🔗 Share this article

Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing Rachael Parnell found out a discounter was selling a recent skincare range that seemed akin to offerings from premium company Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

Rachael dashed to her nearest outlet to buy the Lacura face cream for under £9 for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 price tag of the luxury brand 50ml item.

The streamlined blue tube and gold top of each creams look strikingly alike. Although Rachael has not tested the premium cream, she claims she's pleased by the product so far.

She has been using skincare dupes from popular shops and supermarkets for some time, and she's in good company.

Over a fourth of UK consumers report they've bought a skincare or makeup lookalike. This jumps to 44 percent among 18-34 year olds, according to a recently published poll.

Lookalikes are skincare products that copy established companies and present affordable options to premium items. They typically have comparable branding and containers, but occasionally the ingredients can differ significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'High-Priced Is Not Necessarily Better'

Beauty professionals argue many dupes to luxury labels are reasonable quality and assist make beauty routines less expensive.

"I don't think more expensive is invariably more effective," comments dermatology expert one expert. "Not every affordable product line is bad - and not all luxury skincare product is the best."

"A number of [dupes] are really impressive," notes Scott McGlynn, who runs a program with famous people.

Many of the products inspired by luxury labels "disappear so rapidly, it's just insane," he remarks.

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor a doctor argues dupes are acceptable to use for "fundamental products" like hydrators and cleansers.

"These products will do the job," he comments. "They will handle the fundamentals to a satisfactory level."

Another skin doctor, suggests you can spend less when seeking single-ingredient items like HA, Vitamin B3 and a moisturizing ingredient.

"If you're buying a single-ingredient item then you're probably going to be okay in using a lookalike or a product which is very inexpensive because there's minimal that can be problematic," she adds.

'Do Not Be Sold by the Packaging'

But the specialists also advise consumers check details and state that higher-priced items are occasionally worthy of the extra money.

With luxury beauty products, you're not just covering the label and marketing - at times the increased price tag also stems from the formula and their quality, the concentration of the key component, the science utilized to produce the item, and tests into the products' performance, she says.

Skin therapist another professional argues it's important questioning how certain dupes can be sold so cheaply.

Occasionally, she believes they may contain filler ingredients that lack as many positive effects for the complexion, or the materials might not be as carefully selected.

"The major uncertainty is 'How is it so low-priced?'" she remarks.

Podcast host Scott admits in some cases he's purchased beauty products that appear similar to a established label but the actual formula has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Do not be fooled by the packaging," he added.

SimpleImages/Getty Images

Regarding advanced products or those with components that can inflame the skin if they're not created properly, such as retinoids or vitamin C, the specialist advises selecting medical-grade companies.

The expert states these typically have been through expensive trials to determine how effective they are.

Beauty items need to be evaluated before they can be available in the UK, notes skin doctor Emma Wedgeworth.

When the brand makes claims about the performance of the item, it requires evidence to back it up, "but the brand does not necessarily have to conduct the testing" and can instead reference evidence conducted by other companies, she adds.

Check the Back of the Bottle

Is there any ingredients that could signal a item is low-quality?

Components on the list of the bottle are arranged by quantity. "Potential irritants that you need to look out for… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up