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Rachael Parnell

When one shopper found out a discounter was offering a fresh skincare range that looked comparable to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper dashed to her local store to purchase the supermarket face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml product.

Its streamlined blue packaging and gold lid of both items look strikingly comparable. While Rachael has not used the luxury cream, she claims she's pleased by the dupe so far.

She has been using lookalike products from mainstream retailers and supermarkets for years, and she's not alone.

Over a 25% of UK buyers report they've bought a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This rises to 44% among 18-34 year olds, based on a February study.

Dupes are skincare products that imitate well-known brands and provide budget-friendly substitutes to luxury items. They often have similar labels and design, but sometimes the ingredients can change considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Isn't Necessarily Superior'

Beauty professionals argue some alternatives to premium labels are reasonable quality and help make beauty routines less expensive.

"In my opinion more expensive is necessarily more effective," states consultant dermatologist a doctor. "Not every affordable product line is poor - and not all luxury beauty item is the best."

"Certain [dupes] are truly amazing," adds a skincare commentator, who hosts a program featuring famous people.

Many of the products inspired by high-end brands "disappear so rapidly, it's just unbelievable," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert a doctor believes dupes are fine to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

"Alternatives will be effective," he explains. "These items will handle the basics to a satisfactory level."

Another skin doctor, advises you can spend less when you're looking for single-ingredient products like HA, niacinamide and squalane.

"When you're buying a single-ingredient product then you're probably going to be alright in using a lookalike or something which is quite inexpensive because there's not much that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Container'

But the professionals also suggest shoppers investigate and say that costlier items are sometimes worth the premium price.

Regarding premium beauty products, you're not only paying for the brand and advertising - often the elevated price tag also comes from the formula and their quality, the strength of the active ingredient, the science used to develop the product, and trials into the item's effectiveness, Dr Belmo says.

Facialist another professional says it's valuable considering how certain alternatives can be priced so at a low cost.

Occasionally, she says they may contain filler ingredients that do not provide as numerous positive effects for the complexion, or the materials might not be as high-quality.

"One major question mark is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Commentator McGlynn says in some cases he's purchased beauty products that appear comparable to a big-name brand but the product itself has "little similarity to the premium version".

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

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For more complicated products or those with ingredients that can inflame the complexion if they're not created accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate advises selecting research-backed labels.

She explains these probably have been through comprehensive tests to determine how successful they are.

Skincare products are required to be tested before they can be marketed in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist another professional.

If the brand makes claims about the effectiveness of the item, it needs research to support it, "but the brand doesn't necessarily have to conduct the trials" and can alternatively reference evidence done by other companies, she clarifies.

Read the Back of the Pack

Is there any ingredients that could signal a item is low-quality?

Components on the label of the container are ordered by concentration. "The baddies that you should be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up