{"slug":"ulta-vs-cvs","question":"Ulta Beauty vs CVS","answer":"Ulta Beauty is a dedicated beauty retailer with 1,300+ stores offering 25,000+ products across 500+ brands, while CVS is a pharmacy chain with 9,600+ locations that carries beauty as a secondary category with ~2,000 beauty SKUs. Ulta caters to beauty enthusiasts seeking variety and expertise, while CVS serves convenience-focused shoppers combining pharmacy and beauty needs.","answer_curated":true,"verdict":"Choose Ulta Beauty if you're a beauty enthusiast seeking extensive product selection, expert consultations, premium brand access, and a specialized shopping experience with 500+ brands. Choose CVS if you prioritize convenience, want to combine pharmacy and beauty shopping, need accessible locations (9,600 vs 1,300), or prefer quick trips for drugstore beauty staples without the focus on prestige brands.","keyDifferences":[{"label":"Store Count (US)","winner":"b","entityAValue":"1,300+ locations","entityBValue":"9,600+ locations"},{"label":"Beauty Brand Selection","winner":"a","entityAValue":"500+ brands","entityBValue":"150+ brands"},{"label":"Beauty Product SKUs","winner":"a","entityAValue":"25,000+ products","entityBValue":"2,000 products"},{"label":"Loyalty Program Reward Rate","winner":"tie","entityAValue":"1.25% Ulta Rewards (all purchases)","entityBValue":"2% ExtraBucks (pharmacy items only)"},{"label":"Primary Business Focus","winner":"a","entityAValue":"Beauty only","entityBValue":"Pharmacy + convenience + beauty"}],"winner":{"slug":"cvs-pharmacy","name":"CVS Pharmacy"},"confidence":"high","entities":[{"name":"Ulta Beauty","slug":"ulta-beauty","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/entity/ulta-beauty","alternativesUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/alternatives/ulta-beauty"},{"name":"CVS Pharmacy","slug":"cvs-pharmacy","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/entity/cvs-pharmacy","alternativesUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/alternatives/cvs-pharmacy"}],"faqs":[{"question":"Does Ulta or CVS have better prices on beauty products?","answer":"CVS typically offers better prices on drugstore beauty brands (Maybelline, Revlon, CoverGirl) due to lower overhead. Ulta often has better prices on mid-range brands and frequently runs sales events. For premium brands, prices are comparable, but Ulta offers more exclusive access. Both chains price-match major competitors."},{"question":"Can I get professional beauty services at either retailer?","answer":"Ulta offers professional services including in-store makeovers, beauty consultations, and salon services (haircuts, color) at 400+ locations. CVS does not offer beauty services but provides pharmacy and minute clinic medical services at 1,100+ locations."},{"question":"Which has a better loyalty program?","answer":"Ulta Rewards offers 1.25% points on all purchases with no category restrictions, plus free birthday gifts and exclusive member sales. CVS ExtraBucks offers 2-3% on pharmacy purchases but typically only 1% on beauty items. For pure beauty shopping, Ulta's flat 1.25% is more straightforward; for combined pharmacy/beauty shopping, CVS can be competitive."}],"attribution":{"source":"A Versus B","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs","license":"CC BY 4.0","citationFormat":"According to A Versus B (https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs), Ulta Beauty is a dedicated beauty retailer with 1,300+ stores offering 25,000+ products across 500+ brands, while CVS is a pharmacy chain with 9,600+ locations that carries beauty as a secondary categ","dateModified":"2026-06-23T13:54:18.884Z"},"relatedQuestionsUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/faq/ulta-vs-cvs","relatedComparisonsUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/related/ulta-vs-cvs","knowledgeGraphUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/knowledge-graph/ulta-vs-cvs","claimReviewSchema":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ClaimReview","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs#claimreview","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs","inLanguage":"en-US","isAccessibleForFree":true,"conditionsOfAccess":"Free","claimReviewed":"Ulta Beauty vs CVS","reviewBody":"Ulta Beauty is a dedicated beauty retailer with 1,300+ stores offering 25,000+ products across 500+ brands, while CVS is a pharmacy chain with 9,600+ locations that carries beauty as a secondary category with ~2,000 beauty SKUs. Ulta caters to beauty enthusiasts seeking variety and expertise, while CVS serves convenience-focused shoppers combining pharmacy and beauty needs.","datePublished":"2026-06-23T13:54:18.822Z","dateModified":"2026-06-23T13:54:18.884Z","reviewRating":{"@type":"Rating","ratingValue":5,"worstRating":1,"bestRating":5,"alternateName":"High Confidence"},"author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/#organization","name":"A Versus B","url":"https://www.aversusb.net"},"itemReviewed":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/ulta-vs-cvs","name":"Ulta Beauty vs CVS","inLanguage":"en-US"}}}