🔗 Share this article

Rachael Parnell

When a consumer heard a discounter was launching a fresh product collection that seemed similar to offerings from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

Rachael rushed to her nearest outlet to buy the supermarket face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 of the luxury brand 50ml item.

Its smooth blue packaging and gold lid of the two creams look remarkably similar. Although she has never tried the luxury cream, she claims she's satisfied by the product so far.

Rachael has been purchasing beauty alternatives from popular shops and supermarkets for some time, and she's in good company.

Over a quarter of UK buyers report they've purchased a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This increases to 44 percent among millennials and Gen Z, based on a recently published study.

Alternatives are beauty items that mimic well-known companies and present affordable alternatives to luxury items. These products typically have similar labels and design, but occasionally the formulas can change considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Better'

Beauty specialists argue certain alternatives to premium brands are good standard and aid make beauty routines more affordable.

"I don't think costlier is invariably better," states consultant dermatologist Sharon Belmo. "Not every low-budget skincare brand is bad - and not every luxury beauty item is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are truly amazing," adds Scott McGlynn, who runs a show with famous people.

Many of the products modeled on luxury brands "disappear so quickly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist a doctor argues alternatives are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"These products will be effective," he says. "They will handle the essentials to a satisfactory degree."

A consultant dermatologist, advises you can cut costs when searching for single-ingredient products like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"When you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're likely going to be fine in using a lookalike or something which is fairly inexpensive because there's minimal that can cause issues," she adds.

'Don't Be Sold by the Container'

However the specialists also advise shoppers do their research and state that more expensive items are occasionally worthy of the extra money.

Regarding premium skincare, you're not only funding the brand and marketing - sometimes the elevated price tag also stems from the ingredients and their grade, the potency of the effective element, the technology employed to develop the product, and tests into the products' efficacy, the expert notes.

Beauty expert she says it's important questioning how some alternatives can be priced so inexpensively.

In some cases, she states they could include filler ingredients that lack as numerous advantages for the skin, or the materials might not be as high-quality.

"One key doubt is 'How is it so cheap?'" she asks.

Commentator McGlynn says on occasion he's purchased beauty products that appear comparable to a established brand but the product itself has "no connection to the original".

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

SimpleImages/Getty Images

Regarding more complicated items or ones with ingredients that can inflame the skin if they're not created accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate recommends using research-backed brands.

The expert says these probably have been through costly tests to evaluate how successful they are.

Beauty items need to be tested before they can be available in the UK, notes expert Emma Wedgeworth.

If the brand states about the efficacy of the product, it requires evidence to verify it, "but the manufacturer does not necessarily have to do the trials" and can alternatively reference testing done by other companies, she says.

Read the Ingredients List of the Pack

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

Components on the back of the container are listed by amount. "Ingredients to avoid that you need to be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up