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Rachael Parnell

After discovering one shopper heard a supermarket was offering a recent skincare range that seemed comparable to products from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper rushed to her closest store to buy the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 of the luxury brand 50ml cream.

The streamlined blue tube and gold cap of both products look strikingly comparable. And though Rachael has not tested the premium cream, she says she's pleased by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been using skincare dupes from high street stores and supermarkets for a long time, and she's not alone.

More than a 25% of UK buyers report they've purchased a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This jumps to nearly half among 18-34 year olds, as per a recent survey.

Dupes are beauty items that mimic well-known companies and present affordable alternatives to premium products. They often have alike labels and design, but occasionally the formulas can change significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Isn't Always Better'

Skincare experts argue many dupes to premium labels are decent quality and aid make skincare less expensive.

"It is not true that higher-priced is invariably better," comments skin specialist a doctor. "Not every budget beauty label is poor - and not every premium beauty item is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are truly excellent," notes a skincare commentator, who presents a program about public figures.

Numerous of the products based on luxury brands "sell out so fast, it's just insane," he says.

Scott McGlynn

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

"Dupes will be effective," he comments. "They will perform the essentials to a acceptable standard."

A consultant dermatologist, suggests you can save money when seeking single-ingredient products like HA, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"If you're buying a simple product then you're probably going to be fine in opting for a budget alternative or something which is fairly affordable because there's not much that can cause issues," she says.

'Do Not Be Sold by the Container'

However the experts also recommend buyers check details and say that costlier items are sometimes worthy of the premium price.

Regarding premium skincare, you're not just funding the name and promotion - at times the elevated price tag also stems from the ingredients and their standard, the potency of the active ingredient, the research used to create the product, and trials into the item's effectiveness, the expert notes.

Skin therapist she suggests it's important considering how some alternatives can be offered so inexpensively.

Occasionally, she says they may contain less effective components that lack as numerous positive effects for the skin, or the ingredients might not be as carefully selected.

"The major question mark is 'Why is it so low-priced?'" she asks.

Expert Scott admits sometimes he's bought skincare items that appear comparable to a well-known label but the actual formula has "no connection to the premium version".

"Do not be convinced by the outer appearance," he added.

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Regarding more complicated products or ones with components that can inflame the complexion if they're not created accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C, Dr Bhate advises sticking to more specialised brands.

She states these typically have been through expensive studies to evaluate how successful they are.

Skincare items need to be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, notes skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the label states about the performance of the product, it requires research to back it up, "however the manufacturer doesn't necessarily have to do the testing" and can instead cite testing conducted by other firms, she clarifies.

Read the Ingredients List of the Pack

Are there any components that could suggest a item is poor?

Ingredients on the label of the tube are ordered by concentration. "Potential irritants that you want to look out for… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, fragrance, benzel peroxide" being {high up