Is it actually cheaper to use international shipping for my Summer Fridays Iced Coffee obsession in Taiwan?

The Iced Coffee Craze

I was scrolling through TikTok recently and noticed my feed was absolutely dominated by one specific product: the Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm in Iced Coffee. It seems like every creator in Taiwan is showcasing this specific neutral brown tint. While I love the aesthetic, I found myself questioning why the local availability was so limited and why the prices I saw on local marketplaces were nearly double the original retail cost.

Estimate Shipping For Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm (Iced Coffee)

Price(US $) *

Weight(KG) *

Ship To Afghanistan Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, The Democratic Republic of the Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curaçao Cyprus Czechia Côte d'Ivoire Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island North Korea North Macedonia Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine, State of Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin (French part) Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Sint Maarten (Dutch part) Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Sweden Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Türkiye Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States United States Minor Outlying Islands Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Åland Islands

Email

Create an account with your email & receive 15% OFF shipping coupon!

Get a Quote

Buy It For Me

I started looking for top us deals on the us trends page to see if this was just a local phenomenon. It turns out, this shade is a global sensation, but the price markup in Taiwan is particularly steep. That led me to wonder if I could just bypass the middleman and buy it directly from the source.

Local Prices Versus US Sephora

My research showed that buying from a US store like Sephora often costs about $24 USD. However, local resellers in Taipei are often listing the same tube for over $1,500 TWD. Even with the cost of international shipping, the math started looking very interesting. I realized that if I grouped my beauty haul together, I could save a significant amount of money.

I decided to check a shipping calculator to see if my theory held weight. By using the estimate shipping cost tool, I saw that adding a small, lightweight item like a lip balm to a larger package barely changed the total price. This is when I started planning my first major 2026 beauty haul directly from the United States.

Shipping Estimates and Logistics

When I ship beauty products, I always look at the physical specs to avoid surprises. Here is what I found for the Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm:

How I Ship to Taiwan

Since Sephora US does not always ship directly to Taiwan, I had to find a reliable freight forwarder. I ended up choosing comGateway because they provided me with a tax-free us address in Oregon. This meant I didn't have to pay US sales tax on my purchase, which saved me another 7-10% right off the top.

The process was much simpler than I expected. I followed a how it works step-by-step guide which explained how to enter my new US address at the Sephora checkout. Once the package arrived at the warehouse, I was notified and could choose my preferred international shipping service to get it to my door in Taiwan.

If you are worried about the complexity, using a parcel forwarding service really simplifies the experience. They handle the logistics of getting the package from the US warehouse to your international destination, often using reliable carriers like DHL or FedEx.

Taiwan Import Tax Considerations

One thing I always keep in mind when shopping from the US is the import tax regulations in Taiwan. As of 2026, the de minimis threshold is still something to watch. If my total shipment value (including shipping) stays under $2,000 TWD, I usually avoid duties. I also make sure my EZ WAY app is updated and my real-name authentication is ready so the freight forwarder can clear my package through customs without delays.

I have found that even if I go slightly over the limit and have to pay a small import tax, the total cost for the Summer Fridays Iced Coffee balm and a few other Sephora exclusives is still lower than what I would pay to local resellers. Plus, I have the peace of mind knowing the product is 100% authentic and fresh from the store.

By using a shop us ship international strategy, I no longer feel limited by what is stocked on local shelves. My vanity is now full of the latest 2026 trends without the massive local markup.