{"id":606111629618,"title":"Temu Review: Garbage Quality or Legit?","created_at":"2023-08-21T23:51:07-04:00","body_html":"\u003cscript type=\"application\/ld+json\"\u003e\/\/ \u003c![CDATA[\n{\n \"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n \"@type\": \"Article\",\n \"headline\": \"Temu Review: Garbage Quality or Legit?\",\n \"keywords\": \"temu, temu review, temu reviews, is temu legit, what is temu, is temu safe, temu legit, is temu a scam, is temu real\",\n \"description\": \"Our research team analyzes health products sold on Temu to give our take on whether they're safe and effective or if they're a waste of money. We compare the cost of products on Temu to other platforms, and explain why Temu was sued in December of 2022.\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/illuminatelabs.org\/blogs\/health\/temu-review\",\n\"author\": {\n \"@type\": \"Person\",\n \"name\": \"Calloway Cook\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/illuminatelabs.org\/pages\/calloway-cook\",\n \"sameAs\": \"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/calloway-cook\/\",\n \"jobTitle\": \"President\",\n \"knowsAbout\": \"entrepreneurship, dietary supplements, herbal supplements, eCommerce, medical research\",\n \"alumniOf\": {\n \"@type\": \"EducationalOrganization\",\n \"name\": \"S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University\"\n },\n \"memberOf\": {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Illuminate Labs\"\n }\n},\n\"editor\": {\n \"@type\": \"Person\",\n \"name\": \"Auren Weinberg\",\n \"honorificSuffix\": \"M.D.\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/illuminatelabs.org\/pages\/auren-weinberg\",\n \"sameAs\": \"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/aurenweinberg\/\",\n \"jobTitle\": \"Medical Reviewer\",\n \"knowsAbout\": \"pharmaceutical medication, medicine, OTC drugs, medical research, clinical trials, generic drugs, branded drugs, dietary supplements, chemistry, health, wellness, healthcare\",\n \"alumniOf\": {\n \"@type\": \"EducationalOrganization\",\n \"name\": [\n \"Haverford College\",\n \"University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry\",\n \"Fox School of Business at Temple University\"\n ]\n },\n \"memberOf\": {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Illuminate Labs\"\n }\n},\n\"image\": {\n\"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\"url\": \"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0047\/1524\/9737\/files\/Temu_Thumbnail.png?v=1692676556\",\n\"width\": \"1300\",\n\"height\": \"1300\"\n},\n\"citation\": [\n\"https:\/\/www.walmart.com\/ip\/Kirk-s-Fragrance-Free-Gentile-Castile-Soap-4-ct-pack\/1445652645?fulfillmentIntent=Shipping\u0026athbdg=L1600\u0026from=\/search\",\n\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4976416\/\",\n\"https:\/\/www.technologyreview.com\/2023\/07\/26\/1076719\/shein-temu-ultra-fast-fashion\/\"\n],\n\"mentions\": [{\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Amazon\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Walmart\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Thing\",\n \"name\": \"soap\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"AnYi Beauty\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"Eelhoe\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Thing\",\n \"name\": \"Vitamin E\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"TFG Vlogs\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"Prymrr\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"Shein\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Brand\",\n \"name\": \"MIT Technology Review\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"CNBC\"\n }\n],\n\"datePublished\": \"2023-08-21\",\n\"copyrightHolder\": {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Illuminate Labs\"\n},\n\"publisher\": {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Illuminate Labs\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/illuminatelabs.org\/\",\n \"description\": \"Illuminate Labs is the most transparent supplement company in the U.S., and is a leading publisher of research-based health information.\",\n \"knowsAbout\": \"supplements, science, nutrition, exercise, health, medication, pharmaceutical, wellness, diet, weight loss, medical research\",\n \"publishingPrinciples\": \"https:\/\/illuminatelabs.org\/pages\/editorial-guidelines\",\n \"memberOf\": [\n {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"U.S. Chamber of Commerce\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.uschamber.com\/\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Certified B Corp\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.bcorporation.net\/en-us\/\"\n },\n {\n \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n \"name\": \"Natural Products Association\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/www.npanational.org\/\"\n }\n ], \n \"logo\": {\n \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n \"url\": \"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0047\/1524\/9737\/files\/Illuminate_Labs_Favicon_48x48_7595c3cc-e27b-47b8-a4fe-edcc7ed9b29a.png?v=1666502785\", \n \"width\": 48,\n \"height\": 48\n},\n \"foundingDate\": \"2019-01-30\",\n \"sameAs\": [\n \"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/illuminatelabs\",\n \"https:\/\/twitter.com\/illuminatelabs\",\n \"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/illuminate-labs-supplements\",\n \"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCpgSJAsIPb-fZ25djtTxBEA\"\n ]\n }\n}\n\/\/ ]]\u003e\u003c\/script\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cimg src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0047\/1524\/9737\/files\/Temu_Review_Article_Header_Image_Optimized.png?v=1692676200\" alt=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"dc\"\u003eT\u003c\/span\u003eemu is one of the fastest-growing smartphone apps in the US, and offers a wide range of items for incredibly cheap prices. Products are shipped directly from Chinese warehouses, and the brand even offers free returns to compete with Amazon.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBut is Temu a great site for value finds, or is the quality as low as the prices? How do Temu products compare to products at other retailers like Walmart? How do real Temu customers rate and describe their experience? And why was the company sued?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIn this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more as we analyze the ingredients and specs in several Temu products to give our take on whether the marketplace is worth using, or if it’s a waste of money. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWe’ll compare products on Temu to products on Walmart, feature unsponsored Temu customer reviews and explain why the company was recently sued.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 style=\"text-align: center;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eIs Temu Low-Quality?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWe’re a health publisher so our quality analysis will focus on health products sold by Temu.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWe figure that the standard of quality found in one category of Temu products is likely to be similar to others.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe best-selling personal care product on Temu at the time of publishing this article is a turmeric soap from the AnYi Beauty brand, which retails for $2.69:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Temu turmeric soap\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0047\/1524\/9737\/files\/Temu_Turmeric_Soap_Optimized.png?v=1692676293\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eNo ingredients are currently listed anywhere on the product page, which is a consumer health and safety issue.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWithout knowing what ingredients are in a cosmetic product, it’s impossible to determine whether or not it’s likely to be safe and effective.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnd nearly $3 isn’t even particularly cheap for a soap bar weighing two ounces (oz). \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eKirk’s sells a fragrance-free soap \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.walmart.com\/ip\/Kirk-s-Fragrance-Free-Gentile-Castile-Soap-4-ct-pack\/1445652645?fulfillmentIntent=Shipping\u0026amp;athbdg=L1600\u0026amp;from=\/search\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.walmart.com\/ip\/Kirk-s-Fragrance-Free-Gentile-Castile-Soap-4-ct-pack\/1445652645?fulfillmentIntent=Shipping\u0026amp;athbdg=L1600\u0026amp;from=\/search\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eon Walmart\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e with clean and non-toxic ingredients that costs $4.97 for a 4-pack, or $1.24 per bottle.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eKirk’s soap bars are 4 oz each, making them around 5x cheaper per-ounce than the popular brand sold on Temu.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eTemu’s next-best-selling cosmetic product is branded as a sunscreen, moisturizer and bronzer all in one. It’s from a brand called Eelhoe and only costs $2.97, which is significantly cheaper than most sunscreens in the US market:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cimg alt=\"Temu sunscreen\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0047\/1524\/9737\/files\/Temu_Sunscreen_Bronzer_Optimized.png?v=1692676315\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe brand does publish some of its active ingredients in the product listing, but not the full ingredient list.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhat’s confusing is that none of the active ingredients are active sunscreen ingredients\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e, which are typically “physical” blockers like zinc oxide or “chemical” blockers like avobenzone.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eVitamin E\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e may help protect the skin from the sun according to a 2016 \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4976416\/\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4976416\/\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003emedical review\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e, but this vitamin is very rarely used as a standalone active ingredient in a sunscreen, and we haven’t seen any clinical research that it can provide full protection from the sun in humans.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eOverall, we’re unimpressed by the two health and beauty products we reviewed on Temu, and we recommend that consumers be extremely cautious when purchasing cosmetics that fail to provide an ingredient list.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eBut how do real users rate and describe the product quality from Temu? We’ll feature unsponsored customer reviews in the next section of this article.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 style=\"text-align: center;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eReal People Rate Temu\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eA YouTube creator named “TFG Vlogs” purchased $1,000 worth of products on Temu and shares his thoughts on whether the brand is a scam, in a video with over 500,000 views:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/wiafcoYeDLI\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eA YouTube creator named “Prymrr” did a try-on haul with Temu clothing:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/O1chJHzSqxM\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWhy Was Temu Sued?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eConsumers who are interested in Temu may have heard that the brand was recently sued.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnother fast fashion brand called Shein sued Temu in December of 2022 over allegations that Temu was intentionally misleading consumers into believing the companies were one and the same, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.technologyreview.com\/2023\/07\/26\/1076719\/shein-temu-ultra-fast-fashion\/\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.technologyreview.com\/2023\/07\/26\/1076719\/shein-temu-ultra-fast-fashion\/\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eaccording to\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e MIT Technology Review.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe above-linked article states that Temu was allegedly using the copyrighted term “Shein” in their paid advertising, selling products copyrighted by Shein and maintaining social media accounts with the “Shein” wordmark.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe good news for consumers is that this lawsuit is related to marketing and not product quality, so it doesn’t raise any red flags about safety when shopping from Temu.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eBut how did Temu blow up seemingly overnight to become the most-downloaded app in the US? We’ll feature a YouTube video uncovering that history in the next section of this article.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eTemu’s Overnight Success Story\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eA YouTube video published by CNBC explains how Temu makes money while selling products for such cheap prices:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/quGoGgbP-aE\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 style=\"text-align: center;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ePros and Cons of Temu\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eHere are the pros and cons of Temu in our opinion:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ePros:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eExtremely cheap\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eApp experience is fun and gamified\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eFree returns within 90 days\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eCons:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eProducts not required to publish materials\/ingredient lists\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eQuestionable effectiveness of Temu health products\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eSome online customer reviews suggest fake products\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eConcerns over data security\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 style=\"text-align: center;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cb data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eConclusion\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eTemu appears to offer significantly cheaper products than Amazon and Walmart on average, although not every product sold on the marketplace is cheaper.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eOne of the best-selling cosmetic products, a turmeric soap, is actually much more expensive than equivalent products we identified on Walmart.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWe don’t understand why anyone would buy cosmetic products without an ingredient label, because without knowing the ingredients, it’s impossible to determine safety and efficacy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eBoth of the cosmetic products sold on Temu that we reviewed in this article failed to publish complete ingredient lists.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWe do not currently recommend purchasing health products from Temu, and we hope that the brand requires its sellers to publish ingredient lists in the future, since this is such an important consumer safety issue.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eSome of the online customer reviews we came across while researching this article suggest that Temu products may not arrive as advertised.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","blog_id":49281925193,"author":"Calloway Cook","user_id":26601750601,"published_at":"2023-08-21T23:54:11-04:00","updated_at":"2023-09-03T11:05:18-04:00","summary_html":"We analyze health products sold on Temu to give our take on whether they're safe and effective or if they're a waste of money. We compare the cost of products on Temu to other platforms, and explain why Temu was sued in December of 2022.","template_suffix":"","handle":"temu-review","tags":"_related:personal-care-products"}

Temu Review: Garbage Quality or Legit?

Temu Review: Garbage Quality or Legit?


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Temu is one of the fastest-growing smartphone apps in the US, and offers a wide range of items for incredibly cheap prices. Products are shipped directly from Chinese warehouses, and the brand even offers free returns to compete with Amazon.

But is Temu a great site for value finds, or is the quality as low as the prices? How do Temu products compare to products at other retailers like Walmart? How do real Temu customers rate and describe their experience? And why was the company sued?

In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more as we analyze the ingredients and specs in several Temu products to give our take on whether the marketplace is worth using, or if it’s a waste of money. 

We’ll compare products on Temu to products on Walmart, feature unsponsored Temu customer reviews and explain why the company was recently sued.

Is Temu Low-Quality?

We’re a health publisher so our quality analysis will focus on health products sold by Temu.

We figure that the standard of quality found in one category of Temu products is likely to be similar to others.

The best-selling personal care product on Temu at the time of publishing this article is a turmeric soap from the AnYi Beauty brand, which retails for $2.69:

Temu turmeric soap

No ingredients are currently listed anywhere on the product page, which is a consumer health and safety issue.

Without knowing what ingredients are in a cosmetic product, it’s impossible to determine whether or not it’s likely to be safe and effective.

And nearly $3 isn’t even particularly cheap for a soap bar weighing two ounces (oz). 

Kirk’s sells a fragrance-free soap on Walmart with clean and non-toxic ingredients that costs $4.97 for a 4-pack, or $1.24 per bottle.

Kirk’s soap bars are 4 oz each, making them around 5x cheaper per-ounce than the popular brand sold on Temu.

Temu’s next-best-selling cosmetic product is branded as a sunscreen, moisturizer and bronzer all in one. It’s from a brand called Eelhoe and only costs $2.97, which is significantly cheaper than most sunscreens in the US market:

Temu sunscreen

The brand does publish some of its active ingredients in the product listing, but not the full ingredient list.

What’s confusing is that none of the active ingredients are active sunscreen ingredients, which are typically “physical” blockers like zinc oxide or “chemical” blockers like avobenzone.

Vitamin E may help protect the skin from the sun according to a 2016 medical review, but this vitamin is very rarely used as a standalone active ingredient in a sunscreen, and we haven’t seen any clinical research that it can provide full protection from the sun in humans.

Overall, we’re unimpressed by the two health and beauty products we reviewed on Temu, and we recommend that consumers be extremely cautious when purchasing cosmetics that fail to provide an ingredient list.

But how do real users rate and describe the product quality from Temu? We’ll feature unsponsored customer reviews in the next section of this article.

Real People Rate Temu

A YouTube creator named “TFG Vlogs” purchased $1,000 worth of products on Temu and shares his thoughts on whether the brand is a scam, in a video with over 500,000 views:

A YouTube creator named “Prymrr” did a try-on haul with Temu clothing:

Why Was Temu Sued?

Consumers who are interested in Temu may have heard that the brand was recently sued.

Another fast fashion brand called Shein sued Temu in December of 2022 over allegations that Temu was intentionally misleading consumers into believing the companies were one and the same, according to MIT Technology Review.

The above-linked article states that Temu was allegedly using the copyrighted term “Shein” in their paid advertising, selling products copyrighted by Shein and maintaining social media accounts with the “Shein” wordmark.

The good news for consumers is that this lawsuit is related to marketing and not product quality, so it doesn’t raise any red flags about safety when shopping from Temu.

But how did Temu blow up seemingly overnight to become the most-downloaded app in the US? We’ll feature a YouTube video uncovering that history in the next section of this article.

Temu’s Overnight Success Story

A YouTube video published by CNBC explains how Temu makes money while selling products for such cheap prices:

Pros and Cons of Temu

Here are the pros and cons of Temu in our opinion:

Pros:

  • Extremely cheap
  • App experience is fun and gamified
  • Free returns within 90 days

Cons:

  • Products not required to publish materials/ingredient lists
  • Questionable effectiveness of Temu health products
  • Some online customer reviews suggest fake products
  • Concerns over data security
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Conclusion

Temu appears to offer significantly cheaper products than Amazon and Walmart on average, although not every product sold on the marketplace is cheaper.

One of the best-selling cosmetic products, a turmeric soap, is actually much more expensive than equivalent products we identified on Walmart.

We don’t understand why anyone would buy cosmetic products without an ingredient label, because without knowing the ingredients, it’s impossible to determine safety and efficacy.

Both of the cosmetic products sold on Temu that we reviewed in this article failed to publish complete ingredient lists.

We do not currently recommend purchasing health products from Temu, and we hope that the brand requires its sellers to publish ingredient lists in the future, since this is such an important consumer safety issue.

Some of the online customer reviews we came across while researching this article suggest that Temu products may not arrive as advertised.




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