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Rachael Parnell

When one shopper learned Aldi was launching a recent product collection that looked similar to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper dashed to her nearest outlet to buy the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml item.

Its smooth blue tube and gold cap of the two products look remarkably similar. While Rachael has never tried the luxury cream, she states she's satisfied by the product so far.

Rachael has been buying skincare dupes from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for a long time, and she's in good company.

More than a fourth of UK shoppers report they've tried a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This rises to 44% among millennials and Gen Z, based on a February survey.

Lookalikes are beauty items that mimic well-known labels and present cost-effective substitutes to premium products. They typically have alike labels and design, but sometimes the formulas can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Always Better'

Beauty specialists say some alternatives to premium brands are decent standard and aid make skincare cheaper.

"I don't think costlier is invariably more effective," states skin specialist Sharon Belmo. "Not all budget skincare brand is bad - and not every premium skincare product is the best."

"Certain [dupes] are truly amazing," says Scott McGlynn, who hosts a podcast featuring public figures.

A lot of of the items inspired by luxury brands "run out so rapidly, it's just unbelievable," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist a doctor thinks alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and cleansers.

"These products will be effective," he says. "These items will handle the fundamentals to a reasonable degree."

Ketaki Bhate, advises you can save money when seeking single-ingredient items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a single-ingredient item then you're probably going to be fine in using a lookalike or a product which is quite inexpensive because there's not much that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Box'

However the specialists also suggest buyers do their research and say that higher-priced items are occasionally worthy of the premium price.

With luxury skincare, you're not just paying for the label and advertising - at times the increased price tag also is due to the components and their grade, the concentration of the effective element, the research used to develop the item, and tests into the item's performance, she explains.

Beauty expert another professional says it's valuable questioning how some dupes can be sold so at a low cost.

Occasionally, she believes they could contain bulking agents that do not provide as numerous advantages for the complexion, or the materials might not be as well sourced.

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

Podcast host McGlynn admits sometimes he's bought skincare items that look comparable to a established brand but the actual formula has "no connection to the luxury product".

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

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For advanced products or those with ingredients that can aggravate the skin if they're not created correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, Dr Bhate recommends selecting research-backed labels.

She states these will likely have been subjected to costly studies to evaluate how successful they are.

Skincare items need to be assessed before they can be sold in the UK, explains skin doctor another professional.

If the label advertises about the performance of the item, it must have evidence to support it, "but the manufacturer doesn't necessarily have to perform the testing" and can instead cite studies conducted by different companies, she adds.

Check the Label of the Bottle

Are there any ingredients that could indicate a product is poor?

Ingredients on the label of the bottle are arranged by quantity. "Ingredients to avoid that you should be wary of… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up