Top 8 Sunscreens in India Reviewed

There was a time when my mom used to ask me to wear sunscreen every day and I would just say “No amma I use an umbrella. That’s more than enough”. And today, after learning how sunscreen is the best skincare product you can ever use (Read, Prevention is better than cure!), I tell her – Amma, you should wear at least 1 teaspoon of sunscreen. And yes, she keeps pulling my leg every time the topic of sunscreens comes up 😂 😂

Now I am OBSESSED with sunscreens. I diligently use sunscreens and my skin tone and texture has improved dramatically (no, not my acne. I still have acne and acne scars). And sunscreen is the best wrinkle prevention product because sun damage is the top most cause of wrinkles.

Some sunscreen basics:

• SPF (Sun Protection Factor) – Measures only the UVB part of sun’s rays. UVB causes tan, redness and sunburn on the skin. SPF of 30 means that, if it generally takes 10 minutes for tan to appear in unprotected skin, it’ll take around 30 * 10 minutes = 300 minutes for tan to appear on the skin with sunscreen on.
• PA (Protection Grade of UVA) – Measures the UVA part of sun’s rays (which constitutes the major part) and is present even on cloudy days and indoors. UVA is worse than UVB because it damages our skin’s genes and speeds up skin aging (by destroying collagen). The more the number of +, the higher the UVA protection factor. Most sunscreens don’t specify PA because it is not easy to measure.
• Quantity – You’re not going to get SPF 15 if you only use a few drops of your SPF 15 daily moisturizer/foundation/powder. Because quantity matters. The general guidelines suggest that you need about 1/4 tsp of sunscreen for your face. So ya, your “SPF compact powder” dab will not reach anywhere near that!
• Re-application – Sun blockers in sunscreens work by either bouncing off the rays or absorbing them. This degrades them and that is the reason you should re-apply sunscreen. Re-apply after 2 hours of continuous sun exposure, not every 2 hours by the clock – so that means if you are in the sun for 1 hour in the morning and then 1 hour in the evening, you don’t need any reapplication 🙂
• Physical vs Chemical – This has nothing to do with what the ingredients themselves are (since all ingredients are chemicals – Herbal, Natural and Organic Products – Are They as Good as They Claim to Be?) but has got to do with HOW they protect against sun. Physical sun blockers work as a physical barrier by reflecting sun rays whereas chemical sunscreen ingredients work by absorbing rays. Some sensitive skin types cannot wear chemical sunscreen ingredients. Most popular chemical sunscreen ingredients are known to be endocrine disruptors, so use with caution.

In my quest for the perfect sunscreen for my oily skin, I’ve spent a lot of $$$ experimenting with many 😐

These are the top 8 sunscreens used in India (most are recommended by dermatologists) and among them the top marks go to those sunscreens suitable for oily and acne prone skin!

Let’s begin!

Avene Very High Protection Emulsion SPF 50+

Sunscreen Ingredients – Methylene bis-benzotriazolyl tetramethylbutylphenol (Tinosorb M), Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine (Tinosorb S), Diethylhexyl butamido triazone (Uvasorb HEB), Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane (Avobenzone). Unlike the other chemical sunscreens reviewed below, these ingredients are ALL safe(all 4 have a red flag score of less than 2 out of 10).

This recently took over from Sunprotek as my absolute favourite sunscreen because of it’s safe ingredients along with great wearability. This is lightweight, ultra fluid-y and leaves very less shine (it is not a matte finish sunscreen). It has a very slight white cast. All other sunscreens either make my face look like an oil reservoir or a Geisha. The smell is a typical European sunscreen smell that wears off within a few minutes. I love it and I am on my 2nd tube now.

Price – Around 1500 INR. You can buy it here.

Sunprotek Gel Sunscreen SPF 50+ PA+++

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, Benzophenone-3, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane (Avobenzone).

This is my 2nd favourite sunscreen of the lot. This one leaves absolutely no white cast. Just like the Avene one, this is lightweight, and leaves very less shine (it is not a matte finish sunscreen). It has aloe and allantoin which moisturize skin. I never feel the need to apply moisturizer before this. All the other sunscreens make my skin feel stretchy and dry by noon. It has a mild pleasant smell.
Price – Around 750 INR. You can buy it here.

Suncros Soft Gel Matte Finish Sunscreen SPF 50+ PA+++

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Zinc Oxide, which is a physical blocker.

It has a very clean ingredients list. This is the only perfectly matte sunscreen of the lot. Also it is the only one with a physical sunscreen blocker (Zinc Oxide). There’s no strong white cast. This would have become my favourite go to sunscreen but for one thing 🙁 I HATE the smell. It is not a perfume-y headache giving kind of smell but it is an awkward chemical smell that I just cannot tolerate.
Price – Around 575 INR. You can buy it here.

Sunmate Gel Cream SPF 30+ PA+++ and Ansolar Daily Use Gel Cream SPF 30 PA+++

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Octocrylene, Octylmethoxycinnamate, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane(Avobenzone), Ethylhexyl Triazone, Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine(Tinosorb S).

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Octocrylene, Isoamyl p-methoxycinnamate, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane(Avobenzone), Ethylhexyl Triazone, Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine(Tinosorb S).

I’ve mentioned these together because I find absolutely no difference between them! In fact even the sunscreen ingredients are almost the same! They are heavily silicone based which makes my face very very greasy. There’s no white cast though and they both don’t have any strong fragrance. But no. I cannot use them. Dry skin types may like these sunscreens.
Price –
Sunmate: Around 570 INR. You can buy it here.
Ansolar:  Around 622 INR. You can buy it here.

La Shield Oil-Free Sunscreen Gel SPF 40 PA+++

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Octinoxate, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine(Tinosorb S), Titanium Dioxide, Diethylhexyl butamido triazone.

This is another one similar to the above 2, but it is yellow in colour plus it smells so strong that I could not even use it on my legs.
Price – Around 686 INR. You can buy it here.

Body sunscreen –  All the above reviewed sunscreens are creamy and thick and so cannot be applied with ease over large body parts like arms and legs. For my body, I love this spray. It is runny, spreads easily and absorbs well.

Avene Very High Protection Spray SPF50+

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Methylene bis-benzotriazolyl tetramethylbutylphenol (Tinosorb M), Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine (Tinosorb S), Diethylhexyl butamido triazone (Uvasorb HEB), Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane (Avobenzone) – Same as the Avene Very High Protection Emulsion SPF 50+

Just like the Avene emulsion reviewed above, this took over as my favourite body sunscreen because of it has safe ingredients along with great wearability. This is lightweight, ultra fluid-y and leaves very less shine. It has a very slight white cast. The smell is a typical European sunscreen smell that wears off within a few minutes. The difference from the Avene Very High Protection Emulsion SPF 50+ is that it is more runny and watery and so spreads easily on large surfaces like arms and legs.

Price – Around 2300 INR (It is a big bottle and it will last many months). You can buy it here.

Nivea Sun Moisturizing Lotion SPF 50+ PA++++

Sunscreen Ingredients (those that actually protect you from the sun in the product) – Octocrylene, Titanium Dioxide, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane(Avobenzone), Bis-ethylhexyloxyphenol methoxyphenyl triazine(Tinosorb S)

Price – Around 450 INR. You can buy it here.