SPF is never out of season, but with May just one day away and temperatures inching higher, the category is coming into its annual, seasonal spotlight.
On TikTok, the hashtag #sunscreen has 1.2 million videos attached to it, while a search for the hashtag #spf generates over 236,000 posts.
For Glossy, Launchmetrics exclusively ranked the top five buzziest sunscreens, based on media impact value (MIV). A proprietary Launchmetrics metric, MIV tracks the impact of influencers, print media, celebrities, official third-party partners and a brand’s own media channels.
Based on its research, Launchmetrics found both usual suspects and fast-growing category entrants in the top five. Elta MD’s UV Pure Broad-Spectrum Sunscreen claimed the No. 1 spot, with Supergoop’s cult favorite Unseen Sunscreen ranking No. 2 on the list. Neutrogena’s Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen Lotion followed, with Black Girl Sunscreen’s Broad Spectrum and Kopari’s Sun Shield Body Glow rounding out the list.
In recent years, there’s been a rise in “skintellectual” consumers — aka, shoppers who know what ingredients do and understand that proper sun protection is perhaps the best defense against aging. This phenomenon has led to sunscreen becoming a category in which brands must innovate to compete — the sunscreen shown in one’s pool or beach Instagram is an indicator of what type of brand they align with.
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“Due to the rise of digital culture, modern consumers are looking for ways to reduce signs of aging. As a result, sun protection products became the new ‘must have’ on the beauty scene as the most trusted solution to slow the aging process, encouraging more companies to invest in product extensions offering sun protection,” said Alison Bringé, CMO of Launchmetrics.
As is the case every spring, a handful of brands have recently introduced new sunscreen formulas. They include Current State, with its Zinc Oxide + Blueberry Daily Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30; The Skinny Confidential, with its Caffeinated Sunscreen; and It Cosmetics, with its Hello Sunshine Invisible Sunscreen For Face SPF 50.
Elta MD, ranked first on Launchmetrics’s list, has long been a dermatologist favorite. The brand, which launched in 2007, is sold on Amazon and Dermstore. Runner-up Supergoop, also launched in 2007, has become known for expanding the sunscreen category with an unprecedented variety of products — it even offers SPF-infused lipsticks and eyeshadows. Supergoop’s Unseen Sunscreen is an invisible gel and the brand’s bestseller. On its website, Supergoop states that, based on 2023 global sales, it sells one tube of its Unseen Sunscreen every 12 seconds.
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Like Elta MD and Supergoop, Neutrogena, ranked third, has been a sunscreen authority for years. And, in 2023, it became the first brand to station sunscreen dispensers at Coachella. And the success of fourth place Black Girl Sunscreen is no surprise, given that consumers with darker skin tones have long had to contend with the white cast often left behind by mineral sunscreen formulas. According to the brand, its formulas dry down completely clear.
Finally, though Kopari only introduced sunscreen in the last few years, the category has exploded for the fifth-ranked brand. Kopari recently introduced four new products to its SPF portfolio. According to a rep for the brand citing Circana research, the brand has become the fastest-growing prestige SPF brand in the U.S. and the No. 2 prestige body SPF brand, with sales growing more than 45% in 2023. Kopari’s buzzy Sun Shield Body Glow Sunscreen is a luminescent gel that comes in gold, rose gold and amber. And its more recently launched Sunglaze Sheer Body Mist Sunscreen is quickly catching up in popularity — one bottle sells every minute, which is 10 times the projected amount, according to the brand representative.
