How we work

How We Check Prices

Koriway’s price guides compare what a K-beauty product costs on Olive Young Korea’s website with what US stores charge for it, on a stated date. Treat each figure as a dated snapshot, not the price you will pay at checkout. This page explains where the numbers come from, how we compare them, what they leave out and how often we update them.

Where Korean prices come from

We read prices on Olive Young Korea’s website (oliveyoung.co.kr).
For each product we record the list price and the sale price, the date we read them in Korea time and, where we opened the product page, the sale dates.
Olive Young shows a “best price” (최적가, choe-jeok-ga) that includes its sale discount and can include a product coupon listed on the page. When a guide uses it, the guide says so.
Prices in physical stores can differ from the website. Unless a guide says otherwise, our Korean prices are online prices.

Where US prices come from

We read the list price, and any sale price shown that day, at US stores that sell the product, such as Olive Young US, Sephora, Ulta, Costco, Kohl’s or the brand’s own US site. Each guide names the stores it checked and says whether its percentages use US list prices or that day’s sale prices.
We do not quote Amazon prices, because they change often. Our Amazon affiliate links are marked “paid link”.
US prices are before sales tax and shipping.

How we compare

We compare the same product in the same size where we can. When the Korean listing is a bigger pack or a set, the guide says so, and some guides compare the price per tube, per millilitre or per gram instead.
We convert won to dollars at ₩1,350 per US dollar, a round rate set in October 2026 from a central-bank reference rate and used across Koriway. It is not a live rate. If the market rate is higher than ₩1,350, Korean prices cost a little less in dollars than we show; if it is lower, a little more. Card issuers add their own margin.
Korean value sets often include bonus minis or refills. We name the bonus, and we count it only where the guide says so.
A product sold under the same name can have a different formula in Korea and the US. Our price tables do not check this for every product; where we know of a difference, the guide says so, and some guides compare the Korean and US versions directly.

What the numbers leave out

Our figures leave out points, card discounts, the tourist tax refund, shipping, import charges and US sales tax. They also leave out member-only and app coupons, unless a guide says it uses Olive Young’s best price. Each of these can move the real price up or down, so treat our figures as a starting point.

Dates and updates

Every price guide shows the date the prices were read. If we recheck them later, the guide shows that date too.
We recheck US prices on the day a new price guide is published.
The K-Beauty Price Check is a dated snapshot; the heading above its table shows when it was last checked.
When a Korean sale ends, we update the guide or mark the prices as a record of that date.

What these guides are not

Koriway does not buy or test the products in its price guides. A price guide tells you where a product costs less. It does not tell you how the product performs. Where a guide summarises published Korean reviews, it says that it is a summary.

Some guides contain affiliate links. They do not change the prices we report. Read our Affiliate Disclosure.

Who does the work

AI tools read the store pages, record each price with its source page and the date, do the arithmetic and draft the guide. A separate AI review then checks the figures and wording against those sources before a new guide is published. Ari, the pen name of the Korean person behind Koriway, sets the direction and is responsible for what is published.

Found a mistake?

Prices change, and we sometimes get things wrong. Tell us through the Contact page and we will fix it. You can also read About Koriway.

Last updated November 11, 2026.