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Rachael Parnell

After discovering Rachael Parnell found out a discounter was launching a recent beauty line that seemed similar to products from premium company 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 fraction of the £240 of the luxury brand 50ml item.

The sleek blue packaging and gold cap of both products look remarkably comparable. Although she has not tested the high-end cream, she claims she's satisfied by the product so far.

Rachael has been buying beauty alternatives from mainstream retailers and supermarkets for some time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a 25% of UK consumers state they've bought a skincare or makeup dupe. This jumps to 44% among millennials and Gen Z, based on a recent survey.

Alternatives are beauty items that copy bigger name brands and offer cost-effective alternatives to premium items. They often have similar labels and design, but in some cases the components can vary considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Isn't Always Better'

Beauty professionals say certain substitutes to premium brands are decent quality and aid make skincare more affordable.

"It is not true that higher-priced is always more effective," states dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not all budget product line is bad - and not all high-end skincare product is the best."

"Certain [dupes] are truly impressive," says a podcast host, who runs a podcast with public figures.

Numerous of the items based on high-end brands "sell out so rapidly, it's just unbelievable," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert a doctor argues dupes are suitable to use for "basic skincare" like hydrators and face washes.

"Alternatives will serve a purpose," he explains. "They will perform the fundamentals to a satisfactory standard."

Ketaki Bhate, advises you can cut costs when you're looking for simple-formula items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're purchasing a single-ingredient product then you're probably going to be alright in using a dupe or something which is very affordable because there's minimal that can go wrong," she adds.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Container'

However the experts also recommend buyers check details and say that costlier products are occasionally worth the extra money.

With luxury skincare, you're not only funding the name and advertising - often the elevated price tag also comes from the ingredients and their standard, the potency of the effective element, the science used to develop the item, and trials into the products' efficacy, she says.

Skin therapist another professional argues it's valuable thinking about how some dupes can be sold so inexpensively.

Sometimes, she believes they may have filler ingredients that do not provide as many benefits for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as high-quality.

"The major doubt is 'Why is it so low-priced?'" she says.

Podcast host Scott notes sometimes he's bought beauty products that appear similar to a big-name brand but the actual formula has "no connection to the premium version".

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

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For potent items or ones with components that can aggravate the skin if they're not made accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate suggests sticking to medical-grade companies.

She explains these will likely have been subjected to expensive studies to evaluate how efficacious they are.

Skincare items must be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, explains expert Emma Wedgeworth.

If the company advertises about the effectiveness of the product, it must have data to support it, "but the seller doesn't always have to conduct the trials" and can instead reference evidence completed by different companies, she adds.

Check the Ingredients List of the Pack

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

Ingredients on the back of the container are ordered by concentration. "Potential irritants that you need to be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up