Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for insider tips and product reviews from our shopping experts

Sign up for our free IndyBest email

Sign up for our free IndyBest email

Forget eye creams with big claims, fancy serums and moisturisers that cost more than your weekly shop. Ask any dermatologist, and they will tell you that daily SPF is the single most important thing you can do for your skin – and tinted sunscreen could just be the low-maintenance hero your make-up bag needs.

Thanks to innovation in the industry, facial SPF formulas have come on leaps and bounds. Gone are the days when products leave a white caste and make-up is a no-go layered on top. Now, sunscreens combine the best of skincare, beauty and SPF.

Offering UV protection (dermatologists recommend SPF30 and above), tinted sunscreen has added pigment for light-to-dark make-up coverage, thereby eliminating an extra step in your morning regime. From dual action foundations to sheerer skin tints, these formulas are the secret to a no-make-up make-up look – yielding ultra-glowy, fresh-faced results (your skin but better). 

While some formulas are near-weightless and the perfect partners for balmy heat on holiday (think La Roche-Posay, Ultra Violette and Supergoop!’s cult sunscreens), others offer fuller coverage to even out texture and tone (see Nars, Lumene and Dr Jart). 

What they all have in common is all-important SPF protection, which is a non-negotiable year-round, so, make sure you’re getting your required dose by using around two finger’s worth of tinted sunscreen or applying a higher UV protectant underneath.

How we tested

Testing skin tints, BB creams and light coverage foundations with added SPF protection, we wore these formulas during beach days, balmy evenings on holiday, festivals and office days. Considering the ease of application (whether with a brush, sponge or fingers), coverage claims, staying power, the look and feel on our skin, as well as its SPF credentials, these are the best tinted sunscreens to invest in.

The best tinted sunscreens for 2024 are: