🔗 Share this article

Rachael Parnell

When a consumer heard a supermarket was offering a recent beauty line that looked similar to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

Rachael hurried to her local store to pick up the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 price tag of the high-end 50ml item.

The sleek blue container and gold cap of each items look strikingly comparable. While she has not tested the high-end cream, she says she's satisfied by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been purchasing skincare dupes from high street stores and supermarkets for some time, and she's in good company.

Over a fourth of UK consumers report they've bought a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This jumps to 44% among 18-34 year olds, according to a recently published study.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate bigger name companies and offer budget-friendly substitutes to premium items. They often have comparable labels and design, but occasionally the formulas can vary considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Isn't Necessarily Superior'

Skincare specialists argue some alternatives to luxury brands are reasonable quality and aid make beauty routines cheaper.

"It is not true that costlier is invariably better," states skin specialist one expert. "Not all affordable product line is inferior - and not every high-end skincare product is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are absolutely amazing," notes Scott McGlynn, who runs a podcast with public figures.

Many of the products inspired by high-end labels "disappear so quickly, it's just crazy," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist another professional believes alternatives are acceptable to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

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

A consultant dermatologist, advises you can spend less when searching for single-ingredient items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a single-ingredient product then you're probably going to be fine in using a lookalike or a product which is quite low cost because there's minimal that can be problematic," she explains.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Box'

But the experts also advise shoppers check details and note that higher-priced items are sometimes worth the extra money.

With luxury beauty products, you're not just paying for the label and promotion - at times the elevated cost also stems from the components and their standard, the strength of the key component, the technology utilized to develop the item, and studies into the products' effectiveness, the expert explains.

Facialist Rhian Truman argues it's worth considering how some alternatives can be offered so inexpensively.

In some cases, she states they may have filler ingredients that do not provide as significant advantages for the complexion, or the components might not be as high-quality.

"The major uncertainty is 'Why is it so cheap?'" she remarks.

Podcast host Scott notes in some cases he's purchased skincare items that look similar to a established brand but the item has "no connection to the luxury product".

"Don't be convinced by the container," he warned.

SimpleImages/Getty Images

Regarding potent items or those with ingredients that can inflame the skin if they're not formulated correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, she recommends sticking to more specialised companies.

The expert says these will likely have been subjected to expensive trials to assess how effective they are.

Skincare items must be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, says skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the brand advertises about the performance of the product, it needs research to verify it, "but the manufacturer does not necessarily have to perform the testing" and can alternatively reference evidence done by different companies, she clarifies.

Check the Label of the Container

Are there any components that could indicate a item is inferior?

Ingredients on the label of the container are listed by concentration. "The baddies that you want to be wary of… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up