Effectively re-applying sunscreen over makeup can seem like a very tricky business. Re-applying liquid sunscreen over a full face of makeup is next to impossible, but luckily there are SPF infused face powders that we can turn to! You can easily re-apply sunscreen over makeup by using a SPF Powder with a fluffy makeup brush. Many powder SPFs come also with a built-in brush for easy on-the-go application. I recommend using the same style of brush as you would use to apply a setting powder. It can be difficult to get effective coverage using the built-in brushes that come with most powder SPFs.
Sunscreen powders are very tempting and come in a vast variety of protection ratings ranging from30-45 SPF but the protection that you actually get from applying a powder SPF can leave much to be desired! So do SPF powders really work or should you stick with the old-fashioned method of sunscreen?
Do SPF Powders Really Work?
Yes SPF Powder provides protection against sun damage, but not as well as you might be led to believe. Applying a powder with SPF is still better than no sun protection at all!
The Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association published 3 studies on 10,000 women and found that an average application of face powder was .085 grams. As demonstrated in the studies done on ColorScience Powder SPF to achieve the full SPF advertised you would have to use around 0.24 grams of powder per application. To help visualize how much powder that really is take a look at the example below:
That’s almost 3 times the average amount of powder that the average makeup wearer uses every day! And then add on top of that, the fact that you’re required to re-apply every two hours. If you don’t apply that much powder the SPF rating drastically goes down. LabMuffin shared a detailed breakdown of what happens to the SPF rating of powders when you use a normal amount of 0.085 grams:
- SPF 50 → SPF 5.5
- SPF 30 → SPF 3.2
- SPF 15 → SPF 1.6″
| SPF 2 | 50% of UVB rays are blocked |
| SPF 4 | 75% of UVB rays are blocked |
| SPF 10 | 90% of UVB rays are blocked |
As you can see in the table above, a substantial amount of UVB rays are still blocked even if your powder is only providing an SPF of 3-5. Partial protection from sun damage is still immensely better for your skin than zero protection! You just have to realize it’s very unlikely that you will get the full SPF listed.
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5 Different Powder SPF Products Put To The Test!
The majority of sunscreen powders are sold in super tiny containers. DERMA E Sun Protection Mineral Powder SPF 30 is a very popular powder that sells for about $4.50 per gram of product.
Derma E is a decent powder that wears nicely and sets makeup without any issues, but if you use the required 0.24 grams every time to get that full SPF rating there are less than 17 uses in the bottle. And that’s not even considering the cake face you’d be experiencing after piling on that much face powder.
The Derma E is going to cost more than $1 per application, and if you’re re-applying multiple times throughout the day it would run out even faster!
Brush On Block Mineral Sunscreen powder is also extremely similar to the Derma E powder, they both come in plastic tubes that sprinkle the powder into the brush while you swirl the bristles. This has an SPF of 30 and is also water-resistant for up to 80 minutes.
It is difficult to apply a decent amount of powder let alone the amount needed to achieve high SPF coverage using the gravity-fed brush. I dumped out the container into an empty powder lid so I could load up a fluffy powder brush with the makeup instead of fighting with the packaging.
The lowest SPF powder that I picked up for this comparison experiment is the L’Oreal Paris True Match Mineral Loose Powder Foundation. It’s SPF 19 and $1.14 per gram; it’s the cheapest powder I have found but also has the lowest SPF rating.
It’s a loose powder that comes with a detachable brush so you can easily clean the brush between uses. It has the largest color range of any mineral SPF I have come across, 12 shades in all.
Here’s The Best Pressed Powder SPF
After testing numerous brands and formulas the Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Talc-Free Pressed Powder rose to the top. The pressed powder is much easier to thoroughly apply than the loose powders. It’s 30 SPF for a reasonable $1.86 a gram or $0.44 per application if you really pack it on. The translucent shade of this product is not a true translucent, but it was noticeably paler than the lightest shade options from all other powders listed above.
The Physicians Formula powder was slightly too peachy for my pale skin tone, but I believe this would be a wonderful option for those looking for an affordable powder sunscreen.
I put all four of these sunscreen powders to the test in the video below:
Here’s The Best Loose Powder SPF
The SuperGoop Invincible Setting Powder SPF 45 is the best performing loose powder I have ever used and it has the easiest application process out of everything that I’ve tried. It comes with a retractable brush + a built-in plastic sleeve that slides up and down the bristles which makes it super easy to get the cap back on. It claims to be “sweat-resistant” but be aware that it is not a true water-resistant SPF.
The translucent shade is actually translucent unlike the other powders I’ve used and it didn’t leave any weird yellow undertones. It also distributed the powder easily and I didn’t have to aggressively buff my skin to get a satisfactory amount of product.
This is one of the more expensive powders on this guide at $30 but it has the highest SPF rating of everything I’ve tried and it’s the only one that actually blended into my makeup without a peachy/yellow cast so I will happily pay a few extra dollars for these awesome results.
Let’s break it down further and dive into the 6 most popular sunscreen powders:
| Brand: | SPF Rating | Price Per Gram |
| DERMA E Sun Protection Mineral Powder | 30 | $4.50 |
| Color Science Total Face Shield | 50 | $11.50 |
| Physicians Formula Mineral Wear Talc-Free Pressed Powder | 30 | $1.86 |
| Brush On Block | 30 | $5 |
| Supergoop! Invincible Setting Powder, | 45 | $7.05 |
| L’Oreal Paris True Match Mineral Loose Powder Foundation | 19 | $1.14 |
The Color Science Total Face Shield SPF 50 has some extremely solid data backing up its SPF factor. They tested the SPF rating before and after having participants of the test sit in a jacuzzi for 80 minutes and the SPF was virtually the same! That’s amazing, but it sports a hefty price tag of $69 for a measly 6 grams of powder.
The brand claims that it’s a 90 day supply of product when in fact you would only get 25 uses out of the tiny bottle. If you can afford and justify the price of the Color Science powder definitely go for it!