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Rachael Parnell

After discovering one shopper found out a discounter was offering a recent beauty line that looked akin to products from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper rushed to her local outlet to pick up the Lacura face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml cream.

Its streamlined blue tube and gold lid of each creams look strikingly similar. And though she has never tried the premium cream, she claims she's impressed by the alternative so far.

She has been purchasing lookalike products from high street stores and grocery stores for years, and she's in good company.

More than a fourth of UK consumers report they've purchased a skincare or makeup dupe. This increases to 44 percent among millennials and Gen Z, according to a recent poll.

Alternatives are skincare products that mimic established labels and present affordable options to high-end items. They often have alike branding and containers, but sometimes the components can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Superior'

Skincare experts argue certain dupes to premium labels are decent quality and aid make beauty routines cheaper.

"In my opinion more expensive is always more effective," comments dermatology expert a doctor. "Not all affordable product line is poor - and not every premium beauty item is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are truly excellent," adds a skincare commentator, who hosts a program featuring celebrities.

A lot of of the products based on high-end brands "sell out so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert Ross Perry argues dupes are suitable to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"These products will serve a purpose," he explains. "These items will perform the essentials to a acceptable standard."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can save money when searching for simple-formula products like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"If you're purchasing a simple item then you're probably going to be okay in using a lookalike or a product which is very low cost because there's minimal that can go wrong," she adds.

'Don't Be Sold by the Container'

However the experts also advise buyers check details and note that costlier products are sometimes worthy of the extra money.

Regarding premium beauty products, you're not only paying for the brand and advertising - sometimes the increased price tag also is due to the components and their quality, the concentration of the key component, the science utilized to develop the product, and tests into the item's performance, the expert notes.

Beauty expert another professional says it's valuable considering how some alternatives can be offered so cheaply.

Sometimes, she states they could include filler ingredients that lack as numerous benefits for the skin, or the components might not be as high-quality.

"The major uncertainty is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Podcast host McGlynn says in some cases he's purchased skincare items that appear similar to a well-known label but the item has "no resemblance to the original".

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

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Regarding advanced products or those with components that can inflame the skin if they're not made accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she suggests sticking to more specialised companies.

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

Skincare items need to be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, explains expert Emma Wedgeworth.

When the brand states about the performance of the product, it must have evidence to support it, "however the manufacturer doesn't always have to perform the trials" and can instead cite evidence done by other companies, she says.

Examine the Back of the Container

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

Components on the label of the tube are ordered by amount. "The baddies that you want to be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up