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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing Rachael Parnell found out a supermarket was offering a new skincare range that appeared akin to items from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

Rachael hurried to her nearest outlet to pick up the store-brand face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 of the Augustinus Bader 50ml product.

Its streamlined blue tube and gold lid of each creams look noticeably similar. And though she has not used the luxury cream, she says she's pleased by the dupe so far.

She has been buying skincare dupes from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for some time, and she's in good company.

More than a 25% of UK shoppers state they've bought a skincare or makeup alternative. This rises to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, according to a recent survey.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate well-known brands and present budget-friendly options to high-end products. They frequently have comparable branding and containers, but sometimes the formulas can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Isn't Always Better'

Skincare professionals say many substitutes to high-end brands are decent quality and assist make beauty routines less expensive.

"I don't think higher-priced is invariably superior," says skin specialist a doctor. "Not all budget product line is bad - and not every luxury skincare product is the finest."

"A number of [dupes] are absolutely amazing," says a skincare commentator, who presents a show with celebrities.

Numerous of the items based on high-end brands "disappear so quickly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor another professional believes alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

"Dupes will be effective," he explains. "These items will do the fundamentals to a acceptable degree."

A consultant dermatologist, advises you can save money when seeking simple-formula items like HA, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"When you're purchasing a simple product then you're probably going to be alright in opting for a dupe or a product which is fairly affordable because there's not much that can be problematic," she says.

'Don't Be Influenced by the Container'

Yet the professionals also suggest buyers check details and note that more expensive items are sometimes worth the additional cost.

Regarding luxury beauty products, you're not only paying for the brand and advertising - often the increased price also is due to the components and their quality, the potency of the effective element, the research utilized to develop the product, and trials into the products' efficacy, she says.

Facialist another professional says it's worth thinking about how some dupes can be priced so inexpensively.

Sometimes, she states they could have less effective components that lack as many advantages for the skin, or the materials might not be as carefully selected.

"One big uncertainty is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Podcast host McGlynn notes sometimes he's bought skincare items that appear comparable to a established brand but the item has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Don't be sold by the container," he cautioned.

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Regarding potent products or ones with ingredients that can irritate the complexion if they're not formulated properly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist advises sticking to research-backed companies.

The expert says these probably have been through costly trials to determine how successful they are.

Skincare items must be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, notes skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

If the brand makes claims about the efficacy of the item, it needs evidence to support it, "however the brand does not necessarily have to perform the testing" and can alternatively use evidence completed by different firms, she clarifies.

Examine the Ingredients List of the Pack

Are there any ingredients that could signal a item is inferior?

Ingredients on the label of the bottle are listed by concentration. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up