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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell heard a supermarket was selling a new product collection that seemed akin to products from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

The shopper hurried to her nearest outlet to pick up the supermarket face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml cream.

Its smooth blue tube and gold lid of both products look noticeably comparable. And though she has never tried the luxury cream, she says she's impressed by the alternative so far.

She has been buying beauty alternatives from popular shops and grocery stores for years, and she's not alone.

Over a 25% of UK buyers say they've bought a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This increases to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, according to a recently published poll.

Alternatives are beauty items that mimic bigger name brands and provide cost-effective options to high-end products. They typically have alike branding and containers, but occasionally the ingredients can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Isn't Always Superior'

Skincare experts say certain substitutes to luxury brands are decent standard and assist make skincare less expensive.

"In my opinion higher-priced is always more effective," comments consultant dermatologist a doctor. "Not all budget product line is bad - and not every high-end beauty item is the top."

"Some [dupes] are truly amazing," says a podcast host, who presents a program featuring public figures.

Many of the products based on high-end labels "disappear so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert another professional believes dupes are acceptable to use for "simple routines" like hydrators and face washes.

"Dupes will do the job," he says. "These items will perform the fundamentals to a satisfactory degree."

A consultant dermatologist, advises you can save money when searching for single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"If you're purchasing a simple item then you're likely going to be fine in using a lookalike or something which is fairly low cost because there's not much that can cause issues," she says.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Box'

Yet the professionals also suggest buyers check details and note that higher-priced products are occasionally worth the premium price.

Regarding luxury beauty products, you're not just paying for the label and advertising - at times the increased price tag also is due to the ingredients and their standard, the concentration of the key component, the science employed to develop the product, and studies into the products' efficacy, Dr Belmo explains.

Facialist another professional says it's important thinking about how some dupes can be sold so cheaply.

Occasionally, she believes they may include less effective components that do not provide as many benefits for the complexion, or the components might not be as carefully selected.

"One big doubt is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she says.

Expert McGlynn says sometimes he's bought beauty products that look similar to a well-known brand but the item has "no resemblance to the luxury product".

"Do not be convinced by the outer appearance," he cautioned.

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For potent products or ones with components that can irritate the complexion if they're not formulated properly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, Dr Bhate suggests sticking to research-backed labels.

The expert says these will likely have been subjected to comprehensive tests to assess how efficacious they are.

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

When the label states about the effectiveness of the product, it must have research to support it, "however the manufacturer does not always have to do the testing" and can instead cite studies conducted by other companies, she adds.

Examine the Label of the Container

Is there any ingredients that could signal a product is poor?

Components on the list of the container are listed by quantity. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to be wary of… is your mineral oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up