Anessa

Anessa Brightening UV Sunscreen Gel.

Sunscreen

About this product

A Japanese brightening sunscreen gel with tone-up coverage and skincare actives, designed to even skin tone while providing UV protection.

Full ingredients

Water (Aqua), Dimethicone, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate, Alcohol, Zinc Oxide, Titanium Dioxide, Glycerin, Diisopropyl Sebacate, Tranexamic Acid, Diphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, PEG-100 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Silica, PPG-17, Hydrated Silica, Isostearic Acid, Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Dimethylacrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Crosspolymer, Titanium Dioxide (Ci 77891), Aluminum Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Dextrin Palmitate, Hydrogen Dimethicone, Mica, Sorbitan Sesquiisostearate, Beheneth-20, Succinoglycan, Cellulose Gum, Fragrance (Parfum), BHT, Tocopherol, Citric Acid, Sodium Metaphosphate, Trisodium EDTA, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose Stearoxy Ether, Sodium Citrate

Guru Score

72%

Mixed

Early verdict · Few reviews so far

What they liked

Nice skincare formula

What they flagged

Bunches and chunks when blending
Builds up in hairline and brows
Hard to apply enough for full sun protection

What the gurus are saying

This sunscreen's blending is frustratingly uneven, building up and chunking in fine areas like the hairline and brows even at minimal amounts, making it hard to apply the full recommended dose. The skincare formula underneath is genuinely nice, but the tone-up effects don't justify the difficult application for most people. One expert praises it, though, so there's real disagreement on whether the skincare payoff outweighs the user experience.

Synthesized from 2 expert reviews · most recent take August 2026

Type

SunscreenGel

Key actives

Vitamin ESPF

Formula notes

Contains fragranceContains drying alcohol

Where to buy

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What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored

Tina Tanaka Harris

277k subs

~Nay

"Even as a makeup primer I [...] felt like it bunched up in some areas. [...] I have not had much success with Japanese tone-up sunscreens, and unfortunately this was no exception. [...] The skincare formula itself is very, very nice, but the tone-up effects are not good enough to deal with the bad user experience, and I would rather just have those skincare benefits to wear every day."

No BS Beauty

89k subs

~Yay

"This one is one of my favorites. Anessa makes a ton of other ones that do have a little bit of fragrance. This one is their brightening one. It does have a little bit of fragrance in it, but this one's great, too."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Tranexamic acid

Tranexamic acid has a growing body of clinical evidence for melasma and the stubborn patches of pigment that other ingredients struggle with.

Source: DermNet

Sunscreen filters

Sun protection is the best evidenced way to slow visible ageing, and the filters are what does the work. Mineral and chemical filters both protect when a product is applied thickly enough and often enough, which is where most people fall short rather than on the choice of filter.

Source: DermNet

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is an antioxidant, and it is often in a formula to keep the other ingredients stable rather than as the active itself. It pairs well with vitamin C, though on its own the evidence for visible change is limited.

Source: NIH, National Library of Medicine

Frequently asked.

What is Anessa Brightening UV Sunscreen Gel?

A Japanese brightening sunscreen gel with tone-up coverage and skincare actives, designed to even skin tone while providing UV protection.

Is Anessa Brightening UV Sunscreen Gel worth it?

The gurus mostly approve it, but with enough reservations to keep it in the middle at a Guru Score of 72%.

What is Anessa Brightening UV Sunscreen Gel's Guru Score?

Anessa Brightening UV Sunscreen Gel holds a Guru Score of 72%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 2 expert reviewers we have collected.