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Rachael Parnell

After discovering a consumer heard a discounter was launching a new beauty line that seemed similar to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

She rushed to her nearest outlet to pick up the Lacura face cream for a low price for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 of the high-end 50ml item.

The sleek blue container and gold top of the two creams look noticeably comparable. Although she has not used the high-end cream, she claims she's pleased by the alternative so far.

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

Over a fourth of UK buyers report they've bought a skincare or makeup alternative. This increases to nearly half among millennials and Gen Z, based on a February poll.

Alternatives are skincare products that copy bigger name brands and present affordable alternatives to high-end items. These products frequently have similar branding and containers, but sometimes the ingredients can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Necessarily Better'

Beauty professionals say certain substitutes to premium labels are good standard and aid make skincare more affordable.

"I don't think more expensive is necessarily better," states dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not all low-budget product line is poor - and not all high-end beauty item is the finest."

"Some [dupes] are truly amazing," notes a podcast host, who presents a podcast with celebrities.

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

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert a doctor believes dupes are fine to use for "simple routines" like moisturisers and face washes.

"Dupes will be effective," he comments. "These items will perform the fundamentals to a reasonable level."

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

"When you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're likely going to be fine in opting for a lookalike or something which is fairly low cost because there's very little that can go wrong," she says.

'Don't Be Sold by the Box'

However the specialists also suggest buyers investigate and state that higher-priced products are sometimes worthy of the premium price.

With premium skincare, you're not just funding the name and advertising - at times the higher price also comes from the formula and their grade, the strength of the active ingredient, the science employed to create the item, and studies into the products' performance, she notes.

Skin therapist Rhian Truman says it's important considering how certain dupes can be sold so at a low cost.

In some cases, she believes they might include filler ingredients that don't have as many advantages for the complexion, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

"One key uncertainty is 'Why is it so low-priced?'" she remarks.

Expert Scott says sometimes he's purchased skincare items that look similar to a big-name label but the item has "no resemblance to the original".

"Don't be sold by the container," he warned.

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For potent items or those with ingredients that can aggravate the complexion if they're not created accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, she recommends sticking to research-backed labels.

The expert explains these will likely have been through comprehensive tests to determine how successful they are.

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

If the label makes claims about the effectiveness of the product, it needs evidence to verify it, "however the seller doesn't necessarily have to do the testing" and can alternatively use testing conducted by other firms, she clarifies.

Examine the Back of the Pack

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

Components on the back of the bottle are arranged by amount. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to avoid… is your mineral oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up