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Rachael Parnell

After discovering one shopper learned a supermarket was launching a fresh skincare range that appeared akin to offerings from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

Rachael hurried to her nearest store to purchase the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml cream.

The smooth blue packaging and gold cap of the two items look noticeably similar. And though Rachael has not tested the luxury cream, she states she's pleased by the dupe so far.

Rachael has been using skincare dupes from popular shops and grocery stores for years, and she's part of a trend.

Over a 25% of UK buyers state they've tried a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to 44% among younger adults, based on a recent poll.

Dupes are skincare products that imitate established companies and present cost-effective substitutes to high-end items. These products often have alike labels and design, but in some cases the components can differ significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Isn't Always Superior'

Beauty specialists say some substitutes to high-end brands are decent quality and help make skincare cheaper.

"It is not true that costlier is always superior," comments dermatology expert a doctor. "Not all affordable beauty label is bad - and not all luxury beauty item is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are absolutely excellent," says a podcast host, who presents a podcast about public figures.

Many of the items modeled on luxury labels "sell out so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor another professional thinks dupes are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like hydrators and cleansers.

"These products will serve a purpose," he says. "They will handle the fundamentals to a reasonable standard."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can cut costs when seeking simple-formula products like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a simple item then you're likely going to be fine in using a lookalike or a product which is quite inexpensive because there's minimal that can go wrong," she explains.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Packaging'

Yet the specialists also advise shoppers check details and state that costlier products are occasionally worth the extra money.

With luxury beauty products, you're not just paying for the name and promotion - often the higher price tag also is due to the components and their standard, the concentration of the key component, the technology employed to develop the product, and studies into the item's effectiveness, Dr Belmo says.

Skin therapist another professional argues it's valuable considering how some alternatives can be sold so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she says they may include filler ingredients that lack as many benefits for the skin, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

"The key question mark is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she says.

Expert Scott says on occasion he's purchased skincare items that look comparable to a established label but the item has "little similarity to the luxury product".

"Don't be convinced by the outer appearance," he added.

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Regarding advanced items or those with components that can irritate the skin if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C, the specialist suggests sticking to medical-grade brands.

She says these typically have been through expensive studies to assess how successful they are.

Skincare products need to be tested before they can be sold in the UK, says skin doctor another professional.

When the label makes claims about the efficacy of the item, it requires evidence to back it up, "but the manufacturer does not necessarily have to conduct the trials" and can instead reference testing done by other brands, she says.

Check the Ingredients List of the Pack

Is there any ingredients that could indicate a item is low-quality?

Components on the label of the container are ordered by quantity. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to avoid… is your mineral oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up