Sunscreen Ranker journal
The sunscreen
journal.
Daily, evidence-led notes on SPF, UV filters, and sun protection — every claim sourced, no cap.
- Filter chemistry EU Reaffirms Octinoxate Safe at 10% in 2025 SCCS Opinion Octinoxate is banned in Hawaii but the EU just reaffirmed it at 10% in 2025, a sharp case study in why 'endocrine-active' doesn't automatically mean 'unsafe at use levels.' Read it →
- Formulation EU Sets a Phthalate Impurity Limit for the UV Filter DHHB (2025) A modern UVA filter got scrutinized in 2025 not for itself but for a phthalate that can sneak in during manufacturing, showing why purity matters as much as the INCI name. Read it →
- Kids & family A Kids' Sunscreen Topped 2025 US Rankings, But Others Flopped For parents, 2025's tests cut both ways: the best-scoring sunscreen was a kids' formula, yet several kids' products badly underperformed, so here's how to choose. Read it →
- Application Consumer Reports 2025: Many Sunscreens Tested Below Their Label SPF America's best-known consumer tester echoes Australia's warning: you often can't take the SPF number at face value, so here's what to actually buy. Read it →
- Global Even a Kids' Zinc Sunscreen Failed Its SPF Claim in 2025 An SPF number is a promise, not a guarantee, and a 2025 Australian test shows why even a trusted kids' zinc sunscreen can underperform, plus what that means for application. Read it →
- Formulation 'Baby-Friendly' Sunscreen Has No Standard Definition, 2025 Study Finds That cute 'baby' bottle isn't a regulated category, so here's which label claims are meaningful and which are pure marketing before you choose your child's sunscreen. Read it →
- Filter chemistry SAFE Sunscreen Standards Act Becomes Law in November 2025 A bipartisan 2025 law finally chips away at why US sunscreen lags the world, opening a path for the elegant tinted and hybrid SPF formulas Americans import to be made at home. Read it →
- Application The CHOICE Investigation That Triggered a Sunscreen Recall Wave What an SPF label actually guarantees, and why a testing scandal abroad should change how you pick, apply, and reapply your sunscreen at home. Read it →
- Global June 2025 Was Western Europe's Warmest June on Record When dangerous heat and high UV arrive in June instead of August, the 'I'll start sunscreen in midsummer' habit leaves weeks of skin unprotected. Read it →
- Filter chemistry 16 of 20 Sunscreens Failed SPF Claims, One Returned SPF 4 The number on the bottle isn't a guarantee, so here's what an independent lab actually found and how to choose a sunscreen that delivers what it promises. Read it →
- Skin cancer When a Cancer Charity's Sunscreen Gets Flagged: The CHOICE Dispute Even a cancer-prevention charity's sunscreen got flagged in 2025, and the dispute that followed reveals why two labs can disagree, and why behavior beats the bottle. Read it →
- Application From SPF 50+ to SPF 4: The Ultra Violette Lean Screen Recall How can one sunscreen test as both SPF 4 and SPF 64? The Lean Screen saga is a masterclass in why SPF testing variability is a red flag, not a footnote. Read it →
- Global CHOICE's 2025 SPF Bombshell: 16 of 20 Sunscreens Failed The biggest sunscreen story of 2025 wasn't benzene, it was discovering the number on the bottle can be wildly wrong, and what that means for how much you reapply. Read it →
- Application 16 of 20 'SPF 50+' Sunscreens Failed Lab Tests in 2025 A 2025 lab test found most 'SPF 50+' sunscreens didn't hit their number, a reminder that label-vs-lab gaps are a global problem, not just an Australian one. Read it →
- Skin cancer Why the 25-Year US Sunscreen Filter Drought Is a Skin Cancer Problem Modern sunscreen filters have been stuck in regulatory limbo for a generation, and dermatology groups now frame fixing that as a fight against America's most common cancer. Read it →
- Filter chemistry When Industry and Watchdogs Agree: CHPA and EWG Both Backed 2025 Sunscreen Reform It's rare for an industry trade group and a consumer-safety nonprofit to agree - but in 2025 both wanted the same thing for your sunscreen. Read it →
- Reef-safe Even a Cult Brand Got Caught: Supergoop's $350K 'Reef Safe' Settlement Even premium, cult-favorite sunscreen brands get caught using 'reef safe' as a selling point - proof that price and prestige don't equal reef protection. Read it →
- Application SunscreenGate: 16 of 20 Failed Their SPF Claim - What Passed and How to Cope The biggest sunscreen-trust story of 2025: the number on the bottle is a claim, not a guarantee - here's what failed, what passed, and how to protect yourself anyway. Read it →
- Global The Scandal Crossed the Tasman: 11 NZ Sunscreens Flagged After Australian Tests Sunscreens cross borders, so a failed test in Australia became a warning for New Zealand shoppers too. Read it →
- Sensitive skin Beyond Sunscreen: Why SPF Alone Can't Stop a Rosacea Flare Sunscreen is necessary but not sufficient for rosacea - because the heat itself triggers flushing that no SPF can filter out. Read it →
- Formulation Particle Size Matters: What a 2025 Study Says About Titanium Dioxide Safety 'Nano' on a mineral sunscreen scares a lot of shoppers - here's what particle size actually changes about safety and that see-through finish. Read it →
- Global 100 Million Americans Under Record Heat: Why a Heat Dome Is Also a Sunburn Window Heat domes bring stagnant, cloudless skies and brutal midday UV - extreme-heat advisories are also peak-sunburn windows. Read it →
- Makeup + SPF CHOICE Tested 20 Sunscreens - 16 Failed, Including a Viral Tinted Skinscreen If beauty-adjacent SPF that doubles as makeup can miss its label this badly, treat label SPF as a ceiling, not a guarantee. Read it →
- Filter chemistry Could US Kids' Sunscreen Finally Catch Up to Korea and the EU? Wondering why American sunscreen feels stuck in the past? A 2025 bill is the political mechanism that could change what's on the shelf for your family. Read it →