The 15 Best Tinted Sunscreens to Wear Now, According to Experts
Favorites from Merit, SkinCeuticals, and more make it easy to stay protected against UV rays
Reported by Harper's Bazaar.
Tinted sunscreen has officially graduated from afterthought to the most useful product in your morning routine. It offers real UV protection, a hint of color, and — depending on the formula — enough coverage to make foundation optional. According to Harper's Bazaar, board-certified dermatologist Dr. Jeanine B. Downie puts it plainly: with the right tinted SPF, you can skip the bronzer and foundation entirely. The American Academy of Dermatology backs the bare minimum at SPF 30 with broad-spectrum protection, but most of the best options on the market are pushing SPF 46 to 50.
Skin type actually matters here. If you're acne-prone, EltaMD's UV Clear Tinted SPF 46 is a perennial editor favorite — noncomedogenic, fragrance-free, and packed with niacinamide to calm redness. Merit's Uniform Tinted Mineral Sunscreen SPF 45 earned the Skin Cancer Foundation Seal of Recommendation and comes in 15 shades; its finely milled powders deliver that expensive, your-skin-but-better finish without any weight. For dry skin, look to formulas leaning on hyaluronic acid — Supergoop's Sun Serum uses seven molecular weights of it, while Hueguard's Skin Tint SPF 50 layers in sea buckthorn oil for serious hydration with up to 80 minutes of water resistance.
When Your Sunscreen Also Has to Work Harder
Some formulas go beyond basic UV blocking. Zo Skin Health's Smart Tone SPF 50 shields against blue light — the HEV kind your phone and laptop are constantly throwing at your face — with a self-adjusting tint and an antioxidant complex of vitamins A, C, and E that holds up for 12 hours. SkinMedica's Total Defense + Repair SPF 34, a personal pick of Dr. Downie's, adds an antioxidant complex that targets wrinkles and texture over time, and protects against infrared light — relevant if you're a sauna regular. Isdin's Eryfotona Ageless SPF 50 goes further still, using peptides to actively repair existing sun damage rather than just prevent new damage.
Sensitive or reactive skin isn't left out. La Roche-Posay's Anthelios Mineral SPF 50 uses titanium oxide and the brand's thermal spring water to soothe while it protects, and CeraVe's Hydrating Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 — under $15 at most drugstores — carries the National Eczema Association Seal of Acceptance. For anyone wanting the look and feel of a real foundation, Supergoop's SunnyDays SPF 30 delivers buildable, alcohol-free coverage that genuinely reads as makeup.
The best tinted sunscreen is the one that fits seamlessly into what you're already doing — because the only SPF that protects you is the one you'll actually wear every morning.
Read the original at Harper's Bazaar.
