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Rachael Parnell

When one shopper learned a discounter was launching a recent product collection that looked akin to products from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

The shopper hurried to her nearest store to buy the store-brand face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 of the high-end 50ml item.

The streamlined blue packaging and gold cap of each items look remarkably comparable. While she has not tested the premium cream, she states she's impressed by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been buying beauty alternatives from popular shops and supermarkets for a long time, and she's in good company.

Over a 25% of UK buyers report they've bought a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This increases to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, as per a recently published poll.

Alternatives are skincare products that imitate well-known brands and present affordable alternatives to premium items. They often have comparable labels and design, but occasionally the ingredients can change substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Necessarily Superior'

Skincare professionals contend certain alternatives to premium labels are decent standard and aid make skincare less expensive.

"I don't think more expensive is invariably more effective," comments dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not every budget skincare brand is bad - and not every high-end beauty item is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are truly impressive," notes Scott McGlynn, who hosts a program with celebrities.

Numerous of the products inspired by luxury brands "sell out so rapidly, it's just crazy," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert another professional believes alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and face washes.

"These products will serve a purpose," he comments. "They will handle the fundamentals to a satisfactory level."

Another skin doctor, thinks you can cut costs when seeking simple-formula products like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a simple product then you're probably going to be alright in opting for a lookalike or something which is quite low cost because there's not much that can cause issues," she says.

'Don't Be Influenced by the Box'

But the professionals also advise consumers investigate and say that costlier products are at times worth the premium price.

With luxury skincare, you're not only covering the brand and promotion - sometimes the higher price also stems from the formula and their grade, the strength of the effective element, the technology used to develop the item, and trials into the item's efficacy, Dr Belmo explains.

Beauty expert Rhian Truman suggests it's worth thinking about how some dupes can be priced so cheaply.

In some cases, she states they could contain bulking agents that do not provide as significant benefits for the skin, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

"The big question mark is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Expert Scott notes on occasion he's bought skincare items that look similar to a well-known brand but the item has "no connection to the luxury product".

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

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For advanced items or ones with components that can irritate the skin if they're not formulated correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, she suggests sticking to more specialised companies.

The expert states these probably have been through costly tests to assess how successful they are.

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

When the label makes claims about the efficacy of the item, it requires research to support it, "however the brand doesn't necessarily have to conduct the testing" and can alternatively cite studies conducted by different firms, she clarifies.

Read the Label of the Pack

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

Ingredients on the list of the bottle are arranged by amount. "The baddies that you want to look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up