Sam K.

I'm just following-up my 1st review of iHerb (it's UK site: uk.iherb.com) with a summary of my experiences over the past year, which totals about 10 orders. Since my first tentative but very positive use of the site in Aug 2015, I have had only wholly positive transactions. I cannot fault the site and I've saved loads of money shopping with them, as a UK customer. I'm so glad I bothered to take a calculated risk and realised that (most of) the negative reviews were due to people not doing their homework and ignoring the customs guidance which is quite clearly stated on every order summary page. I cannot overemphasise how easy and positive my experience has been. IHerb are my first port of call for supplement orders.

All you need to do to be successful is a bit of straight-forward calculating to ensure you are getting a better price from iHerb after the custom charge (20%) and the handling charge (c£8 for normal sized orders) - very simple to estimate! - than you would ordering it at a more expensive base price from a local retailer.

***
Calculate the price! - As a UK customer, you may be charged 20% of the value of your order in import duty/customs tax. You may also be charged a flat £8 handling fee. That's all you have to work out!

So, when once everything you want to order is in your basket, look at the total cost (including delivery, but after any discounts) and add 20%. Simplest way is to multiply the total in £ by 1.2. Then add £8 to this. If that figure is less than you would spend ordering from elsewhere, you're quids in. It is rare that I can beat iHerb for price. Occasionally, for some reason, I haven't been charged the extras. I don't know if customs have slipped up on these occasions or what, but I just never received a charge notification. In these cases my order was just delivered, no extra charges... and so was ridiculously cheap!

As a rough example, a £35 order with £5 postage (so £40 total) would incur £8 VAT & £8 handing, so £16. When I used DHL, they pay the charge on our behalf to keep the order moving & sent me a link (via email & text) to where I could pay the charge online... then the package was delivered. Super easy.

Also, my referral code (you will get one too, to give to others) will get you $10 off: it's SPM026.
***

Excellent value - Roughly, if I order £50 worth of goods form iHerb I tend to end up saving anywhere between £20-£30 compared to the "UK price" (i. E. buying from Amazon). Obviously this depends on the particular products and prices at the time, but it's a decent discount without being so ridiculous that you start suspecting something! Over time it really adds up and makes it worth the effort of some simple sums.

Delivery - exceptionally quick. Items from iHerb often arrive quicker than those coming from within the UK! It really is unbelievable. This is true having tried both the DHL and the Global Mail delivery options. It really is quick.

Item quality - items have always been exactly as advertised, sealed, and in prime condition. I have never had any mistakes or missing or damaged items in about 10 orders I've placed.

Customer service - I can't comment on customer services, as all my transactions have been really smooth and never needed to contact them. The website is clear and easy to navigate and most of the products have really in depth information (i. E. great pictures of their labels etc).

---
If you are placing an order, you can get $10 off using the code SPM026. This is my referral code: everyone get a code when they create an account and if it's used it gives you a small kickback as well as giving someone else a discount! If anyone would like to use it SPM026 will be much appreciated this end!

Honestly, if the prices work out better on iHerb, give them a go. From my experience it's been easy, straightforward and provide top quality products for a really decent price discount. Can't fault them at all!