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Rachael Parnell

After discovering a consumer heard a discounter was selling a new skincare range that seemed comparable to offerings from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

She dashed to her closest store to buy the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml item.

The streamlined blue container and gold top of each products look noticeably comparable. And though Rachael has never tried the premium cream, she says she's satisfied by the alternative so far.

She has been using lookalike products from popular shops and supermarkets for a long time, and she's not alone.

More than a quarter of UK buyers say they've tried a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This jumps to nearly half among younger adults, based on a February survey.

Lookalikes are skincare products that imitate well-known brands and offer budget-friendly options to luxury items. These products often have alike labels and design, but in some cases the formulas can vary considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Superior'

Beauty professionals argue many alternatives to luxury brands are good quality and aid make skincare less expensive.

"It is not true that more expensive is invariably superior," states skin specialist a doctor. "Not all budget product line is inferior - and not every high-end skincare product is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are truly impressive," says a podcast host, who runs a show featuring public figures.

Many of the products based on luxury labels "run out so rapidly, it's just crazy," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist Ross Perry believes alternatives are fine to use for "simple routines" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"These products will be effective," he says. "These items will perform the essentials to a reasonable level."

Another skin doctor, advises you can save money when you're looking for single-ingredient items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a simple item then you're likely going to be alright in opting for a dupe or a product which is fairly low cost because there's minimal that can cause issues," she adds.

'Don't Be Sold by the Container'

But the professionals also advise buyers check details and note that higher-priced items are occasionally worth the extra money.

Regarding luxury beauty products, you're not just paying for the brand and promotion - at times the increased cost also stems from the components and their quality, the strength of the active ingredient, the research utilized to develop the product, and trials into the item's efficacy, she explains.

Beauty expert another professional says it's worth questioning how some alternatives can be priced so at a low cost.

In some cases, she says they may have filler ingredients that lack as many positive effects for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as carefully selected.

"The big question mark is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she remarks.

Expert McGlynn admits sometimes he's bought beauty products that look similar to a big-name brand but the product itself has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Do not be sold by the outer appearance," he added.

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Regarding more complicated products or those with ingredients that can inflame the complexion if they're not formulated correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, she advises sticking to research-backed labels.

The expert says these typically have been through comprehensive studies to evaluate how effective they are.

Skincare items need to be evaluated before they can be sold in the UK, says expert another professional.

When the label states about the effectiveness of the product, it needs data to support it, "however the seller does not always have to perform the testing" and can alternatively cite studies completed by different firms, she says.

Examine the Back of the Pack

Is there any components that could signal a product is poor?

Ingredients on the list of the bottle are ordered by amount. "Ingredients to avoid that you should look out for… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up