Grocery Store Beauty Dupes Could Save Shoppers a Bundle. But Do Budget Beauty Items Perform?

Rachael Parnell

Upon hearing a consumer found out Aldi was offering a recent beauty line that seemed comparable to items from luxury brand Augustinus Bader, she was "super excited".

Rachael hurried to her closest outlet to pick up the supermarket face cream for a low price for 50ml - a small portion of the £240 cost of the high-end 50ml item.

Its sleek blue packaging and gold lid of the two creams look remarkably comparable. While Rachael has not tested the luxury cream, she states she's pleased by the dupe so far.

She has been using beauty alternatives from popular shops and supermarkets for years, and she's in good company.

Over a quarter of UK consumers state they've purchased a skincare or makeup dupe. This jumps to nearly half among younger adults, based on a February survey.

Alternatives are beauty items that mimic established companies and present cost-effective options to luxury products. These products typically have similar branding and containers, but sometimes the formulas can change considerably.

Victoria Woollaston

'Costly Isn't Necessarily Superior'

Beauty specialists contend many dupes to premium labels are decent quality and help make beauty routines more affordable.

"In my opinion higher-priced is necessarily better," says dermatology expert a doctor. "Not every affordable skincare brand is inferior - and not all high-end skincare product is the finest."

"Certain [dupes] are truly impressive," adds Scott McGlynn, who runs a program about celebrities.

Numerous of the products based on high-end labels "run out so quickly, it's just insane," he observes.

Scott McGlynn

Skin specialist another professional thinks alternatives are fine to use for "simple routines" like hydrators and cleansers.

"These products will be effective," he comments. "These items will handle the fundamentals to a reasonable level."

A consultant dermatologist, suggests you can spend less when you're looking for single-ingredient items like hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B3 and squalane.

"If you're purchasing a simple product then you're probably going to be fine in opting for a budget alternative or something which is quite affordable because there's very little that can go wrong," she says.

'Don't Be Sold by the Packaging'

Yet the professionals also suggest shoppers do their research and state that costlier items are at times worth the extra money.

With luxury beauty products, you're not only paying for the name and promotion - at times the increased price also comes from the formula and their grade, the potency of the active ingredient, the research used to create the item, and tests into the products' efficacy, she notes.

Beauty expert another professional argues it's worth considering how certain alternatives can be offered so inexpensively.

Occasionally, she says they may include bulking agents that do not provide as significant advantages for the skin, or the ingredients might not be as carefully selected.

"One major question mark is 'How is it so inexpensive?'" she asks.

Commentator McGlynn notes sometimes he's bought skincare items that appear similar to a established brand but the item has "no resemblance to the premium version".

"Do not be convinced by the container," he added.

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For more complicated items or those with ingredients that can irritate the skin if they're not made correctly, such as retinoids or vitamin C serums, Dr Bhate recommends sticking to research-backed companies.

She states these will likely have been subjected to expensive trials to determine how successful they are.

Skincare products must be evaluated before they can be marketed in the UK, explains skin doctor another professional.

When the brand advertises about the performance of the product, it needs evidence to support it, "but the manufacturer does not always have to conduct the trials" and can alternatively use evidence done by other companies, she adds.

Check the Back of the Container

Are there any components that could signal a item is poor?

Components on the label of the tube are arranged by amount. "Potential irritants that you need to avoid… is your mineral oil, your sodium lauryl sulfate, parfum, benzel peroxide" being {high up