High-end Makeup Dupes: Best Beauty Buys on a Budget

There are certain cosmetic items that top makeup artists just have to have in their makeup kit.

Though these items – while they do a great job – are often expensive and not a great option when you’re trying find the best beauty buys to fit a small budget.

Here’s a little secret for you: a lot of the corporations that own the companies which sell these high-end products also own budget beauty brands, and naturally their products are made in the same factories.

Therefore, there is often little difference between a foundation or blush you can buy for mucho pounds in Debenhams and a trusty little treasure found on the shelves of Superdrug.

We’ve chosen six of our best beauty buys in the high-end range and six alternatives (or ‘make dupes’ as they are known in the beauty industry), so you can save on makeup while at the same time updating your makeup bag (because you KNOW it’s time to throw away that seven-year-old blusher and flakey old mascara!)

Makeup Dupes: 6 Best Beauty Buys on a Budget

1. Nars Orgasm blusher vs. Sleek Rose Gold blusher

Nars Orgasm blusher is a truly wondrous thing and it is one of Nars’s top-selling products.

It’s a pinky-peach blusher with tiny gold flecks that is universally flattering, hence its popularity.

However, we couldn’t help noticing that Sleek Rose Gold is nearly a perfect makeup dupe for Nars Orgasm.

The main difference is that the Sleek blusher is more pigmented, but if you use a light hand and don’t pack too much product on your brush, that shouldn’t be a problem.

And because you won’t be using as much of the product it will end up lasting a lot longer, making it a great budget option.

Both blushers are silky and apply smoothly and both give that perfect peachy flush.

Price-wise, the Orgasm blusher sells for £23 and Sleek’s Rose Gold blusher sells for £4.49, so by going for the dupe you save yourself £18.51!

Click here to see Sleek MakeUP Blush Rose Gold.

2. Dior Diorshow Mascara Vs. L’Oréal Voluminous Mascara in Carbon Black

Diorshow mascara is a wonderful product (as it should be with its hefty price tag!), turning lashes from short and stubby to long and voluminous in a couple of swipes.

A close contender is L’Oréal’s Voluminous mascara in Carbon Black, which is almost an exact dupe. Both have similarly rounded wands and both create long, full lashes.

L’Oréal’s mascara is slightly stickier, but with the Dior costing £25.50 and the L’Oréal costing £8.49, we can forgive a little stickiness! Plump for the L’Oréal and you’ll be saving yourself £17.49.

Click here to see L’Oreal Voluminous Mascara.

3. Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer vs. Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer

Another Nars product, one that has quickly become a cult favourite among makeup artists and YouTube beauty gurus, and for a good reason.

It’s an incredibly creamy concealer that blends in under the eyes easily and gives a good amount of coverage.

However, there is a dupe that is A LOT cheaper and offers the same full coverage and creamy consistency as the Nars concealer: Collection’s Lasting Perfection Concealer.

The only downfall to this product is that it doesn’t have quite the same lasting power as the Nars, but that is easily fixed by lightly applying a setting powder over the top of it. This concealer works wonderfully over spots as well.

Price difference: Nars Creamy Concealer will set you back about £22, whilst Collection’s dupe comes in at a fraction of the price, costing only £4.19. That makes a saving of £17.81.

Click here to see Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer.

4. Benefit ‘The Porefessional’ vs. Maybelline Baby Skin

Benefit’s Porefessional primer is a bit of a wonder product; it blurs fine lines and pores and creates a smooth base on which to apply foundation (it looks really good on its own as well). However, it’s expensive and you don’t get much product for your pounds.

Luckily, there is a much cheaper dupe in Maybelline’s Baby Skin primer. Both of these products are silicone primers that apply like a dream to the skin, and both live up to their claims of smoothing pores and mattifying the skin.

Price-wise, Benefit’s Porefessional is £24.50 and Maybelline’s Baby Skin is £7.99. We recommend you save yourself £16.51 and go for the Baby Skin, as we certainly can’t tell the difference between the two!

Click here to see Maybelline Baby Skin.

5. YSL Touché Éclat vs. Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer

Ah, the infamous YSL Touché Éclat. The tube of magic that seems to erase signs of aging from under the eyes. It’s a beauty for sure, but it comes at a price.

Enter the pretender to the throne, Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer. At a mere fraction of the price, the Dream Lumi Touch is just as magical as the Touché Éclat.

Don’t confuse these products for concealers, though, as neither will offer much coverage under the eyes.

Instead they reflect light particles to brighten the area and can be worn over the top of a concealer if necessary.

While Touché Éclat will set you back £25, the Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch concealer is only £6.99. Making this one a no-brainer, with a saving of £18.01.

Click here to see Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer.

6. Chanel Vitalumière Aqua Foundation Vs. Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation

Chanel Vitalumière Aqua foundation is a dreamy foundation that is lightweight and glowing, offering a light to medium coverage.

It’s dupe is by Bourjois and, interestingly, until recently Bourjois owned Chanel. Therefore, it’s no surprise that there is such a similarity in the Chanel Vitalumière Aqua foundation and its dupe, Healthy Mix Serum foundation by Bourjois.

The Healthy Mix Serum foundation is another lightweight, silky base that we actually prefer to the Chanel as it looks more natural on the skin. Whereas the Chanel is a little powdery on the skin, the Bourjois is dewy and more natural-looking.

The Chanel Vitalumière Aqua costs £33, whilst the Bourjois is a much more affordable £10.99, meaning a massive saving of £22.01. At such a saving, this definitely makes the Bourjois foundation one of our top best beauty buys.

Click here to see Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Foundation.

Over to you!

Have you found any budget alternatives for high-end makeup loves? Are they an exact match or do you prefer one over the other? We’d love to hear from you!

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