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Rachael Parnell

After discovering Rachael Parnell learned Aldi was offering a recent skincare range that looked comparable to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper rushed to her closest outlet to buy the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml product.

The sleek blue container and gold cap of the two items look strikingly similar. And though she has not tested the premium cream, she claims she's pleased by the alternative so far.

Rachael has been buying lookalike products from high street stores and supermarkets for a long time, and she's not alone.

Over a quarter of UK consumers state they've tried a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This rises to nearly half among younger adults, according to a recently published survey.

Dupes are beauty items that mimic bigger name brands and offer affordable options to high-end products. These products often have comparable branding and containers, but sometimes the ingredients can vary considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Necessarily Superior'

Beauty specialists contend some alternatives to high-end brands are reasonable standard and aid make skincare more affordable.

"In my opinion higher-priced is invariably more effective," says consultant dermatologist a doctor. "Not all budget beauty label is bad - and not all premium beauty item is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are really amazing," adds a skincare commentator, who hosts a program featuring celebrities.

Many of the items based on high-end brands "sell out so quickly, it's just crazy," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist another professional thinks alternatives are acceptable to use for "basic skincare" like hydrators and face washes.

"These products will be effective," he explains. "These items will handle the fundamentals to a satisfactory standard."

Ketaki Bhate, thinks you can spend less when you're looking for single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"When you're buying a single-ingredient product then you're probably going to be alright in opting for a lookalike or a product which is quite low cost because there's very little that can go wrong," she adds.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Container'

But the specialists also advise shoppers investigate and note that higher-priced items are at times worthy of the extra money.

With luxury skincare, you're not just funding the label and marketing - at times the increased price tag also stems from the formula and their standard, the potency of the active ingredient, the science used to create the item, and tests into the products' performance, she notes.

Skin therapist another professional suggests it's valuable considering how certain alternatives can be offered so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she states they could have filler ingredients that lack as many positive effects for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as well sourced.

"The big doubt is 'How is it so low-priced?'" she asks.

Podcast host Scott admits on occasion he's purchased beauty products that appear similar to a well-known brand but the actual formula has "no resemblance to the original".

"Don't be convinced by the packaging," he warned.

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Regarding more complicated items or ones with ingredients that can irritate the skin if they're not formulated properly, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, she recommends sticking to more specialised brands.

The expert says these probably have been subjected to costly trials to assess how efficacious they are.

Beauty products need to be tested before they can be available in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist Emma Wedgeworth.

When the company makes claims about the effectiveness of the item, it must have research to verify it, "however the manufacturer doesn't always have to perform the testing" and can alternatively use testing done by different brands, she says.

Examine the Back of the Container

Are there any ingredients that could signal a item is poor?

Ingredients on the list of the tube are listed by amount. "The baddies that you need to avoid… is your mineral oil, your SLS, fragrance, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up