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Nivea

UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++.

Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++
Sunscreen

About this product

A water-gel sunscreen with SPF 50 PA+++ in a pump bottle designed for face and body protection.

Full ingredients

Guru Score

83%

Yay

5 experts · Moderate agreement
5Gurus
4Yay
1Mixed
0Nay

What they liked

  • Fast-absorbing texture
  • Fragrance-free
  • No white cast

What they flagged

  • Slightly lower protection

What the gurus are saying

This water-gel texture has a distinctive feel: when you apply it, it almost bursts into water, creating a refreshing, lightweight sensation that absorbs quickly without leaving greasy residue. The denatured alcohol gives it that quick-drying benefit, but people sensitive to alcohol may want to reserve it for body use rather than the face. The pump bottle makes it convenient to reach for, and the fragrance-free formula works well for sensitive skin.
Synthesized from 5 expert reviews · most recent take August 2026

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
Yay
"Ranking number three is the older version in the same family from Nivea, the Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++. I started using this product a long time ago, forgot about it for years, and recently brought it back into my routine. It's still actually a really good body sunscreen, even though it has less protection than the EX version. I keep it by my back door so I never forget to put it on, and it's about convenience, wanting to wear it and making it easy to wear, which is why these are the most emptied sunscreens of my summer."
All 3 takes from Kelly Driscoll
$10 Body Sunscreens!
"This product is almost two to four times as big as most Asian beauty sunscreens. I love the pump, I love the refills. This gave me so much value when I just wanted some sunscreen for casual sun exposure. This really fit the bill. It offers SPF 50 PA+++ protection. They're using three chemical filters, with a mixture of older and newer generation ones. This formula doesn't contain added fragrance, but there is denatured alcohol in here. This isn't rated for water resistance, so definitely don't use this for heavy duty sweating or swimming. This is for casual sun exposure. The texture is a lighter, looser gel that spreads beautifully, creating an airy, weightless layer on the skin. The denatured alcohol means this dries in a snap, so I don't have to wait long for my body sunscreen to dry, which I find so convenient. I hate waiting around for body sunscreen to dry. This feels amazing with no greasy feel, no emolliency or moisturization, and no shiny finish. It just applies and absorbs."
I Forgot About These Products for Years. Big Mistake.
"I've been using this since at least 2016. I really like this one for body sunscreen. It does contain denatured alcohol, and my face skin doesn't usually tolerate that, but my body skin is absolutely fine with it, and I actually prefer it in a body sunscreen because it creates something that feels lighter, that dries and absorbs faster, that doesn't feel greasy or like it's sitting on top of your skin. It fell out of my routine during the pandemic because international shipping was a disaster, and I forgot about it until this summer when I tried a bunch of other body sunscreens and hated every single one of them, so I went back to this. It's just as good as I remember it, very elegant in the texture, watery, refreshing, gel-like, sinks into your skin quickly, invisible in terms of white cast, and it's not that greasy layer that sits on top of your skin. It's fairly protective, SPF 50 PA+++. I also found there's a new EX version I'd never tried before, which is basically the same thing you love about the original formula but upgraded to SPF 50 plus PA++++ for better protection, and I really can't tell a big difference in the texture, it's still a water gel-like texture, sinks in beautifully, not greasy, not sticky or tacky, weightless, no white cast, doesn't pill. I'm still using this and I really appreciate the protection of it. Everybody in the house loves it."
I Ranked Every Product I Emptied This Summer | Honest Reviews
"Ranking number three is the older version in the same family from Nivea, the Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++. I started using this product a long time ago, forgot about it for years, and recently brought it back into my routine. It's still actually a really good body sunscreen, even though it has less protection than the EX version. I keep it by my back door so I never forget to put it on, and it's about convenience, wanting to wear it and making it easy to wear, which is why these are the most emptied sunscreens of my summer."
Yay
"It can be used on face and the body, and I've used it on both. It comes in a really nice convenient pump that I've actually traveled with because it has a pump cover so it doesn't leak when you're traveling. The only thing with this one is it's really not waterproof, which I don't think is a big deal at all. It's really good for your everyday face, neck, chest, non-sweaty wear, really anything under makeup. I love this. It applies so nice. The key ingredients are hyaluronic acid, cahadia bark extract, and tocopherol acetate. I think this is best for those who want the no-sunscreen sunscreen feel. If you want to wear SPF and you want it to feel like nothing on your face or if you have combination and oily skin, she's your girl. It's going to feel like you're wearing nothing at all. It has no scent. I did apply it to my eyelids and it did not bother my eyelids at all."
Yay
"The first one is Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++. You may have heard me talk about this before, but it's one of my favorites to use. It comes in a pump that's easy to dispense. You can use it on face and body. And even though Nivea is a German brand, they make some amazing Japanese Asia exclusive products that you only buy in Japan or Asia that's really popular. And this sunscreen is definitely one of them. It's lightweight, non-greasy formula. Feels like you have like water on your skin, absorbs really quickly and also can double as a makeup base for use on the face as well. It could be suitable for sensitive skin because it is fragrance-free. Offers high SPF protection, SPF 50. So really kind of is like one-stop shop to use on face and body. It is also water resistant and has this elegant texture like I said that is hydrating but also nonsticky and fast absorbing and will not leave a white cast. So ingredient wise aside from the advanced chemical filters that we don't have here. It also has hyaluronic acid that helps to moisturize the skin and then additional plant extract to soothe and offer additional antioxidant protection along with vitamin E. So, just a great all-around sunscreen."
All 2 takes from Dr. Jenny Liu
Body Sunscreens That Don’t Feel Gross | Derm’s top picks | Dr. Jenny Liu
"The first one is Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++. You may have heard me talk about this before, but it's one of my favorites to use. It comes in a pump that's easy to dispense. You can use it on face and body. And even though Nivea is a German brand, they make some amazing Japanese Asia exclusive products that you only buy in Japan or Asia that's really popular. And this sunscreen is definitely one of them. It's lightweight, non-greasy formula. Feels like you have like water on your skin, absorbs really quickly and also can double as a makeup base for use on the face as well. It could be suitable for sensitive skin because it is fragrance-free. Offers high SPF protection, SPF 50. So really kind of is like one-stop shop to use on face and body. It is also water resistant and has this elegant texture like I said that is hydrating but also nonsticky and fast absorbing and will not leave a white cast. So ingredient wise aside from the advanced chemical filters that we don't have here. It also has hyaluronic acid that helps to moisturize the skin and then additional plant extract to soothe and offer additional antioxidant protection along with vitamin E. So, just a great all-around sunscreen."
Derm's favorite Japanese Sunscreens | Dr. Jenny Liu
"This sunscreen is really nice because number one it is lightweight, non-greasy. It is also fragrance-free, so great for sensitive skin. It can be used daily on face and body, can be used alone or under makeup. It's really great as a makeup primer. It is SPF 50, so high SPF protection, and it does contain chemical filters. The only thing I would say is if you're going to use it as your summer sunscreen for face and body, which definitely makes it easier as a one-stop shop, it is unfortunately not water resistant. So it's great to wear if you're out and about, but if you're going to be active, sweating, and swimming, you definitely want to make sure you reapply frequently. It has a milky gel-like texture that makes it very smooth and easy to spread and leaves really minimal sticky residue. So again, it's a great one to use on face and body. And what I love is that most Asian sunscreens come in a relatively small tube, ideal for face and neck use, but this one is a larger bottle and comes in a pump, so it really makes application and reapplication so much easier. Ingredient-wise, it contains hyaluronic acid and vitamin E that are hydrating and soothing for the skin and skin barrier, as well as other plant-derived ingredients."
Yay
"It's actually one I've used over and over again. There have been several iterations of it. It's been reformulated, tweaked, refined, if you will. And that's the Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50, PA3+. This has Juveninal T150, Juvenile A+, and Octinoxade. It does have alcohol. Don't be scared. This I love because it's fast drying, not the least bit greasy. Doesn't peel. And I love that it comes in this pump bottle. The pump bottle is so convenient for reapplication purposes. It makes reapplying easy. And like I said, it's got alcohol in it, but it's not drying. It doesn't burn. It doesn't sting."
All 3 takes from Dr Dray
The Best Black Friday Skincare Deals You Don't Want To Miss!
"It has octinoxate and octisalate as the active ingredients. The formula also has hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid which is very very moisturizing and helps improve the water content in the top layers of the skin. This is very fast absorbing and non-greasy. It does have alcohol in it though, so if you're sensitive to that or find that it's too drying, this would not be one for you. And I just love the pump because it kind of encourages more reapplication."
Japanese Sunscreens WE NEED TO DISCUSS | 2024
"I have always liked this product. It's not water or sweat resistant, it doesn't claim to be. It has a PA rating of three whereas every other sunscreen in this review is a PA rating of four. It is SPF 50, but I view this more as an everyday sunscreen for people who hate sunscreen because it's really really comfortable. I love it, easy to apply, almost feels like a little burst of hydration, not the least bit greasy or shiny whatsoever. It's another one that is absolutely perfect for people with facial hair. If you want to get somebody to get in the habit of sunscreen, this is one that a lot of people end up being like, oh, I actually don't mind using that. This one has geranium extract in it which may also have some anti-inflammatory, antioxidant compounds in it, but if you're allergic to anything in that extract, it's kind of a bit of an unknown because there might be compounds in there that cross react with existing allergies that you might have. But it might also be offering something of benefit to the formula. I love a pump package. I find that they're a lot easier to use and I absolutely adore this kind."
*BEST* Sunscreen Gels With NO WHITE CAST 2025
"It's actually one I've used over and over again. There have been several iterations of it. It's been reformulated, tweaked, refined, if you will. And that's the Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50, PA3+. This has Juveninal T150, Juvenile A+, and Octinoxade. It does have alcohol. Don't be scared. This I love because it's fast drying, not the least bit greasy. Doesn't peel. And I love that it comes in this pump bottle. The pump bottle is so convenient for reapplication purposes. It makes reapplying easy. And like I said, it's got alcohol in it, but it's not drying. It doesn't burn. It doesn't sting."
Mixed
"This is a super lightweight sunscreen and it has this effect where when you put it on your skin it feels like it bursts into water so it feels super refreshing after you've applied it. It does have a pretty strong alcohol smell when you put it on at first. My main issue with it is the slightly lower protection, but as an everyday sunscreen it is really nice."
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What the evidence says.

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

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

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 Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++?

A water-gel sunscreen with SPF 50 PA+++ in a pump bottle designed for face and body protection.

Is Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++ worth it?

Mostly yes. 4 of the 5 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 83%.

What is Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++'s Guru Score?

Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++ holds a Guru Score of 83%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 5 expert reviewers we have collected.

Who is Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++ best for?

Nivea UV Super Water Gel SPF 50 PA+++ is generally suited to oily skin and combination skin.

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