🔗 Share this article

Rachael Parnell

When one shopper learned a discounter was offering a recent beauty line that appeared similar to offerings from high-end label Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

Rachael dashed to her nearest outlet to purchase the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml cream.

Its smooth blue packaging and gold cap of the two creams look noticeably alike. Although Rachael has never tried the luxury cream, she claims she's pleased by the dupe so far.

Rachael has been buying skincare dupes from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for years, and she's not alone.

Over a fourth of UK shoppers report they've tried a skincare or makeup lookalike. This rises to nearly half among millennials and Gen Z, according to a recent poll.

Dupes are skincare products that mimic established labels and present affordable options to premium items. These products often have similar names and packaging, but in some cases the ingredients can differ substantially.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Isn't Always Superior'

Beauty experts contend certain dupes to high-end labels are reasonable standard and help make beauty routines cheaper.

"It is not true that higher-priced is invariably superior," says consultant dermatologist Sharon Belmo. "Not all affordable product line is poor - and not every high-end skincare product is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are truly excellent," says Scott McGlynn, who runs a program featuring famous people.

A lot of of the products based on high-end brands "disappear so fast, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Medical expert Ross Perry thinks alternatives are fine to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and face washes.

"These products will serve a purpose," he explains. "These items will handle the essentials to a reasonable degree."

Another skin doctor, suggests you can cut costs when you're looking for single-ingredient items like HA, niacinamide and squalane.

"If you're buying a simple item then you're likely going to be alright in opting for a lookalike or something which is very affordable because there's very little that can cause issues," she adds.

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Container'

Yet the specialists also recommend buyers investigate and say that higher-priced products are at times worthy of the premium price.

With premium beauty products, you're not just funding the brand and advertising - sometimes the elevated cost also stems from the ingredients and their quality, the potency of the active ingredient, the research employed to create the product, and tests into the item's efficacy, the expert explains.

Facialist Rhian Truman suggests it's worth considering how some dupes can be sold so at a low cost.

Sometimes, she says they may have filler ingredients that don't have as many advantages for the complexion, or the ingredients might not be as carefully selected.

"The big doubt is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Podcast host Scott says on occasion he's purchased skincare items that appear comparable to a big-name label but the product itself has "little similarity to the premium version".

"Don't be sold by the container," he added.

SimpleImages/Getty Images

Regarding more complicated items or ones with ingredients that can irritate the complexion if they're not formulated accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, she suggests selecting more specialised brands.

The expert states these typically have been subjected to expensive trials to evaluate how successful they are.

Skincare items need to be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, says expert Emma Wedgeworth.

When the label advertises about the effectiveness of the product, it requires data to support it, "however the seller does not necessarily have to do the trials" and can alternatively reference evidence conducted by different brands, she clarifies.

Read the Back of the Pack

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

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