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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing one shopper learned a supermarket was selling a fresh skincare range that looked comparable to products from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

Rachael hurried to her nearest store to purchase the Lacura face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 of the high-end 50ml item.

Its streamlined blue container and gold lid of each creams look noticeably similar. Although she has never tried the premium cream, she claims she's impressed by the dupe so far.

She has been buying lookalike products from high street stores and supermarkets for a long time, and she's in good company.

More than a quarter of UK shoppers report they've bought a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This increases to nearly half among 18-34 year olds, according to a recent poll.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate established brands and provide affordable options to high-end items. They often have alike labels and design, but in some cases the ingredients can vary significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Isn't Necessarily Superior'

Skincare professionals contend some dupes to premium brands are reasonable standard and help make skincare less expensive.

"In my opinion more expensive is always more effective," states consultant dermatologist Sharon Belmo. "Not all budget product line is inferior - and not all premium beauty item is the best."

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

Many of the items inspired by luxury brands "sell out so fast, it's just crazy," he says.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor a doctor believes alternatives are acceptable to use for "simple routines" like hydrators and face washes.

"Dupes will do the job," he comments. "These items will do the essentials to a satisfactory degree."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can cut costs when you're looking for simple-formula items like HA, niacinamide and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a simple item then you're likely going to be okay in opting for a dupe or a product which is fairly inexpensive because there's very little that can go wrong," she says.

'Don't Be Influenced by the Container'

However the professionals also advise shoppers check details and state that higher-priced items are occasionally worthy of the additional cost.

Regarding premium skincare, you're not only funding the brand and marketing - at times the higher price tag also is due to the components and their grade, the concentration of the key component, the technology employed to create the product, and studies into the item's effectiveness, the expert notes.

Facialist she suggests it's important thinking about how certain dupes can be sold so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she believes they could contain filler ingredients that do not provide as numerous positive effects for the skin, or the components might not be as high-quality.

"The major question mark is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she remarks.

Expert McGlynn says in some cases he's bought skincare items that look similar to a big-name label but the actual formula has "little similarity to the premium version".

"Do not be convinced by the container," he added.

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Regarding potent products or those with components that can irritate the skin if they're not created correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she suggests selecting research-backed brands.

She explains these will likely have been subjected to expensive trials to determine how successful they are.

Beauty products must be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, explains consultant dermatologist another professional.

If the brand advertises about the performance of the product, it needs data to verify it, "but the manufacturer doesn't always have to do the trials" and can instead use testing done by different firms, she says.

Check the Back of the Pack

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

Components on the list of the container are ordered by quantity. "Potential irritants that you need to be wary of… is your mineral oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up