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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell heard a discounter was launching a recent skincare range that looked akin to items from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

She rushed to her closest outlet to purchase the store-brand face cream for a low price for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 of the luxury brand 50ml product.

Its streamlined blue tube and gold cap of each items look remarkably alike. And though Rachael has not used the high-end cream, she says she's impressed by the dupe so far.

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

More than a fourth of UK shoppers state they've bought a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This increases to nearly half among younger adults, according to a recently published poll.

Dupes are skincare products that copy established brands and present budget-friendly alternatives to high-end items. These products often have comparable branding and containers, but sometimes the ingredients can differ significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Necessarily Superior'

Beauty professionals contend some dupes to premium brands are good standard and assist make beauty routines less expensive.

"It is not true that more expensive is necessarily more effective," states skin specialist Sharon Belmo. "Not every low-budget product line is bad - and not every luxury beauty item is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are really amazing," adds Scott McGlynn, who hosts a program with public figures.

A lot of of the products inspired by high-end labels "sell out so quickly, it's just crazy," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert another professional argues dupes are fine to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and face washes.

"These products will be effective," he says. "They will perform the fundamentals to a acceptable standard."

A consultant dermatologist, advises you can save money when seeking simple-formula products like HA, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"When you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're likely going to be okay in opting for a dupe or a product which is quite affordable because there's very little that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Sold by the Box'

However the specialists also advise buyers investigate and say that higher-priced items are sometimes worth the premium price.

With luxury beauty products, you're not just funding the label and marketing - often the elevated price also is due to the ingredients and their standard, the concentration of the effective element, the technology employed to develop the product, and trials into the products' efficacy, she notes.

Skin therapist she suggests it's important thinking about how some dupes can be priced so at a low cost.

Occasionally, she says they might contain less effective components that do not provide as numerous positive effects for the complexion, or the components might not be as well sourced.

"One key question mark is 'Why is it so cheap?'" she remarks.

Commentator Scott says on occasion he's purchased skincare items that appear comparable to a well-known brand but the item has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Do not be sold by the outer appearance," he added.

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For potent items or those with ingredients that can irritate the skin if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate recommends selecting more specialised brands.

The expert explains these probably have been through costly tests to determine how successful they are.

Skincare items need to be assessed before they can be sold in the UK, notes expert another professional.

If the label advertises about the efficacy of the product, it must have data to verify it, "but the brand does not always have to conduct the trials" and can instead cite evidence done by different brands, she adds.

Check the Label of the Pack

Is there any components that could signal a item is low-quality?

Components on the back of the tube are arranged by concentration. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up