WHICH SUNSCREEN WORKS BEST? WE FIND OUT
We tested a variety, from baby to sport.
Last year, I put 16 mosquito repellents to the test and found some definite winners — and some losers.
This year, I grabbed 21 sunscreens of various types and tested them. I have very fair skin (ghostlike, my family says) and burn easily. I tried the sunscreens while gardening, while going for a long hike in the middle of Austin in the heat of the day (don’t try this at home) and while swimming at the pool.
I also rotated which area of the body each one covered to make sure that each sunscreen got an opportunity to be on both the upper body and lower body, except the ones that were made especially for the face. I tried ones that sprayed on, foamed on, slathered on and applied like deodorant. Some were all-natural, some had chemicals by the dozen; some were sunblock rather than sunscreen. They had SPF (sun protection factor) of 21 to 100. Was there a difference?
The good news: All of them were better than nothing at all. The patches of skin left bare definitely reddened.
Here’s how we rated them.
Banana Boat Sport Sunscreen Stick
Type: Sunscreen stick with Powerstay Technology Price: $7.92 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 50+ Ingredients: Avobenzon e , homos a late, octisalate, octocrylene, plus some other chemicals and cocoa butter
Water-resistant: Water andsweatupto80minutes Scent: Very light
Does it work? We did have some skin color change, but not a lot. It was some of the most water-resistant and sweat-resistant of the group. It was easy to use
and didn’t feel tacky at all. In fact, you could hardly tell you had it on. Would we use it again? For ease of use, yes, but we would go over the area a couple of times. Also, it’s unclear how much of the body you could cover before you would run out.
Neutrogena CoolDry Sport Sunscreen Stick
Type: Sunscreen Stick with Micromesh Price: $9.97 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 50+ Ingredients: Avobenzone, homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, oxybenzone, also some beeswax, plus paraffin and chemicals Water-resistant: Waterand sweat-resistant up to 80 minutes
Scent: Strong scent that’s nice but might be overpowering on the whole body
Does it work? No. This area hads ome of the biggest color change. It did have some excel- lent water resistance but wasn’t particularly sweat-proof. It also was tacky to the touch and hard to see where it went on. Would we use it again? No.Welovetheideaofasun- screen stick for ease of use, but it didn’t work as well as the Banana Boat version.
Goddess Garden Organics Sport
Type: Cream Price: $12.98 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 30
Ingredients: Titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, with some shea butter, coconut oil, safflower seed oil and sunflower oil. It calls itself a“na tural sunscreen ”with organic ingredients and says it has no chemical sunscreen. Water-resistant: Yes, for 80 minutes
Scent: I thought it was smelly; my husband thought it smelled good. Doesitwork? Yes. There was no skin color change with this sunscreen. It definitely had waterproofing and sweatproofing abilities. Would we use it again? Probably not. It was definitely
one of the best sunscreens as far as efficacy, but it left a white residue and was smelly.
It also never full yrubb ed into the skin and left its mark on the seat of the car.
No-Ad Suncare 30 Sport
Type: Sunscreen Price: $6.97 with a $2 coupon SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 30
Ingredients: Avobenzone, homosalate, octisalate, oxybenzone, plus some alcohol, glycerin and a lot less
other inactive ingredients than most. It says it is paraben-free, fragrance-free and oil-free. Water-resistant: Waterand sweat-resistant up to 80 minutes Scent: It has a heavy sunscreen scent. Does it work? Yes. We did not notice a color change any time we used it. It stayed on with sweat and water, though it wasn’t noticeably water- resistant. Would we use it again? Maybe. It worked, but it was cold when it went on and slightly greasy. The smell was like wearing a walking
billboard for sunscreen.
Neutrogena CoolDry Sport Sunscreen Spray
Type: Spray Price: $10.97 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 70 Ingredients: Avobenzone, homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, oxybenzone, plus some other chemicals Water-resistant: Yes, up to 80 minutes, plus it says it “stays on through sweat.”
Scent: It smells like a French perfume in a good way. Does it work? We saw some color change. It was the easiest spray to use, though. Whenyoudouseit,g et ready to jump. It’s really, really cold when it touches the skin. It also was a li ttle greasy. We didn’t notice any particu- larly great water resistance or sweat resistance. Would we use it again? Proba bly not. We wa nted it to work better as as unscreen.
Hawaiian Tropic Island Sport Ultra Light
Type: Cream lotion Price: $7.92 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 30
Ingredients: Avobenzone, octocrylene, oxybenzone, plus fruit and flower extracts, shea butter, mango seed butter, paraffin, alcohol and chemicals. It says it is oilfree and breathable, nongreasy and won’t clog pores.
Water-resistant: Waterand sweat-resistant for 80 minutes Scent: Smells nice, though sunscreeny. Does it work? Somewhat. There was definitely a color change, but it wasn’t particularly bad. It definitely had water-resistant properties. Would we use it again? Maybe. It was one of the nicest-feeling of the creams and rubbed in well. It left the skin with a cool feeling and wasn’t sticky. Its performance was a bit disappointing.
Baby Badger Baby Chamomile & Calendula
Type: Very thick cream Price: $11.48 with $2 off coupon SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 30 Ingredients: Zinc oxide, plus sunflower seed oil, beeswax, chamomile, calendula extract, seabuckthorn fruit extract. The tube says it is non-GMO, biodegradable, 98 percent organic, 100 percent certified natural.
Water-resistant: Yes, up to 40 minutes Scent: Light floral scent
Does it work? Yes. Badger Baby was one of the best-performing. It was definitely water-resistant and sweat-proof. It was one of the few spots where there was no coloration of the skin, except the white residue left by the cream. The cream was a bit hard to spread because of its thickness. We could definitely tell where we put it. The scent was OK, but with all those floral ingredients, we expected it to smell better. Would we use it again? Yes, especially on someone who is fair-skinned or a baby
Banana Boat Simply Protect Baby
Type: Mineral-based lotion Price: $7.92 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 50+ Ingredients: Titanium dioxide, zinc oxide. The tube says there are no oxybenzone or parabens, no added oils or fragrances, but there are plenty of glycerides and other chemicals listed in the inactive ingredients. Water-resistant: Yes, up to 80 minutes Scent: Light sunscreen scent
Does it work? Yes. It was definitely sweat-proof and water-resistant, but it does not rub in or remove easily with soap and water. Days later, my back is still white from where this sunscreen is lingering. It also was not as thick as some sunscreens, so it got everywhere, including my car seat. Would we use it again? Maybe. The great thing is it really works, but with it getting everywhere and being hard to get out, we’re a bit hesitant.
Coppertone Water Babies Pure & Simple Whipped
Type: Mousselike whipped sunscreen Price: $9.97 SPF: Broad-spectrum SPF 50
Ingredients: Avobenzone, homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, oxybenzone, plus various alcohols, acids and other chemicals. The bottle also says it is free of fragrances, parabens, oils, dyes and PABA. Water-resistant: Yes, up to 80 minutes
Scent: Very light sunscreen smell Does it work? It definitely let some reddening of the skin happen. It also was not sweat-proof at all, and we didn’t experience any waterresistant qualities. Would we use it again? Probably not. We loved the concept of the whipped sunscreen, but it was incredibly hard to unlock the cap and press down on the top to squirt out the mousse. It also got all over clothes, but it did rub in better than some of the other baby lotion.