If you’ve ever found yourself frantically searching for a pad or tampon after getting hit with a surprise visit from your monthly cycle, you’re not alone. We’ve been there and have experienced just about every nightmarish scenario possible, from scrounging around in the dark after ruining a clean set of sheets to waddling back from a public bathroom with a makeshift pad between our legs. To prevent this from happening again, we've compiled a list of period subscription boxes so you can get the things you need as you need them.
From over-the-top boxes filled with extras and fancy add-ons to no-frills basics, here are seven of the best period subscription boxes on the market. Read on to find the perfect option for you and your cycle, and avoid dealing with an impromptu run to the drug store ever again.
The 7 Best Period Subscription Boxes of 2021
- Best Bang for Your Buck: Lola
- Best Overall: Lady Box
- Best for Cramping: Red Moon
- Best for Variety: Cora
- Best Tampon Alternative: Flex
- Best for Customization: The Period Store
- Best for Basics and Beauty: Rael
1. Best Bang for Your Buck: Lola
About the Subscription: Lola is on a mission to provide its customers with all-natural, toxin-free, eco-friendly feminine products, including menstrual cups, tampons, pads, and liners. Lola also offers a variety of bundles, kits, and guides including a First Period Guide and a Sexual Wellness Kit. This period supply subscription service is also fighting to end the tampon tax. In 2019, Lola joined forces with Period Equity, an organization of lawyers who are dedicated to fighting for menstrual equity.
What You Get: With Lola, customers can mix and match items (from cotton feminine care products to lube to all-natural condoms) to customize their subscription based on their individual needs. You can choose from a one-time purchase or quarterly subscription.
The Cost: Prices start at $22.50
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2. Best Overall: Lady Box
Image via Lady Box.
About the Subscription: After dealing with years of heavy and unbearably painful periods that left her scrambling to get emergency supplies, Aljolynn Sperber founded Lady Box — an organic period self-care subscription box that’s stocked with basic period supplies (tampons, pads, and panty liners) in addition to a few specialty comfort items to make subscribers feel appreciated and loved during their cycle.
“I just wanted a way for menstruators to have things delivered, but with a special touch,” Sperber said in an interview with Vibe Coworks. “More than just the essentials, more of a care package. You deserve this, you’ll feel better, we got you—that’s the mantra.”
What You Get: Lady Box gives potential customers six subscription options to choose from, including Mini Lady Box, Basic Needs Lady Box, Just the Goodies, Pampered AF Lady Box, Lil’ Lady Box, and Trimester Kits. Each box gives subscribers the option to add extra goodies or “Lady Bits” to their box. Subscribers can also choose to make a one-time purchase or a monthly subscription (which includes a discount). Choose from a one-time purchase or monthly subscription (three months, six months, or 12 months) to best suit your needs.
The Cost: Prices start at $19.
3. Best for Cramping: Red Moon
Image via Red Moon.
About the Subscription: Red Moon is changing how we view menstruation one organic CBD-infused cotton pad at a time. The founder, Alison Ferrell, created Red Moon in hopes of helping others like her (and myself!) who are struggling with endometriosis—a chronic, inflammatory condition in which endometrial-like tissue grows outside of the uterus.
“After years of struggling with endometriosis and so many exams I can’t even count them, I decided to take my uterus into my own hands,” Ferrell writes. “CBD has helped calm my pains and anxieties now I can share that with all of you in a new and exciting way.”
What You Get: Red Moon gives potential customers the option to make a one-time purchase or monthly subscription of Relief Pads, Organic Cotton Tampons, or the Relief Pads Bundle. Red Moon's Relief Pads are infused with GOTS certified organic Turkish cotton and 10mg of 100 percent pure CBD isolate. All of Red Moon’s products are biodegradable, eco-friendly, hypoallergenic, and free of dyes and chemicals. Choose from a one-time purchase or monthly subscription to best suit your needs.
The Cost: Prices start at $7.20
4. Best for Variety: Cora
Image via Cora.
About the Subscription: Cora is on a mission to provide both its customers and individuals in need with environmentally friendly, customizable period and bladder control products. For each subscription sold, Cora donates one month’s supply of sustainable period products to a young individual in need. So far, the company has donated 1,000,000 pads to women and girls around the world.
“While the taboos around periods are a serious social burden around the world, I think that women have actually been waiting for a brand like Cora that is celebrating bodies by breaking down barriers and providing modern options for managing their periods,” Cora founder, Molly Hayward said in an interview with The Good Trade.
What You Get: Cora has a variety of period and bladder products to choose from, including Organic Cotton Tampons, Organic Cotton Applicator Free Tampons, Organic Cotton Topsheet Pads, Overnight Maxi Pads, Period Liners, Period Underwear, Cora Cup, Cora Disc, and Bladder Liners. Each subscription comes with a faux leather clutch or chic storage case. Choose from a one-time purchase or a quarterly subscription.
The Cost: Prices start at $9.50.
5. Best Tampon Alternative: Flex
Image via Flex.
About the Subscription: Flex is on a mission to reinvent how we think about our period by encouraging shameless dialogue and providing customers with an eco-friendly, zero-waste tampon alternative. Flex also provides expert education to its readers via the Fornix blog.
“Don’t blame your body,” writes Flex founder and CEO, Lauren Wang. “For generations, we’ve accepted that our period weeks should be uncomfortable. It’s time to change the status quo.”
What You Get: Flex offers customers the option to subscribe to the Flex Disc Starter Kit which comes in three absorbency-based subscription options. Flex also gives its customers the option to make a one-time purchase of the Flex Cup or the Cup Starter Bundle, which includes two discs, foaming cup wash, and two packs of biodegradable wipes.
The Cost: Prices start at $12.99
6. Best for Customization: The Period Store
Image via The Period Store.
About the Subscription: The Period Store gives customers the option to completely customize their subscription box, right down to the brand of feminine products (which includes unique and eco-friendly options like sponges and reusable pads).
What You Get: With The Period Store, the subscription items are up to the subscribers. Choose the same items each month, or switch it up! The Period Store carries a variety of products, including fun add-ons like jewelry, totes, mirrors, and more.
The Cost: Prices start at $15.
Sign up for The Period Store here.
7. Best for Basics and Beauty: Rael
Image via Rael.
About the Subscription: Rael sees period care as self-care and offers a variety of products that cater to every part of our body, from the face to the vulva. In addition to offering a wide range of eco-friendly skincare and period products, Rael donates menstrual hygiene kits to collection programs across the globe.
According to the Rael website, Binna Won, Yanghee Paik, and Aness An “started Rael to empower women to have healthier relationships with their periods with clean, effective solutions that support her throughout her cycle and life.”
What You Get: Rael gives customers an automatic 10% discount when they subscribe to receive Rael products on a monthly basis. What's more: the subscription box is completely customizable, so it can include anything from a hydrating mask to period underwear.
The Cost: Prices start at $18.
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FAQs
Still have questions? We have answers. Take a look below to see a few of the most frequently asked questions (and the answers!) about period subscription boxes.
What are period subscription boxes?
A period subscription box is exactly what it sounds like: a carefully curated box or bag of essentials (including pads, tampons, a menstrual cup, etc.) to help you get through your menstrual cycle with ease. This package is usually delivered to your door each month but will depend on the products you choose.
Who should use period subscription boxes?
Anyone who menstruates can benefit from a period subscription box. But, you’ll have to decide if the cost is worth it. To do this, tally up how much you spend on your cycle each month. If it’s less than what you see here (or in your own research), you may want to stick to buying things a la carte. If you spend more than the prices listed above, you may decide that a period subscription box is the way to go! In the end, it’s totally up to you.
How much do period subscription boxes cost?
Obviously, the cost will vary depending on the type of box you receive. The frequency in which you receive said box will also be a key factor when it comes to price. But, in general, period subscriptions can range from $5 to $50 per month (of course, there are a few that will be more, but this is a general estimate).
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