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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing one shopper found out a supermarket was offering a new product collection that appeared comparable to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

The shopper rushed to her nearest store to purchase the supermarket face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml cream.

Its sleek blue packaging and gold lid of the two items look noticeably similar. Although she has never tried the high-end cream, she claims she's pleased by the alternative so far.

She has been purchasing beauty alternatives from high street stores and grocery stores for years, and she's not alone.

More than a 25% of UK shoppers say they've tried a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, according to a recently published survey.

Dupes are beauty items that copy established labels and provide affordable options to premium items. They typically have similar names and packaging, but sometimes the ingredients can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Isn't Always Superior'

Skincare professionals say certain dupes to luxury brands are decent standard and aid make skincare less expensive.

"In my opinion higher-priced is always more effective," states dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not all affordable beauty label is poor - and not all premium skincare product is the finest."

"A number of [dupes] are really excellent," adds Scott McGlynn, who presents a program featuring celebrities.

A lot of of the products modeled on high-end labels "disappear so quickly, it's just crazy," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist a doctor thinks alternatives are acceptable to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and face washes.

"Alternatives will serve a purpose," he explains. "These items will do the essentials to a acceptable degree."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can save money when seeking simple-formula products like HA, niacinamide and squalane.

"When you're buying a single-ingredient item then you're probably going to be okay in opting for a budget alternative or a product which is fairly affordable because there's minimal that can cause issues," she says.

'Don't Be Swayed by the Box'

But the specialists also advise buyers do their research and say that costlier products are at times worthy of the extra money.

Regarding premium beauty products, you're not just funding the brand and advertising - sometimes the higher cost also is due to the components and their standard, the concentration of the active ingredient, the technology used to produce the item, and tests into the item's efficacy, Dr Belmo says.

Facialist another professional says it's important questioning how some alternatives can be sold so at a low cost.

In some cases, she believes they might have less effective components that do not provide as many positive effects for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as well sourced.

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

Podcast host McGlynn notes in some cases he's purchased skincare items that appear comparable to a big-name brand but the product itself has "no connection to the premium version".

"Don't be fooled by the packaging," he added.

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Regarding more complicated items or those with components that can irritate the complexion if they're not made correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C, Dr Bhate advises using medical-grade brands.

The expert explains these probably have been through expensive studies to evaluate how successful they are.

Beauty products must be tested before they can be marketed in the UK, notes skin doctor another professional.

When the company advertises about the effectiveness of the item, it needs evidence to support it, "however the brand doesn't necessarily have to conduct the testing" and can instead cite studies completed by different brands, she adds.

Examine the Back of the Bottle

Are there any components that could indicate a product is low-quality?

Components on the list of the container are arranged by amount. "Potential irritants that you should look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up