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Rachael Parnell

When a consumer learned a supermarket was selling a fresh product collection that looked akin to products from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

The shopper dashed to her local shop to purchase the Lacura face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the Augustinus Bader 50ml cream.

The streamlined blue tube and gold cap of the two creams look noticeably comparable. And though she has not tested the premium cream, she states she's impressed by the alternative so far.

She has been purchasing lookalike products from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for a long time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a quarter of UK buyers report they've tried a beauty or cosmetic lookalike. This increases to 44 percent among younger adults, according to a February survey.

Lookalikes are skincare products that mimic bigger name brands and provide affordable options to high-end products. They frequently have similar names and packaging, but in some cases the formulas can change substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Always Better'

Beauty experts contend some substitutes to high-end brands are good standard and aid make skincare cheaper.

"In my opinion higher-priced is necessarily better," says dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not all low-budget beauty label is bad - and not all premium skincare product is the finest."

"A number of [dupes] are truly amazing," adds a skincare commentator, who hosts a show featuring famous people.

Many of the products based on high-end labels "sell out so fast, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert a doctor argues alternatives are suitable to use for "simple routines" like moisturisers and face washes.

"These products will be effective," he explains. "They will do the fundamentals to a satisfactory degree."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can cut costs when you're looking for simple-formula items like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide and squalane.

"If you're purchasing a simple product then you're likely going to be alright in opting for a lookalike or something which is fairly low cost because there's very little that can be problematic," she explains.

'Do Not Be Influenced by the Packaging'

Yet the experts also advise buyers do their research and note that higher-priced items are sometimes worth the extra money.

With premium beauty products, you're not only covering the brand and promotion - sometimes the increased price tag also is due to the formula and their grade, the concentration of the effective element, the research employed to create the product, and trials into the item's effectiveness, Dr Belmo explains.

Beauty expert Rhian Truman says it's valuable considering how some alternatives can be offered so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she says they could have filler ingredients that don't have as significant positive effects for the complexion, or the materials might not be as high-quality.

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

Commentator Scott says on occasion he's purchased beauty products that look similar to a established label but the actual formula has "no resemblance to the premium version".

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

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For advanced items or ones with components that can aggravate the complexion if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinols or vitamin C, Dr Bhate suggests using more specialised brands.

She says these will likely have been through comprehensive tests to assess how successful they are.

Beauty products must be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, says consultant dermatologist Emma Wedgeworth.

When the label advertises about the effectiveness of the item, it must have data to verify it, "however the seller does not always have to conduct the trials" and can alternatively reference studies done by different companies, she clarifies.

Read the Ingredients List of the Bottle

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

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