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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing one shopper found out a discounter was launching a recent product collection that seemed similar to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

She dashed to her closest shop to pick up the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml cream.

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

She has been buying skincare dupes from mainstream retailers and supermarkets for a long time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a quarter of UK shoppers say they've tried a skincare or makeup lookalike. This increases to 44 percent among millennials and Gen Z, as per a recent survey.

Lookalikes are beauty items that mimic established brands and provide cost-effective alternatives to high-end items. They frequently have alike branding and containers, but in some cases the formulas can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Isn't Necessarily Better'

Skincare experts say many alternatives to premium labels are reasonable standard and assist make beauty routines cheaper.

"It is not true that more expensive is always better," states dermatology expert one expert. "Not all low-budget product line is poor - and not all high-end skincare product is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are absolutely amazing," adds a skincare commentator, who hosts a podcast with famous people.

Many of the items inspired by luxury labels "sell out so rapidly, it's just unbelievable," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor Ross Perry thinks dupes are fine to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

"Alternatives will do the job," he says. "These items will perform the essentials to a satisfactory degree."

Another skin doctor, suggests you can cut costs when seeking single-ingredient items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a simple item then you're likely going to be alright in opting for a dupe or something which is very affordable because there's not much that can be problematic," she explains.

'Don't Be Swayed by the Container'

But the specialists also suggest buyers do their research and state that higher-priced products are occasionally worth the extra money.

Regarding luxury beauty products, you're not only paying for the label and marketing - often the increased cost also is due to the formula and their grade, the potency of the active ingredient, the science utilized to create the item, and trials into the item's effectiveness, she notes.

Skin therapist she suggests it's valuable thinking about how some dupes can be offered so at a low cost.

Occasionally, she believes they might contain bulking agents that don't have as many advantages for the skin, or the materials might not be as carefully selected.

"The major uncertainty is 'How is it so low-priced?'" she remarks.

Expert Scott admits on occasion he's purchased skincare items that appear comparable to a established brand but the product itself has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Do not be fooled by the outer appearance," he cautioned.

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Regarding advanced products or those with components that can aggravate the skin if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, she advises selecting medical-grade companies.

The expert says these probably have been through expensive tests to evaluate how successful they are.

Beauty products need to be evaluated before they can be sold in the UK, says skin doctor another professional.

If the company advertises about the performance of the product, it must have evidence to verify it, "but the seller doesn't necessarily have to do the testing" and can instead reference evidence completed by different brands, she clarifies.

Examine the Back of the Bottle

Is there any components that could indicate a item is low-quality?

Components on the label of the container are arranged by quantity. "Ingredients to avoid that you want to look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up