect, the Kiehl’s beauty advent calendar for 2024 is full to the brim of skincare surprises. If you’re looking for a sneak preview (of course you are), you can expect to unwrap a midnight recovery concentrate, ultra facial overnight rehydrating mask with 10.5 per cent squalane, rare earth deep pore cleansing mask and so much more. Each product will help make sure that your skin is as glowy as possible for Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebrations.

If you’re looking for an affordable beauty advent calendar, Revolution’s 24-day festive countdown should not be overlooked. Packaged in a pink sparkly box, there is a whole host of make-up products up for grabs – everything from a mini lip oil to a beauty blender will see you down from 1 December. This would make the perfect gift for the tween in your life.

OK, this one is for serious skincare fanatics: Augustinus Bader has launched its first-ever advent calendar for 2024. Hot on the back of the brand-new concealer launch in collaboration with Victoria Beckham, this skincare-packed calendar is perfect if you’re looking for something super special.

Offering the perfect way to sample some of the brand’s best products, including the rich cream, the retinol serum and the tinted balm, we’re particularly excited about this one.

It’s a British classic and its packaging is beautiful as ever, with Jo Malone’s 2024 advent calendar offering a decadent mix of the scents we all know and love – think: pomegranate noir, English pear and freesia, and some new winter exclusives. It’s a premium product, as always, but boasts enough heavenly fragranced gifts to keep you and your home smelling luxurious well into 2025. Don’t miss out on an oud and bergamot cologne intense (£24, Jomalone.co.uk) or a wood sage and sea salt body crème (£26, Jomalone.co.uk) this December.

Acqua di Parma’s calendar is a sight to behold. Staying true to the branding, it’s bold and beautiful, and it contains a selection of perfumes, candles, and bathroom essentials, think soaps and body lotions. A decadent and luxurious treat that will make a lovely festive treat.

If it’s fragrances and candles you’re after, turn to the Jo Loves advent calendar, which is home to a whole host of goodies, including a free 100ml Jo Loves fragrance of your choice (which comes in the form of an “exclusive ski pass” that you can redeem), four different-smelling candles and a range of hand creams and washes.

Rituals has released not one, not two, but three advent calendars for 2024, plus an additional grooming-specific 12-day bundle (£103, Rituals.com) with all things shaving and caffeine shampoo. As for the classic (£91.90, Rituals.com), deluxe (£114.90, Rituals.com) and premium (£172, Rituals.com) calendars, shoppers can look forward to three gorgeously packaged, Dutch-inspired scenes, bursting full of your favourite shower gels, body lotions and even car air fresheners. There are formulas for home, body and face, meaning the countdown to December 25th has never smelt as luxurious.

If luxury is your main priority, then Dior’s beauty advent calendar could be the one for you. The design takes inspiration from French-style gardens and opens out to reveal gold detailing, including plants and a large sun. It’s safe to say it’s chic and won’t look out of place on your dressing table or mantlepiece. As for the contents though, you’ll be greeted with 24 miniatures across make-up (think Dior addict lip maximizer in shade 001 pink, Diorshow eyeshadow and a mascara) fragrance (Miss Dior eau de parfum and Dior j’adore eau de parfum) and even a candle. It will make for a showstopping gift.

Sustainable beauty brand Susanne Kaufmann is one to know if you’re looking for clean yet effective skincare. The design is fun and festive, but not overly so, with the brand encouraging you to refill and reuse it year after year. Packed full of some of its cult classics, including a purifying cleansing gel, glow mask and mineral body lotion. Delivering a daily dose of luxe skincare, fans of the brand are bound to be excited by this one.

Luxury skincare brand Eve Lom made its first foray into the beauty advent calendar world last year, and its 2024 Christmas countdown looks just as impressive. Opening out to reveal 12 number doors, the calendar features some of the brand’s most coveted products, including a cleanser, retinol serum, eye cream and a moisture mask. If you’re yet to try any products from the luxury brand, this offers the perfect way to dip your toe in – you won’t regret it.

Nuxe is a firm favourite – having landed a spot in our reviews of the best lip balms and cleansing oils – so if you too love its reliable products, its advent calendar is well worth considering. Offering your body a daily dose of TLC in the lead-up to Christmas, hidden behind each door is one of its bestsellers, including the brand’s body oils – huile prodigieuse – rêve de miel lip moisturising stick, face balm and so much more. This will make a lovely gift for a loved one, or indeed yourself.

British department store Fenwick is once again bringing you 12 days of beauty, and you’ll want to get your hands on it. Much like the other multi-brand Christmas countdowns in this list, it offers the perfect introduction to a whole host of luxe brands. While you will get to sample more products if you opt for one from the Harvey Nichols calendar, the contents in Fenwick’s are considered and well thought through. There are 18 treats hidden inside, with highlights including Augustinus Bader the rich cream, Vida Glow’s radiance capsules (which promise to improve skin brightness – something we can all do with during the festive party season) and Nars afterglow lip balm in laguna.