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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell heard a supermarket was launching a recent beauty line that appeared comparable to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

She hurried to her local store to pick up the supermarket face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml item.

Its streamlined blue packaging and gold top of the two products look strikingly similar. While she has never tried the luxury cream, she states she's satisfied by the dupe so far.

Rachael has been purchasing lookalike products from popular shops and supermarkets for a long time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a fourth of UK consumers say they've bought a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This rises to nearly half among 18-34 year olds, as per a recent study.

Lookalikes are beauty items that copy well-known labels and present cost-effective alternatives to high-end products. These products often have similar labels and design, but in some cases the components can change significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Superior'

Skincare experts say certain substitutes to luxury brands are decent quality and assist make skincare more affordable.

"In my opinion costlier is always more effective," says dermatology expert one expert. "Not every budget beauty label is poor - and not every luxury skincare product is the top."

"Some [dupes] are truly amazing," adds Scott McGlynn, who hosts a show about public figures.

A lot of of the items inspired by high-end labels "sell out so fast, it's just crazy," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor Ross Perry argues alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"These products will do the job," he comments. "These items will perform the fundamentals to a acceptable degree."

Ketaki Bhate, advises you can save money when you're looking for single-ingredient items like HA, niacinamide and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a single-ingredient item then you're likely going to be okay in opting for a lookalike or something which is quite inexpensive because there's not much that can cause issues," she says.

'Don't Be Swayed by the Packaging'

However the specialists also suggest shoppers check details and say that costlier products are at times worth the premium price.

With luxury beauty products, you're not only paying for the brand and advertising - at times the elevated price tag also is due to the ingredients and their quality, the strength of the active ingredient, the research employed to develop the product, and trials into the products' performance, the expert explains.

Facialist she suggests it's worth considering how some dupes can be offered so at a low cost.

Occasionally, she says they could have bulking agents that don't have as many positive effects for the complexion, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

"One big uncertainty is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Podcast host McGlynn admits on occasion he's purchased beauty products that appear comparable to a big-name brand but the actual formula has "no resemblance to the premium version".

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

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For potent items or those with ingredients that can inflame the complexion if they're not formulated correctly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist recommends sticking to research-backed labels.

She states these probably have been subjected to comprehensive studies to determine how efficacious they are.

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

If the brand advertises about the effectiveness of the item, it requires data to verify it, "however the manufacturer doesn't always have to perform the testing" and can instead use testing completed by other firms, she clarifies.

Examine the Ingredients List of the Bottle

Is there any ingredients that could indicate a product is inferior?

Ingredients on the label of the container are listed by quantity. "Potential irritants that you should avoid… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up