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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell heard a supermarket was selling a recent skincare range that appeared akin to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

She hurried to her local store to buy the store-brand face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 cost of the luxury brand 50ml item.

Its streamlined blue tube and gold cap of both items look noticeably comparable. And though Rachael has not used the luxury cream, she states she's impressed by the product so far.

She has been buying skincare dupes from high street stores and grocery stores for years, and she's part of a trend.

Over a quarter of UK buyers state they've bought a skincare or makeup alternative. This rises to 44% among younger adults, according to a February poll.

Alternatives are beauty items that imitate well-known brands and offer cost-effective options to high-end items. They frequently have similar labels and design, but occasionally the components can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Better'

Skincare experts argue certain dupes to high-end brands are reasonable standard and help make skincare more affordable.

"In my opinion more expensive is invariably more effective," comments consultant dermatologist one expert. "Not all low-budget beauty label is poor - and not all premium skincare product is the top."

"Certain [dupes] are absolutely excellent," adds Scott McGlynn, who presents a podcast about famous people.

Many of the products modeled on high-end labels "run out so quickly, it's just crazy," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist Ross Perry believes alternatives are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like hydrators and cleansers.

"These products will be effective," he explains. "They will perform the basics to a reasonable level."

Another skin doctor, advises you can cut costs when you're looking for simple-formula products like HA, niacinamide and squalane.

"When you're purchasing a single-ingredient item then you're likely going to be fine in opting for a dupe or a product which is quite inexpensive because there's not much that can be problematic," she says.

'Don't Be Influenced by the Packaging'

Yet the professionals also recommend consumers do their research and note that more expensive products are at times worth the extra money.

Regarding high-end beauty products, you're not just covering the name and advertising - often the elevated cost also comes from the formula and their standard, the concentration of the active ingredient, the research utilized to develop the product, and tests into the products' effectiveness, she says.

Facialist Rhian Truman suggests it's worth considering how some dupes can be sold so cheaply.

Occasionally, she believes they could contain filler ingredients that lack as numerous advantages for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as high-quality.

"One big doubt is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she remarks.

Expert Scott says on occasion he's bought beauty products that appear similar to a big-name label but the product itself has "no resemblance to the premium version".

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

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For advanced items or those with ingredients that can inflame the complexion if they're not made properly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, she recommends using medical-grade labels.

The expert states these probably have been subjected to costly tests to assess how efficacious they are.

Beauty items are required to be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, explains skin doctor another professional.

If the brand advertises about the effectiveness of the product, it must have evidence to verify it, "however the manufacturer does not necessarily have to do the testing" and can alternatively reference testing completed by different firms, she adds.

Read the Ingredients List of the Container

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

Components on the label of the tube are listed by amount. "The baddies that you should look out for… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up