SPF Lip Balm for Every Day, Tinted, Clear or Glossy

SPF Lip Balm for Every Day, Tinted, Clear or Glossy

An spf lip balm is the easiest sun habit to build, because it takes about five seconds and lives in your pocket. Here are clear everyday sticks, tinted balms and SPF glosses I would reach for, with the reapply notes each brand gives.

Supergoop was launched in 2007 by Holly Thaggard, who was a teacher before, after a close friend was diagnosed with skin cancer at 29. Vanity Fair reports that her first plan was to put sunscreen in classrooms, and that the idea did not work at first. Thaggard has said her goal was to make SPF a daily habit, like brushing your teeth, and the brand kept looking for places to slip it in. A spf lip balm is one of the smartest of those places, since lips are the part of the face people tend to forget.

Supergoop Unseen Lipscreen Sheer SPF 30 is the clear, invisible stick, with acai fruit oil and a glossy, cushiony feel, and it can be worn alone or under lip color. INNBEAUTY PROJECT Sun Balm is a mineral SPF 30 with 13.5 percent non-nano zinc oxide and a sheer wash of glossy color, in Pink and Latte. Vacation Classic Whip Lip SPF 30 is a coconut vanilla balm with a star-tip applicator and can be layered over lipstick. Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm SPF 25 comes in Grapefruit & Ginger and Black Tea & Blackberry. CAY SKIN Isle Lip Balm SPF 30 is a daily balm with sea moss and aloe stem cells, in Irie Rose and Bad Gyal Berry, and the brand says it has a vanilla brown sugar flavor with no SPF aftertaste.

A practical tip: several of these brands say to apply about 15 minutes before sun exposure and to reapply after eating or drinking. Keep one in your bag and one by the door.

Big numbers collage titled SPF LIP BALM, six products numbered one to six with each product set beside its number: Supergoop!, INNBEAUTY PROJECT, Jack Black, CAY SKIN, Ultra Violette and ciele
SPF Lip Balm

SPF lip balms for every day

Tinted balms that double as lip color

If you want your sun protection to double as lip color, this is the group. Ultra Violette Sheen Screen is a tinted SPF 50 sunscreen lip balm with broad spectrum UVA and UVB filters, plus lanolin and cocoa butter. It comes in Bejewelled, Dusk and Silk Pillow, and the brand says to reapply whenever your lips need it, especially outdoors.

Iris&Romeo Weekend Skin is a mineral SPF 30 lip balm and oil hybrid with 10 percent non-nano zinc oxide and three medium tint shades. Dawn is a pinky nude, Camellia is a rose, and Suede is a butterscotch. The brand says to apply generously 15 minutes before sun exposure and reapply throughout the day. The caliray Lipguard SPF 31 is a high shine, semi-sheer lip gloss balm made with non-nano zinc oxide, sweet almond oil and shea butter. Trestles is a neutral brown and Big Sur is a rosewood mauve.

How to wear them: start with a tinted balm on bare lips in the morning, then reapply after coffee, because lip SPF comes off with food and drink, so it needs a fresh layer after each. If you want more color, build the tint in thin layers.

What I would skip: applying any of these over a thick lipstick and calling it done. The tint is sheer to medium, so put the balm down first when you want protection, and lipstick after.

Tinted SPF lip balms

SPF glosses and lipstick

A lip SPF can taste like sunscreen, so I like the glosses that address it directly. Supergoop Glow Gloss SPF 40 is a high shine balm with shea butter and a peptide complex, and the brand says it leaves no sunscreen taste. Vanilla Soft Serve is a sheer soft pink tint, Pink Peppermint is a sheer candy pink tint, and Strawberry Spritz is a sheer coral tint.

Good Weather Skin Daily Lip Sun Gloss SPF 30 pairs non-chemical zinc oxide with a hydrating, buildable tint, and the brand says it is vegan and free of fragrances. Ripe Berry and Iced Coffee are the two shades here. e.l.f. Sun Boss Gloss SPF 25 is a high shine tinted gloss with vitamin E and hyaluronic acid and broad spectrum protection, in Pink-Me Girl and That's My Jam. For a lipstick, ciele lip & PROTECT is a creamy satin lipstick with mineral SPF 60+ that swipes on for full color or dabs on with a fingertip for a softer look. Casette is a dusty rose.

Reapplying is easy with any of them. The ciele brand notes you can reapply throughout the day as you like for added sun protection, and a gloss you like is one you will actually reach for.

What I would skip: a high shine gloss when you want a matte lip. These are glossy by design, so choose the ciele lipstick for a satin finish instead.

SPF glosses and lip color

Building a lip sun habit

Choose the format you will actually use twice a day. A clear stick like Supergoop Unseen Lipscreen fits under any lip color. A tinted balm, like Ultra Violette or Iris&Romeo, replaces your usual lip color. A gloss such as Supergoop Glow Gloss or e.l.f. Sun Boss suits people who dislike a waxy feel. Read each tube for its own directions, because the SPF numbers and reapply instructions differ by brand. Then keep one where you will see it, and reapply when you finish your coffee. A habit that fits your day is the one that lasts, so choose the texture you enjoy.