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Rachael Parnell

After discovering a consumer heard a supermarket was launching a new product collection that appeared akin to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper dashed to her closest outlet to buy the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml cream.

Its sleek blue tube and gold cap of the two items look strikingly similar. While Rachael has not tested the premium cream, she claims she's pleased by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been buying lookalike products from high street stores and supermarkets for some time, and she's not alone.

More than a fourth of UK shoppers state they've bought a skincare or makeup dupe. This rises to nearly half among younger adults, as per a February poll.

Alternatives are skincare products that mimic bigger name brands and offer cost-effective options to high-end products. They typically have similar names and packaging, but occasionally the ingredients can change considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Necessarily Better'

Beauty specialists argue many alternatives to luxury brands are decent standard and aid make beauty routines less expensive.

"I don't think costlier is invariably superior," states dermatology expert a doctor. "Not all budget beauty label is inferior - and not every premium skincare product is the best."

"Some [dupes] are absolutely excellent," notes Scott McGlynn, who runs a program about celebrities.

Many of the products based on high-end labels "disappear so quickly, it's just unbelievable," he says.

Scott McGlynn

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

"Alternatives will serve a purpose," he comments. "These items will handle the basics to a acceptable level."

Another skin doctor, suggests you can cut costs when you're looking for single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide and squalane.

"When you're buying a simple item then you're probably going to be alright in using a dupe or a product which is fairly low cost because there's minimal that can go wrong," she adds.

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Packaging'

Yet the professionals also recommend shoppers check details and note that higher-priced items are sometimes worth the additional cost.

With high-end beauty products, you're not just covering the name and advertising - sometimes the higher price also comes from the ingredients and their quality, the concentration of the active ingredient, the technology used to develop the product, and studies into the products' performance, she says.

Facialist she argues it's important questioning how certain alternatives can be sold so inexpensively.

Occasionally, she states they may contain filler ingredients that don't have as significant advantages for the complexion, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

"The major doubt is 'Why is it so inexpensive?'" she remarks.

Commentator McGlynn says sometimes he's bought skincare items that appear comparable to a well-known brand but the product itself has "little similarity to the luxury product".

"Do not be convinced by the packaging," he cautioned.

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For potent items or ones with ingredients that can inflame the skin if they're not created accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she suggests sticking to more specialised brands.

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

Skincare items need to be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist another professional.

If the label states about the performance of the item, it requires data to support it, "however the seller does not necessarily have to do the testing" and can alternatively reference testing conducted by other companies, she says.

Examine the Back of the Container

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

Ingredients on the back of the container are listed by amount. "Ingredients to avoid that you should avoid… is your mineral oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up