Best Sunscreen: The 2024 List Beauty Awards
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We all know by now that sunscreen is the most important step of a good beauty routine. In an effort to thwart dreaded sun damage to the skin, it's best to forego foundations with SPF and work the real deal, sunscreen, into your daily rotation for the proper protection.
Choosing the perfect sunscreen to fit into said beauty routine hasn't always been so easy. For anyone who had Coppertone Water Babies slathered onto their face (and inadvertently into their eyes) as a kid, sunscreen may have once felt more like a chore than self care. The good news is we've come a long way from the sticky, white-cast lotion of yore with plenty of innovative sunscreen options that work more seamlessly with your skincare.
Still, with a market as saturated as ever, finding the right sunscreen for you can feel a little daunting. I tested 10 top-rated sunscreens for their skin benefits, wearability and performance, and narrowed down five top picks, with one sunscreen shining bright above the rest.
Best Overall: TULA Daily SPF 30 Sunscreen Gel
TULA Daily SPF 30 Sunscreen Gel totally redefines what it means to wear sunscreen everyday. Incorporating TULA's brand-signature probiotics, this ultra-lightweight SPF gel quenches and cools the skin upon application, making it the perfect finishing touch to my skincare routine. The gel sheers out to give a lasting glow unlike any product I've ever tried, sunscreen or otherwise. Seriously, I distracted friends on a coffee date with the glow power this sunscreen gave my bare skin.
The glow alone had me sold, but the protection in this product made me fall deeper in love. In addition to SPF 30, which you should never go below in SPF, pollution and blue light are listed alongside its UVA AND UVB protection. Forget the greasy sunscreens of your past; TULA delivers a one-of-a-kind, smooth daily sunscreen that will work for anyone who loves luminosity.
Buy TULA Daily SPF 30 Sunscreen Gel on Amazon for $33.
Best under makeup: Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen
The viral hype behind Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen is 100% warranted, especially for makeup lovers. With the softest consistency of all the sunscreens tested, Supergoop's unique sunscreen feels similar to a pore-blurring makeup primer, making it the perfect first step under a full face. This sunscreen indeed goes on unseen, with such a lightweight finish on the face you'll wonder if you missed a step when you complete your skincare and makeup for the day (I almost did).
The sweat-proof formulation is also a guarantee, as this sunscreen didn't budge throughout the day without makeup. Like a primer, I also noticed this sunscreen tempered my oily skin when worn under makeup the following day. Many have bucked at the price of the Unseen Sunscreen, but if you consider the priming capabilities of this effective sunscreen, this 2-in-1 is a must-have.
Buy Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen on Amazon for $38.
Best skincare: EltaMD UV Clear Face Sunscreen, SPF 46
If you're a fellow skincare junkie and have sought sunscreen recommendations on TikTok, you've likely seen EltaMD recommended by dermatologists and product enthusiasts alike. While there's no actual M.D. behind this product review — Hi, regular beauty consumer here — I can confirm EltaMD UV Clear Face Sunscreen is the most nourishing sunscreen of the batch I tried in this round-up. This feels most like a regular moisturizer on the skin with pampering ingredients including hyaluronic acid and niacinamide. EltaMD UV Clear Face Sunscreen felt soothing upon application, and as promised on their product page, I was left with no white cast — just supple, glowy and protected skin.
Long story short, this is about as close to a moisturizer as a sunscreen can get, and adding EltaMD UV Clear Face Sunscreen to your routine will leave your skin thanking you.
Buy EltaMD UV Clear Face Sunscreen, SPF 46 on Amazon for $43.
Best body: Coola Organic Sunscreen
The skin is the biggest organ of the body; of course sun protection goes further than just our faces. Coola's spray bottle design makes it easy to apply SPF all over. Its nozzle sprays virtually in every direction, making this a great option for anyone active wanting to keep a sunscreen on deck while out and about. This water-resistant sunscreen survived a day of outside spring cleaning without pooling up on the skin or stinging in my eyes.
Unlike other drugstore sunscreens with the same design, Coola offers moisturizing and organic ingredients beyond the chemical aerosols you may be used to in the sunscreen isle. Rather than feeling weighed down and sticky, spraying this on my face and body felt refreshing and sleek. This fragrance-free option is sure to please anyone with scent sensitivity (although other options in Coola's line offer scents straight out of the tropics).
Buy Coola Organic Sunscreen on Amazon for $20.
Best splurge: Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protector Lotion
Picture this: you're soaking up rays on a lavish beach vacation this summer. If you've splurged on your means of getting a tan, odds are good you want your SPF to match those bougie vibes, too. For high-end shoppers, Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protector Lotion delivers a luxurious sunscreen most definitely worth the price tag.
The serum-like consistency of Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protector Lotion makes this product a breeze to incorporate in your beauty routine and reapply throughout the day. It's sheer with a beautiful, silky finish on the skin. Of course, the fun of high-end products are in the details; enjoy Shiseido's easy-to-palm packaging that feels like the grown-up version of Loreal Kids shampoo bottle, and fresh scent that wows but doesn't overpower. This citrusy sunscreen would compliment any hand holding an Aperol spritz at the White Lotus, or anywhere the sun is high in the sky and the atmosphere is fancy.
Buy Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protector Lotion on Amazon for $50.