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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell learned a supermarket was offering a new skincare range that seemed similar to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

The shopper hurried to her closest shop to pick up the store-brand face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml item.

Its sleek blue container and gold lid of each creams look strikingly similar. And though Rachael has not used the high-end cream, she states she's satisfied by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been purchasing beauty alternatives from high street stores and supermarkets for some time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a fourth of UK shoppers report they've bought a skincare or makeup lookalike. This increases to nearly half among younger adults, based on a February poll.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate established brands and present cost-effective alternatives to premium items. These products typically have alike names and packaging, but occasionally the formulas can change substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Superior'

Beauty professionals argue some substitutes to luxury labels are reasonable standard and help make beauty routines more affordable.

"It is not true that costlier is invariably more effective," states consultant dermatologist one expert. "Not every affordable product line is poor - and not all premium skincare product is the finest."

"Some [dupes] are absolutely excellent," says a skincare commentator, who runs a show with public figures.

Numerous of the products modeled on luxury labels "sell out so rapidly, it's just insane," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist another professional believes dupes are suitable to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and face washes.

"Dupes will be effective," he comments. "They will do the fundamentals to a acceptable level."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can spend less when searching for single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a simple product then you're likely going to be fine in opting for a budget alternative or something which is quite low cost because there's minimal that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Packaging'

But the specialists also recommend shoppers investigate and say that costlier products are sometimes worth the additional cost.

With high-end skincare, you're not just covering the name and marketing - often the elevated cost also is due to the formula and their standard, the strength of the active ingredient, the research used to produce the item, and tests into the item's efficacy, Dr Belmo explains.

Skin therapist Rhian Truman says it's important considering how certain alternatives can be sold so cheaply.

Occasionally, she believes they may have bulking agents that don't have as numerous advantages for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as well sourced.

"The key uncertainty is 'How is it so cheap?'" she remarks.

Expert Scott notes sometimes he's bought skincare items that look similar to a established brand but the actual formula has "little similarity to the original".

"Don't be convinced by the packaging," he cautioned.

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Regarding potent items or ones with ingredients that can irritate the complexion if they're not made correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C, the specialist recommends using more specialised companies.

She states these probably have been through costly tests to evaluate how effective they are.

Skincare items need to be assessed before they can be marketed in the UK, says consultant dermatologist another professional.

When the label makes claims about the efficacy of the product, it requires research to verify it, "but the brand does not necessarily have to do the trials" and can alternatively cite testing conducted by different brands, she says.

Read the Back of the Container

Are there any ingredients that could indicate a item is poor?

Components on the back of the tube are ordered by quantity. "Ingredients to avoid that you should be wary of… is your mineral oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up