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Rachael Parnell

When a consumer heard Aldi was offering a fresh product collection that appeared akin to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

She rushed to her local shop to buy the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 cost of the luxury brand 50ml item.

The sleek blue tube and gold top of each items look remarkably comparable. While Rachael has not used the luxury cream, she says she's pleased by the product so far.

She has been buying beauty alternatives from high street stores and grocery stores for some time, and she's not alone.

Over a fourth of UK buyers say they've tried a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This rises to 44% among 18-34 year olds, based on a February poll.

Lookalikes are beauty items that imitate bigger name companies and present budget-friendly substitutes to high-end items. These products frequently have alike labels and design, but in some cases the components can change substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Isn't Necessarily Superior'

Skincare specialists say many substitutes to luxury brands are decent quality and assist make beauty routines cheaper.

"It is not true that higher-priced is invariably better," says dermatology expert a doctor. "Not all low-budget product line is bad - and not every high-end skincare product is the top."

"Certain [dupes] are truly amazing," says a podcast host, who hosts a show with famous people.

Many of the products modeled on luxury brands "run out so fast, it's just unbelievable," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor another professional thinks alternatives are suitable to use for "basic skincare" like hydrators and face washes.

"These products will do the job," he explains. "They will handle the fundamentals to a acceptable degree."

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

"If you're purchasing a simple item then you're likely going to be fine in using a budget alternative or a product which is quite affordable because there's not much that can cause issues," she adds.

'Don't Be Swayed by the Container'

However the experts also recommend buyers investigate and note that costlier items are at times worth the premium price.

With premium beauty products, you're not only paying for the name and advertising - at times the higher price tag also comes from the formula and their standard, the potency of the active ingredient, the science employed to produce the product, and trials into the item's efficacy, Dr Belmo says.

Facialist another professional argues it's worth thinking about how some dupes can be priced so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she says they might include less effective components that don't have as numerous positive effects for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as high-quality.

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

Podcast host McGlynn says on occasion he's bought skincare items that appear similar to a big-name brand but the item has "no connection to the luxury product".

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

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For more complicated products or ones with components that can irritate the complexion if they're not formulated properly, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist suggests using more specialised brands.

The expert explains these typically have been subjected to comprehensive trials to evaluate how successful they are.

Skincare items must be tested before they can be sold in the UK, notes skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the brand makes claims about the effectiveness of the product, it needs research to back it up, "however the brand doesn't necessarily have to conduct the testing" and can instead use testing completed by different companies, she says.

Read the Back of the Pack

Is there any components that could indicate a product is low-quality?

Ingredients on the list of the bottle are ordered by amount. "Potential irritants that you should look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up