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Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing one shopper learned Aldi was launching a new product collection that seemed akin to items from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "incredibly excited".

Rachael hurried to her closest shop to pick up the store-brand face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a fraction of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml item.

Its smooth blue packaging and gold lid of both items look remarkably comparable. And though she has never tried the luxury cream, she says she's impressed by the product so far.

Rachael has been purchasing beauty alternatives from mainstream retailers and supermarkets for a long time, and she's part of a trend.

Over a fourth of UK consumers say they've tried a skincare or makeup alternative. This jumps to 44% among 18-34 year olds, according to a recent survey.

Alternatives are skincare products that mimic well-known companies and present cost-effective alternatives to high-end items. These products often have similar labels and design, but in some cases the formulas can differ significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Necessarily Superior'

Skincare professionals contend some alternatives to premium labels are reasonable standard and assist make beauty routines cheaper.

"I don't think more expensive is always better," says skin specialist a doctor. "Not every budget beauty label is poor - and not every luxury skincare product is the finest."

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

A lot of of the products modeled on luxury brands "sell out so fast, it's just unbelievable," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist another professional argues alternatives are acceptable to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and cleansers.

"Dupes will be effective," he says. "These items will do the basics to a satisfactory level."

A consultant dermatologist, thinks you can cut costs when searching for single-ingredient products like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

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

'Do Not Be Swayed by the Container'

However the specialists also advise buyers check details and note that higher-priced items are sometimes worthy of the extra money.

Regarding premium beauty products, you're not only paying for the name and promotion - often the increased price also comes from the components and their quality, the strength of the key component, the science employed to produce the product, and trials into the products' efficacy, she says.

Skin therapist another professional argues it's valuable thinking about how certain alternatives can be priced so inexpensively.

Sometimes, she states they may include less effective components that don't have as many positive effects for the complexion, or the materials might not be as carefully selected.

"The big doubt is 'Why is it so low-priced?'" she remarks.

Commentator McGlynn says in some cases he's purchased skincare items that appear similar to a big-name label but the product itself has "little similarity to the luxury product".

"Do not be sold by the outer appearance," he cautioned.

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For advanced items or ones with ingredients that can inflame the complexion if they're not formulated properly, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, the specialist recommends using medical-grade labels.

She states these typically have been subjected to expensive studies to assess how successful they are.

Beauty products are required to be evaluated before they can be sold in the UK, explains skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the company makes claims about the efficacy of the item, it requires evidence to back it up, "but the manufacturer does not always have to conduct the trials" and can alternatively use studies conducted by different firms, she clarifies.

Check the Back of the Bottle

Is there any ingredients that could indicate a item is inferior?

Components on the back of the bottle are ordered by quantity. "The baddies that you want to look out for… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up