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Rachael Parnell

When Rachael Parnell learned Aldi was launching a new beauty line that appeared similar to offerings from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

The shopper rushed to her nearest store to pick up the store-brand face cream for £8.49 for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 price tag of the high-end 50ml cream.

Its sleek blue container and gold top of the two products look noticeably similar. Although Rachael has not tested the high-end cream, she states she's pleased by the product so far.

Rachael has been buying beauty alternatives from popular shops and grocery stores for a long time, and she's in good company.

More than a 25% of UK consumers state they've purchased a beauty or cosmetic dupe. This rises to 44% among younger adults, according to a February survey.

Alternatives are beauty items that copy well-known companies and offer affordable options to high-end items. These products frequently have comparable branding and containers, but sometimes the formulas can vary considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Better'

Beauty professionals say many alternatives to premium labels are reasonable quality and assist make skincare less expensive.

"I don't think higher-priced is necessarily superior," comments skin specialist a doctor. "Not every budget beauty label is inferior - and not every luxury beauty item is the top."

"A number of [dupes] are truly amazing," says Scott McGlynn, who presents a podcast featuring celebrities.

Numerous of the items modeled on high-end labels "disappear so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert another professional thinks alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and cleansers.

"Dupes will serve a purpose," he says. "They will handle the basics to a reasonable level."

Ketaki Bhate, suggests you can spend less when you're looking for simple-formula items like HA, niacinamide and squalane.

"If you're buying a simple product then you're probably going to be fine in using a dupe or a product which is very affordable because there's not much that can be problematic," she says.

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Box'

But the professionals also recommend consumers investigate and note that higher-priced items are sometimes worthy of the extra money.

With luxury skincare, you're not only covering the brand and marketing - often the elevated price tag also stems from the formula and their standard, the concentration of the effective element, the research used to produce the product, and tests into the products' effectiveness, the expert says.

Skin therapist another professional suggests it's worth questioning how some alternatives can be priced so cheaply.

In some cases, she says they could contain less effective components that do not provide as significant advantages for the complexion, or the components might not be as high-quality.

"One big doubt is 'Why is it so cheap?'" she says.

Podcast host McGlynn notes sometimes he's bought beauty products that look comparable to a big-name label but the actual formula has "little similarity to the original".

"Don't be convinced by the outer appearance," he cautioned.

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For advanced products or those with ingredients that can aggravate the skin if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C serums, the specialist suggests sticking to medical-grade companies.

The expert states these will likely have been subjected to costly trials to evaluate how successful they are.

Skincare products need to be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist Emma Wedgeworth.

If the company states about the performance of the item, it needs research to support it, "but the manufacturer does not necessarily have to do the trials" and can alternatively use evidence conducted by other firms, she clarifies.

Examine the Label of the Pack

Is there any components that could signal a product is inferior?

Components on the label of the container are listed by amount. "Ingredients to avoid that you should be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your SLS, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up