Skin Obsessed Mary has worked through at least 30 sunscreens, and her approval rate sits at 63%. That means more than a third of what she tried didn't make the cut. Most of her passes come down to feel and finish: she knows fast when a formula isn't working, and she says so plainly.
What does Skin Obsessed Mary recommend in sunscreen?
The sunscreens Mary keeps coming back to tend to be light, easy to layer, and hydrating without feeling heavy. She praised the Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel SPF 50+ PA++++ so highly that she regularly buys two or three at a time, calling it possibly her favourite sunscreen ever and noting it leaves zero white cast. The Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum SPF 50+ PA++++ and Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Moisture Airy Fit Daily Sunscreen SPF 50 earned similar warmth for being lightweight and hydrating at the same time. Finish matters to her too: the Bloom Effects Tulip Dew Sunscreen Serum SPF 50 won her over with a silky, dewy result, and she takes the Naturium Dew Glow Tinted Moisturizer SPF 50 with her everywhere.
In her words
"This could be my favorite sunscreen ever. It is definitely my most repurchased. It's hydrating, it layers beautifully under pretty much everything, and it has zero white cast, and it's super affordable. So I tend to buy two or three of these at a time. I don't have any more right now, I just have too many sunscreens because I keep buying them to test them and I just can't justify a repurchase. But I can tell you I will be buying more of this. I always do."
"I also just picked up La Roche-Posay's Anthelios UV Air. This is light as air, and I find it wonderful for just layering again and again throughout the day. I don't think you can get this in the US."
"This is Bloom Effects' Tulip Screen Dew sunscreen, a mineral sunscreen, and interestingly I generally don't reach for mineral sunscreens, there are only two I like at all and this is one of them. I like it because it's light enough to layer, [...] it feels super silky on the skin, and the color is perfect. It just gives me this nice little dewy finish, it's just fabulous, but I have no more."
"The DLow moisturizer SPF is just an incredible sunscreen that I take with me everywhere."
"I love their skin care, which is the Madagascar Centella SPF. It's one of my favorite SPFs that I discovered last year."
"This is Haruharu Wonder's Black Rice Moisture Airy Sun daily sunscreen. I really liked this, [...] it's lightweight and hydrating at the same time, it just went on beautifully, and I went through it in a snap. I hope I can get my hands on this again."
How many sunscreens has Skin Obsessed Mary reviewed?
Skin Obsessed Mary has reviewed 30 sunscreens, for an approval rate of 63%. 19 approved, 4 mixed, and 7 skipped.
What has Skin Obsessed Mary skipped in sunscreen?
When a formula left her cold, the reason was almost always physical. The Avène Sunscreen Tinted Lotion SPF 50 looked beautiful but never sank in and transferred onto everything she touched. She said it would have been a winner if it could absorb. The Naked Sundays Collagen Glow 100% Mineral Perfecting Priming Lotion SPF 50 started ashy, got drier through the day, and scored a four out of ten. The Naturium Sheer Reflect Antioxidant SPF 50 came with instructions to shake well before use, which she read as marketing spin. She used it twice and put it aside. Even the EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46, a dermatologist-recommended formula she once relied on, didn't make her repurchase list once she found better options.
"Though very fine, the powder can sometimes be felt. Be sure to shake well, but that sounds like a bit of a marketing spin to me. I really wish that I'd read that before I bought it. I don't like it. I think I used it twice and then I put it aside. I gave it a three out of 10 because the price was so good and some people might actually like it, but it's not for me."
"This was probably my first real sunscreen, the one that I committed to when I learned that I really needed to start taking care of my skin. It was dermatologist recommended. But there are now so many more options that I haven't repurchased this and I don't really plan to. It's also kind of hard to find, plus I heard they reformulated."
"It did start to warm up on application, making it easier to spread. Now there's quite a weird color to it, it starts pretty ashy but in the end it seemed okay for my skin tone, although I'm not sure it's going to suit everyone. It's not as hydrating or as glowy as I'd like, and to be honest it got a bit drier throughout the day. I didn't love it. It retails for $34 for 50 mls. I gave it a four out of 10."
"I thought this was beautiful, but it just didn't sink into my skin. It just sat on top of my skin. Plus it was super transferable. It came off on everything, my clothes, my phone, no matter what I was doing, it just seemed to rub off. If it were able to absorb a bit more into the skin, I think it would have been a winner, but it just looked beautiful and I was really sad with the results because I had high hopes."
What should you take from Skin Obsessed Mary's picks?
Mary's record on sunscreens is genuinely useful for anyone who finds most SPFs too heavy or too white on the skin. She has named the Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel SPF 50+ PA++++ her outright winner, and her other approvals follow the same logic: if it layers easily, absorbs well, and leaves no cast, she is likely to love it. If it sits on top of the skin or feels powdery, she will skip it and tell you exactly why.
Watch Skin Obsessed Mary say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel SPF 50+ PA++++Named a winnerWatch at 7:46
- Naturium Sheer Reflect Antioxidant SPF 50Skipped itWatch at 8:14
- EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46Skipped itWatch at 6:51
- Naked Sundays Collagen Glow 100% Mineral Perfecting Priming Lotion SPF 50Skipped itWatch at 6:37
- Avène Sunscreen Tinted Lotion SPF 50Skipped itWatch at 5:39
- Clinique Mineral Sunscreen Fluid for Face SPF 50Skipped itWatch at 4:15
- Vichy Capital Soleil Tinted Dry Touch Protective Face Fluid SPF 50Skipped itWatch at 9:15
- The INKEY List Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30Skipped itWatch at 3:19
- La Roche-Posay UV Air Sunscreen Serum SPF 50Rated itWatch at 4:30
- Bloom Effects Tulip Dew Sunscreen Serum SPF 50Rated itWatch at 14:11
- Naturium Dew Glow Tinted Moisturizer SPF 50Rated itWatch at 11:28
- Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum SPF 50+ PA++++Rated itWatch at 5:54
- Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Moisture Airy Fit Daily Sunscreen SPF 50Rated itWatch at 16:10
- DRMTLGY Universal Tinted Moisturizer SPF 46Rated itWatch at 17:33
- BYOMA Ultra Light Face Fluid SPF 50Rated itWatch at 11:22
- Thank You Farmer Sun Project Water Sun Cream SPF 50+ PA++Rated itWatch at 12:49
- Hello Sunday One That's a Serum SPF 50 PA+++Rated itWatch at 18:12
- Eevee Daily Face Mousse SPF 50Rated itWatch at 6:08
- make p:rem UV Defense Me. Daily Sun EssenceRated itWatch at 18:10
- Evie Daily Defense Mousse SPFRated itWatch at 10:50
- Garnier Ambre Solaire Super UV Invisible Serum SPF 50+Rated itWatch at 19:01
- Then I Met You Light Essence Broad Sunscreen Moisturizer SPF 50Rated itWatch at 4:23
- Allies of Skin Sunless Tan SPF 50 Daily Self-TannerRated itWatch at 4:09
- Beauty of Joseon Relief Sun: Rice + Probiotics SPF 50+ PA++++ (Korean formula)Rated itWatch at 5:12
About this expert
See everything Skin Obsessed Mary has reviewed
Related guides
This guide reflects what Skin Obsessed Mary said across her videos about 30 products in sunscreen, aggregated by The Guru Index. Sponsored takes are excluded. The approval rate is the share of these products she approved. It is general information, not medical advice.