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iHerb

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2.7

Overall Score

Author: Kaitlyn Short

LAST UPDATED: February 22nd, 2022

iHerb carries one of the largest selections of natural supplements, home, and personal care products, and even pet care products in the world. It has two distribution centers, in Kentucky and California, each offering real-time stock information. iHerb has been certified by NSF International as a Good Manufacturing Practices facility.

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The Good

  • Large Variety of Products
  • Ratings on Products
  • Promotions and Shipping Rates

Large Variety of Products

iHerb.com has over 35,000 products from more than 1,000 brands. Products include the following categories: Supplements, Vitamins, Herbs, Beauty Products, Skin Care, Grocery, Kids & Babies, Sports, and Pets. Each of these categories has several subcategories to help you narrow down your product search. Each subcategory features several products to match your specific search criteria. For added convenience, the website can be browsed in six languages: English, Japanese, Russian, Chinese, Korean, and Spanish. The iHerb app gives customers easy access to their shopping needs. Customers can even find vitamins and supplements that provide digestive care, along with other sleep aids and gummy vitamin products.

Ratings on Products

The individual product pages feature star ratings so you can see how previous customers liked the product. There is also a section at the bottom of the page with additional product information, including description, suggested uses, warnings, supplement facts and ingredients. The iHerb website also includes product specifications such as shipping weight, product code, UPC code, package quantity, dimensions, and expiration dates.

Promotions and Shipping Rates

iHerb's online store features a promotional discount, as well as a link that will take you to a full list of all the current promotions and sales. iHerb offers rewards through a referral program, known as iHerb Rewards. When you sign up, you'll receive a discount on your first order and a referral code to share with friends and family. When they shop at iHerb and use the code they'll receive discounts as well. The company also offers a variety of delivery service options for your iHerb order. International shipping rates are available on the iHerb website.

  • Expedited 1-5 Day - Free shipping for orders over $20.00 regardless of weight, anywhere in the contiguous United States.
  • Expedited 2-Day - Free shipping for orders over $60.00 anywhere in the contiguous United States.
  • UPS Next-Day, Economy - Special: Flat $8.00 fee for the first 8 pounds, anywhere in the contiguous United States.
  • UPS Next-Day, Expedited - Flat $12.00 fee for the first 12 pounds, anywhere in the contiguous United States.
  • Priority or First Class Airmail - 20 lbs, maximum. This shipping method is limited to orders that have a value of $80.00 or less and weigh less than 20 pounds.
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The Bad

  • Reports of Mishandled Items and Issues

Reports of Mishandled Items and Issues

Although iHerb is known to be cheaper than most options it is known to cut costs in important areas. There is a common complaint with how customer service handles consumer issues. Customers often experience misplaced packages or receive the wrong item. The return policy can also be tricky to navigate. The Better Business Bureau® gives this company an F and has received tons of complaints against the company.

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The Bottom Line

iHerb offers a user-friendly website as well as an app for on the go access. It offers ample information on each product for an informed decision. iHerb reviews fall short of excellence based on customer experience. Many consumers have found that working with iHerb's customer service representatives, along with the iHerb guidelines, can be frustrating and overwhelming. While iHerb is known for its vast selection of natural supplements, herbs, and other products for your home, customer service is key to a successful brand.

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Star Rating

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2.0

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88 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

20%

4 grade

2%

3 grade

1%

2 grade

5%

1 grade

72%

Sentiment Criteria

Value

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Quality

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Service

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Trustworthiness

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Jivabill Ferndale, CA

Been a customer of iHerb since 2006. Mostly, not always, have had good service and good prices. I see that is changing now. Things are going down hill. Usually I get excellent service, fast delivery like 2 or 3 days. So that is the good side, when it works. the Bad is what is happening now. They have put up a new log insecurity system. After you log in with User and Password you get a block of photos you have to choose from. Fire hydrants, buses, crosswalks, something like that. Being a long time computer professional I know what that block of images is supposed to do, eliminate Bots logging in automatically. What I am finding now however is I complete one block of images then I am given another photos of something different. And some of the photos are distant from the desired item you are looking for. Easy to make an error. Sometimes I make an error. Then I get like THREE more blocks of images that I have to pick thru. I have had it take 10 minutes or more to log in. Sometimes I have made no errors and still get 3, 4 or even 5 blocks of images. This is ridiculous. On the very first block of images the Bots are eliminated. That is all that is needed. I personally think the IT people at iHerb have gone over the edge and don't really know how to run a security checking operation. Because I can't log in without a long ordeal I now do most of my supplement shopping with another supplier, Vitacost. So far they have been quick on delivery and accurate. There is no "loyalty reward" and shipping is only free if I buy more than $50. However in my last order Vitacost prices on one of my favorite product were $3 less than iHerb. My time is worth money so I just pay for shipping, only $4.99. Gets here in 2 days by Ontrac. I am sorry to see this happening to iHerb, they used to be very good and supported good causes. Their CHAT and Customer Service in the past were both good. Not now. I get simple minded fixes for problems, boilerplate replies that don't help. If I complain about their over zealous log in security they scold me. I have been in the Computer business longer than most of them have been alive. I forgot more yesterday than iHerb staff will learn in the next 150 years. So they have lost my business after nearly 14 years.

7 years ago

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M.Brophy Hialeah, FL

I have been a customer with i-herb for many years. While I have never had an order not arrive, I have had items damaged in shipping. I have encountered some rudeness and nonchalance from some of the phone staff in the past. I would caution customers to check prices on other sites. I have found some items for quite a bit less elsewhere with free shipping. One thing that really annoys me and that I have written to i-herb several times about is the rewards program. I prefer to get a discount for quantity ordered. A points system would be a better deal for those who are not comfortable trying to be cheap sales people with friends and family. Right from the start of the rewards I took issue with it, but i herb doesn't listen to customers suggestions, unfortunately. I think they have become so big now that concern for individual customers have taken a back seat. My rating is poor, but if you'd asked me some years ago, I would have given a 9. I still order from the company for certain items but I do not order all of them when I can get them less expensively with another company. thank you.

10 years ago

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Lynda Malerstein Portland, OR

My first order went smoothly. When I tried to order again there was something wrong with their web site and I couldn't check out. They have no customer service phone number. I live chatted and sent email about the problem with the web site. They kept insisting it was my fault and had me clear cache, use another search engine, restart. For several days I couldn't place the order. I finally gave up and ordered from another web site and had no problem. I will never order from Iherb again.

7 years ago

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John Stewart

I bought from Iherb for about 8 years. This is a good company AS LONG AS EVERYTHING WORKS OK. If you have a problem then you go to hell, AKA customer service. For some reason DHL would not ship my parcel and returned it to Iherb. After 4 weeks of not being told why (Iherb kept saying they would consult their DHL team) I ended up having to pay 30% of the order. Don't even try to deal with the Marketing managers office. They are off in La La land. Iherb has become too big to care.

10 years ago