High-Street Beauty Alternatives Can Save Consumers a Fortune. However, Do Economical Beauty Products Actually Work?

Rachael Parnell

After discovering a consumer learned a supermarket was selling a fresh skincare range that seemed similar to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "extremely excited".

Rachael rushed to her nearest outlet to purchase the Lacura face cream for a low price for 50ml - a tiny percentage of the £240 of the Augustinus Bader 50ml product.

The sleek blue packaging and gold cap of each items look strikingly comparable. And though Rachael has not tested the premium cream, she claims she's pleased by the dupe so far.

She has been using beauty alternatives from mainstream retailers and grocery stores for a long time, and she's part of a trend.

More than a quarter of UK consumers report they've bought a beauty or cosmetic alternative. This increases to 44% among 18-34 year olds, as per a recently published poll.

Dupes are skincare products that imitate well-known labels and offer cost-effective options to high-end items. They typically have similar labels and design, but occasionally the ingredients can differ significantly.

Victoria Woollaston

'Expensive Is Not Necessarily Superior'

Skincare specialists say some alternatives to luxury brands are good quality and aid make beauty routines cheaper.

"I don't think costlier is necessarily better," states dermatology expert Sharon Belmo. "Not all low-budget product line is bad - and not all high-end beauty item is the finest."

"Some [dupes] are really amazing," adds a podcast host, who presents a podcast featuring public figures.

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

Scott McGlynn

Aesthetic and dermatology doctor a doctor believes dupes are fine to use for "fundamental products" like moisturisers and face washes.

"Alternatives will be effective," he says. "They will do the fundamentals to a reasonable level."

Ketaki Bhate, thinks you can cut costs when searching for simple-formula items like HA, niacinamide and a moisturizing ingredient.

"When you're buying a simple product then you're probably going to be okay in opting for a dupe or something which is very low cost because there's not much that can go wrong," she explains.

'Don't Be Sold by the Container'

Yet the specialists also suggest buyers investigate and state that higher-priced items are occasionally worthy of the additional cost.

Regarding high-end skincare, you're not just covering the label and advertising - often the elevated price also stems from the formula and their quality, the strength of the effective element, the technology used to create the product, and studies into the products' performance, the expert notes.

Facialist she argues it's important questioning how certain alternatives can be priced so at a low cost.

In some cases, she says they might contain bulking agents that do not provide as many benefits for the skin, or the materials might not be as carefully selected.

"The major uncertainty is 'Why is it so cheap?'" she asks.

Expert Scott notes sometimes he's purchased beauty products that appear comparable to a well-known brand but the item has "no connection to the luxury product".

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

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Regarding potent items or those with components that can irritate the complexion if they're not made accurately, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate advises sticking to more specialised companies.

The expert states these typically have been through comprehensive tests to evaluate how efficacious they are.

Beauty products are required to be evaluated before they can be sold in the UK, notes consultant dermatologist Emma Wedgeworth.

If the brand makes claims about the performance of the product, it must have research to back it up, "however the manufacturer doesn't necessarily have to perform the testing" and can alternatively reference studies completed by different firms, she adds.

Examine the Ingredients List of the Bottle

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

Components on the label of the bottle are arranged by quantity. "The baddies that you want to be wary of… is your petroleum-derived oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzoyl peroxide" being {high up