LootCrate Review
At the end of December LootCrate was offering a pretty cool deal—allowing me to upgrade my one-month Black Friday purchased box, to a three-month box for roughly $30-something. I figured it was a fair enough price. The only boxes I’d gotten before were Fairyloot boxes and I was anxious to try something different and cheaper.
My first box was the January “Binge” box centered around TV shows (Black Mirror, Friends, Spongebob, and Futurama). I was excited for this because I’ve seen all but one of those shows and love them. I received my box on the 6th of February, which was fairly on time I think. I was surprised to see how small it was, but it wasn’t too expensive so I didn’t have a problem with that. Here is my unboxing video if you’d like to see what was inside:
Right now it is the 19th of March and I am still waiting for my February box—and as of tomorrow, I’ll be waiting for the March box. From what I’ve heard, boxes are supposed to start shipping on the 20th of each month. That rarely seems to be the case (though the March box is apparently on-time at the moment). I can’t help but think that the lateness is caused by the number of boxes they ship every month: 16 monthly, 11 bi-monthly, 3 quarterly, and 2 limited edition—as of today. How could they not be running late with 32+ different boxes to worry about every month?
Recently I actually bothered to read the reviews and they are bad. On trustpilot.com they have 1/5 stars with 376 reviews. Many of them talk of bad customer service, shady charges, and of course, their tardiness.
You may be wondering why I didn’t read reviews first. Right now, I’m wondering the same. But around the time LootCrate started becoming popular, I remember seeing a few YouTubers I watched reviewing—and endorsing—the product (I can’t remember who now). It sat in the back of my mind for quite some time, until I recently remembered it. I figured since there was a deal, I might as well check it out.
I am waiting until after my final crate arrives to post this review, mostly to ensure I get the product because my trust has definitely been lost. Rest assured, I will not be renewing my subscription—in fact, I’ve already canceled the next renewal.
Update: March 28th
I received the February “Transformation” box! On the 19th of March, it was delivered to my house. This particular box was bigger than the last—but not by much. Inside was an Alita pin, a Naruto cup, an Adventure Time shirt, an Autobot Defense Base, and an Incredible Hulk figurine. Out of these items, the only thing that I really like is the pin, which is now on my jacket. I also like the Hulk figurine, it’s pretty cool. I do wish the box had been clear to allow me to display it without taking it out of the box. While the rest of the items themselves are nice, they’re just not really things I’m all that interested in—which is obviously not their fault, or their problem, it’s to be expected with generalized sub boxes.
I’ve never really been a Naruto person—mostly because I’ve never really known much of it. The cup itself is nice enough and I will use it, the glass is great and firm but the image will probably come off over time (you can’t soak the cup or put it in the dishwasher—it’s more of a rinse after use situation).
The shirt is okay, but I was never really into Adventure Time. I’ve definitely seen episodes of it, but I didn’t regularly watch it. I will probably gift this item to my friend or cousin who did enjoy the show. There is also an Autobot Defense Base for Omega Supreme. Autobots aren’t my thing so I’m thinking this will be gifted as well.
I think when it comes to the general LootCrate, it’s hard to really know whether you’re going to receive things that are really catered to your interests. This is not their fault, I can’t imagine having a such a wide range of content you’re trying to cater to is really hard. That might be why they have so many different ones, which I kind of understand. I wonder if it might be better to have the option to pick the months you want to sign up for? Like if one month isn’t your jam, maybe you could skip it and get a different month later? I don’t know how that would work, but it’s an idea. (I’m not sure if they already have this, in which case: I’m sorry I didn’t know.)
But again, the issues with shipping are really hard to get past. A few days ago I checked up on the March Cosmic Box and it said March 31st shipping—now it says April 1st-5th shipping, which isn’t so late, but I expect to only get pushed back further. The lateness is “Due to unforeseen circumstances…” that are never mentioned but seem to happen monthly.
April 5th Update: The time has changed to the 5th-8th and according to the tracking button, the information (label?) has been sent to FedEx but nothing has actually shipped. I feel that it’s important to mention, today is Friday.
April 13th Update: It’s here! It’s here! It’s here! This might actually be my favorite of the ones I’ve received. It’s got some really cool stuff. This theme is Cosmic (which is already really cool).
On the info sheet, they said the coolest thing first—but I’m not going to do that so…First is the Cosmic Pin. I am so into pins at the moment and my jean jacket is getting them all. This one is so awesome and it glows in the dark. I love it. I’m so happy with it.
Next is the Cosmic Tee—which I think is randomized with each box. I got one for the 1999 Comedy Film Office Space. Fun fact: I was born in ’98. Another fun fact: I’ve not seen this movie. But that’s okay because it’s on Hulu and I’m going to watch it after I post this. The shirt is pretty cool so I’m okay with doing the legwork for it.
Then we have a Lost in Space Jupiter 2 Notebook. I love notebooks—or all stationary in general because it’s so fun to have. As a writer pocket-sized notebooks are perfect! The design is really cool and I’m happy with it.
There’s also an Alien Facehugger Face Towel. I’ve been in need of a face towel lately so this is perfectly timed—and who doesn’t want an alien to rub their face with? Also, it has a little wrist strap thing and I appreciate that.
FINALLY the best thing (and it’s bonus companion item) is the Captain Marvel 3D Comic Standee (and a mini movie poster). Do I even need to explain this one? It’s original it’s collectable and it’s Captain Marvel. (Only complaint, is again the lack of a windowed box, so I can’t see it unless it’s opened).
Okay so there’s been a ton to say about LootCrate and I think it’s time for me to wrap up my opinions and how I feel:
I definitely think this is a cool thing to get. You’ll get some well-planned items for a good price. As far as continuous subscriptions? I think it’s better (for me at least) to do one-off purchases. That way you can cater the boxes to your interests based on the monthly themes. (Or I suppose you could just get the specialized boxes?).
My biggest issue is still shipping. 2/3 of my boxes were late. Grade-wise that’s about a 66% —which at my university is an F. Generally, I try to be understanding with delays because I recognize that mistakes happen and things don’t always go as planned. But there are so many boxes and so many delays it does seem like things aren’t set up efficiently enough.
Due to my personal experience with it, I’m going to give it a 3/5. It’s a cool idea, pretty good prices, and interesting things—but overall I’m not as impressed as I thought I’d be. The only reason I went up to three at all is because of this last box. I like every item and am planning to use them all.
Anyway, that is my experience with LootCrate. I’m not overly thrilled but I suppose I should’ve done more research before-hand. Thank you so much for reading and I’ll see you again soon.
If there are any other things you want reviews for, let me know. Maybe I’ll give it a go.
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If you’re a book-lover, I HIGHLY
recommend FairyLoot. It is 100% worth the price and I’m still in love with it. I've gotten four of them and still want a million more. Here is my most recent unboxing for them:
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