Korean Sunscreen: Is it actually better than Western SPF?

Writer and expert6 years ago

Anyone who's looked at a beauty blog in the last year or two would've seen the hype about K beauty, and one thing that's always gonna be important is SPF. We've got all the info you need to know about why it's so hyped and what the best Korean sunscreen is.

What purpose does sunscreen have in a K beauty skincare routine?

SPF is the last step in a 10-step Korean skincare routine. After you've cleansed (multiple times), toned and moisturise, the concept is to simultaneously lock in the good ingredients you've just applied and protect your skin against the ageing factors of sun exposure.

Although lots of sunscreens are a cream formula, this step would not replace your normal moisturiser. Moisturiser is the penultimate step which helps to lock in the previous steps whilst providing hydration for the epidermis (AKA: top layers of your skin). In contrast, Sunscreen will focus on blocking UVA and UVB light rather than hydrating your skin.

The addition of sunscreen tends to be the biggest differentiation between Korean skincare routines and Western ones.

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What's the difference between Western and Korean Sunscreen?

First things first, forget the goopy opaque sunscreen you used to use a kid, Koreans have officially changed the game. From lightweight gels to effective mists, the best Korean sunscreen can be applied under makeup or layered on top, without you even being able to tell.

Korean dermatologists and scientists are also pretty speedy at bringing new ingredients to market, much quicker than their Western counterparts who have to go through years of testing to make sure it's safe for us to use (so it's not all bad!).

Traditionally, SPF creams will be so-named as they protect from UVB rays, however Korean sunscreen will also focus on UVA (more info on this in our SPF guide). If your K beauty mentions PA, this means it's working on filtering out the harm of UVA rays, with PA++++ being the highest factor.