Nothing says treating yourself like a haul of exciting new additions to your wardrobe; however, buying new clothes can be expensive and with online shopping being so convenient, spending money on clothes only seems natural. Things get especially pricey if clothes are purchased from popular brands for young adults like Urban Outfitters, PacSun and Brandy Melville. There are alternative options with similar styles for less money, but are they as good as the real deal?

SHEIN is a fast-fashion company based in China made popular in the late 2000’s due to its inexpensive versions of on-trend clothing directed toward young women and teenagers. After seeing multiple pop-up ads for the clothing company, I decided to investigate the site. Seconds after clicking onto the SHEIN homepage, I was astounded by all the low prices. Not only that, but I saw tons, and I mean pages upon pages, of clothing and accessories clearly modeled after a higher-end more mainstream version.

After browsing SHEIN’s inventory I couldn’t help but wonder if their stuff was legit. Most of the product reviews had five stars accompanied by overwhelmingly positive comments. There were also several consumer pictures that convinced me that SHEIN had some pretty solid options.

Brandy Melville is a very popular shop amongst young women. However, the company has received a great deal of backlash for their flawed one-size-fits-all approach because Brandy’s one-size-fits-all is actually just a standard American size extra small to small. Although Brandy’s clothing is moderately priced in comparison to some of its competitors, their clothing is still overpriced for its mediocre quality. Most of their clothing is made of thin cotton and many of its products are made from the same patterned fabric. Despite the poor quality, Brandy’s clothing is aesthetically pleasing and on-trend, giving the brand its appeal.

SHEIN has very similar looking clothes to Brandy Melville posted on its website for significantly less and in a variety of sizes. As a high school student who only really has a summer job, budgeting is everything. I can’t afford to keep blowing all my money on a polyester shirt every time one peaks my fancy. Wanting to see how SHEIN compared to Brandy Melville, I purchased three items (two tops and one necklace) from Brandy Melville and then three Brandy almost exact look-alikes from SHEIN.

I determined how the SHEIN versions held up to the more expensive Brandy Melville versions with the following criteria: how much it looked like the product’s picture online, how it fit, if it was comfortable and if I would actually wear it out of the house.

The first item I purchased from both stores was a white long-sleeved tee shirt with smocked bust detailing. Brandy Melville’s version, the “Charlize top,” is priced at $20 while SHEIN’s “Solid Ruched V-Neck Ribbed Tee” is half the price coming in at $10.

Brandy Melville:
– Identical to the picture
– Fit okay, the sleeves were a bit tight
– Somewhat comfortable
– Wouldn’t wear out of the house

SHEIN:
– Looked somewhat different from the picture
– Fit okay, but wasn’t very flattering and ran a bit long
– Was pretty comfortable
– Wouldn’t wear out of the house

While the two versions looked remarkably similar online, when the clothes actually arrived, the two looked pretty different from one another. The SHEIN version had a ribbed texture that the Brandy version did not, but it was only apparent up close. Unfortunately, I only deemed the SHEIN shirt “comfortable” because it was stretchy but the material sadly felt and looked similar to that of a swim shirt, so I wouldn’t willingly wear it in public. Even for white shirts, both tees were thin, not very flattering, and overly see-through, however wearing a camisole underneath both would allow for more coverage. Neither shirt was all that great, but the SHEIN version was more worth it at its price point considering it was half the price of the Brandy shirt.

The second round of shirts compared black long sleeve wrap shirts. Brandy Melville’s version, the “Coco Top,” was $23 while the SHEIN version, the “Plunging Tie Side Wrap Crop Top,” was $12.

Brandy Melville:
– Identical to the picture
– Fit nicely, good length
– Very Comfortable
– Would wear out of the house

SHEIN:
– Identical to the picture
– Fit nicely, but ran a bit short
– Very comfortable
– Would wear out of the house

Both versions arrived as expected and were similar to the product photos shown online. The shirts were almost identical. They were both very soft and stretchy material. The only problem I had with the SHEIN version was that it ran a bit short and sizing up would make it so that other parts wouldn’t have fit. Considering the two were so similar, the SHEIN version was much more worth it at its price point.

Lastly, I ordered two versions of a star choker necklace. The Brandy Melville version was called the “Gold Stars Charm Choker” for $7 and the SHEIN version was called the “Star Detail Choker Necklace” for $3.

Brandy Melville:
– Identical to the picture
– Good length
– Comfortable
– Would wear out of the house

SHEIN
– Almost identical to the picture
– Good length
– Comfortable
– Would wear out of the house

Both versions of the necklace arrived as expected and were similar to the product photos shown online. The only obvious difference between the two was the fact that the SHEIN necklace had more of a wavy chain than the Brandy version. The SHEIN version and also had gems in addition to the stars. The SHEIN choker was a bit more copper colored than it appeared online, but other than that it matched the photo. The SHEIN version was more worth it for only being three dollars and less than half the price of Brandy Melville’s version. However, I do prefer the more simplistic style that Brandy Melville sells.

Overall, SHEIN held up a lot better than expected. The products weren’t the best quality, but in all honesty, neither were Brandy Melville’s. However, for casual wear, the quality wasn’t too much of an issue for either brand. For how cheap the SHEIN’s versions were I’m surprised that they even came close to the more expensive options. In addition, SHEIN’s standard shipping was $3.99 whereas Brandy Meville’s shipping was $7.50, making Brandy even more expensive. SHEIN also regularly offers sales and discounts whereas Brandy Melville rarely has any sales. At the end of the day, it’s all about preference, but if you’re looking for cheap options that come in a variety of sizes, SHEIN isn’t a half-bad option.