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Rachael Parnell

After discovering a consumer found out a supermarket was selling a fresh skincare range that appeared similar to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

She rushed to her nearest shop to buy the supermarket face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 cost of the Augustinus Bader 50ml cream.

Its smooth blue tube and gold cap of the two items look strikingly comparable. Although Rachael has never tried the luxury cream, she says she's pleased by the dupe so far.

She has been purchasing lookalike products from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for some time, and she's not alone.

Over a 25% of UK shoppers report they've tried a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to nearly half among younger adults, as per a recently published poll.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate established companies and provide budget-friendly alternatives to premium items. These products often have alike branding and containers, but in some cases the components can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Isn't Always Better'

Skincare specialists say many dupes to luxury brands are good standard and assist make skincare less expensive.

"I don't think costlier is invariably more effective," states dermatology expert one expert. "Not all budget product line is poor - and not every premium beauty item is the top."

"Certain [dupes] are really amazing," adds Scott McGlynn, who hosts a podcast with famous people.

Many of the items inspired by luxury brands "sell out so quickly, it's just insane," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert a doctor argues dupes are suitable to use for "simple routines" like hydrators and cleansers.

"Alternatives will serve a purpose," he says. "These items will do the essentials to a satisfactory standard."

Another skin doctor, thinks you can spend less when searching for simple-formula items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a single-ingredient item then you're likely going to be okay in using a dupe or something which is quite low cost because there's minimal that can cause issues," she adds.

'Don't Be Influenced by the Box'

However the specialists also recommend buyers investigate and note that costlier items are occasionally worthy of the premium price.

With high-end beauty products, you're not only funding the name and promotion - at times the elevated price also stems from the formula and their grade, the strength of the effective element, the technology utilized to create the item, and studies into the item's effectiveness, the expert explains.

Skin therapist another professional argues it's worth questioning how some alternatives can be priced so cheaply.

Occasionally, she believes they might have less effective components that don't have as significant advantages for the skin, or the components might not be as high-quality.

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

Expert Scott notes sometimes he's bought beauty products that look comparable to a well-known brand but the item has "no resemblance to the luxury product".

"Do not be sold by the packaging," he added.

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Regarding potent items or ones with ingredients that can aggravate the skin if they're not made correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist advises using research-backed companies.

She states these will likely have been subjected to comprehensive studies to assess how efficacious they are.

Beauty products must be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, says expert Emma Wedgeworth.

When the label states about the performance of the product, it requires data to back it up, "but the seller doesn't always have to conduct the trials" and can instead use evidence done by other brands, she says.

Check the Label of the Container

Is there any components that could signal a item is inferior?

Ingredients on the list of the container are ordered by quantity. "Potential irritants that you need to be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up