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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing Rachael Parnell found out a discounter was launching a recent skincare range that appeared similar to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

The shopper rushed to her closest shop to pick up the store-brand face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml item.

The sleek blue packaging and gold cap of both products look strikingly alike. And though she has never tried the luxury cream, she says she's impressed by the product so far.

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

Over a 25% of UK consumers report they've bought a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to 44% among millennials and Gen Z, as per a February poll.

Lookalikes are skincare products that imitate well-known labels and provide cost-effective options to luxury products. They typically have alike labels and design, but in some cases the ingredients can vary substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Always Better'

Skincare specialists say certain alternatives to high-end brands are decent quality and assist make beauty routines less expensive.

"It is not true that more expensive is necessarily more effective," comments dermatology expert one expert. "Not every low-budget skincare brand is bad - and not every luxury beauty item is the top."

"Certain [dupes] are absolutely excellent," adds a skincare commentator, who runs a program featuring famous people.

Numerous of the items based on high-end brands "run out so rapidly, it's just crazy," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert Ross Perry argues alternatives are fine to use for "simple routines" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"Dupes will serve a purpose," he comments. "These items will handle the essentials to a reasonable standard."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can spend less when searching for simple-formula products like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're probably going to be alright in using a lookalike or something which is quite low cost because there's not much that can go wrong," she says.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Packaging'

Yet the experts also recommend shoppers check details and state that costlier items are occasionally worthy of the extra money.

Regarding premium skincare, you're not just covering the label and advertising - sometimes the increased price also comes from the ingredients and their quality, the concentration of the key component, the science utilized to create the product, and studies into the products' performance, the expert notes.

Beauty expert another professional says it's worth considering how some dupes can be sold so inexpensively.

Occasionally, she states they may have less effective components that lack as numerous positive effects for the skin, or the components might not be as carefully selected.

"One big uncertainty is 'How is it so cheap?'" she remarks.

Podcast host Scott notes on occasion he's purchased skincare items that appear comparable to a well-known label but the item has "no connection to the luxury product".

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

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Regarding more complicated products or those with components that can inflame the skin if they're not created properly, such as retinols or vitamin C, Dr Bhate suggests selecting research-backed companies.

She says these probably have been subjected to expensive tests to evaluate how efficacious they are.

Beauty products need to be assessed before they can be available in the UK, explains expert another professional.

When the label states about the performance of the product, it requires data to back it up, "however the seller doesn't necessarily have to conduct the trials" and can instead reference testing done by different companies, she adds.

Check the Label of the Bottle

Are there any components that could suggest a product is poor?

Ingredients on the list of the tube are ordered by amount. "Potential irritants that you should look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up