The Houses · The Edit

EltaMD

The sunscreen authority, read shelf by shelf: six SPFs, then everything around them

EltaMD is a sunscreen brand with a skincare line attached, and this hub reads it in that order. The gravity sits in one family of white pumps and tubes: UV Clear, the oil free lotion the brand positions for sensitive and blemish prone skin, UV Daily, its moisturizing sibling, UV Physical, the fully mineral tube, and UV Sheer, the water resistant SPF 50+ built for active days. Around that core sits a small, deliberate supporting cast: one foaming cleanser, one barrier recovery serum, and a day and night moisturizer pair that share an ingredient language of niacinamide and hyaluronic acid. Nothing in the catalogue is decorative. Every product answers to a skin type, a finish, or a time of day.

The honest way to rank EltaMD is by decision, not by SPF number. The six sunscreens divide along three real axes: hybrid filters against fully mineral ones, untinted against tinted, and daily wear against water resistant wear, and the printed active percentages differ by variant in ways that matter, so this hub quotes each formula's own label and never borrows one variant's facts for another. The supporting products are judged by a different test: whether they make the sunscreen habit easier to keep, because a cleanser that removes SPF gently and a moisturizer that sits quietly under it are worth more than a tenth serum would be in this line.

Read the best-of guide How to choose

EltaMD UV Clear Broad Spectrum SPF 46 untinted face sunscreen 1.7 oz pump bottle with cream swatch — EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46: the leading pickThe EltaMD Edit

No. 1

The Leading Three

The top of the ranked guide, in brief. The full ranking sits in the best-of.

No. 1

EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46

Best Overall EltaMD Product

The oil free pump lotion the brand positions for sensitive, blemish prone faces

The product the brand's reputation stands on. An oil free, fragrance free lotion with zinc oxide 9 percent and octinoxate 7.5 percent, niacinamide and sodium hyaluronate, a transparent finish and a positioning for sensitive, blemish prone skin that the brand prints plainly. If one EltaMD product explains the other nine, it is this pump.

Suits

Sensitive and blemish prone skin that wants a sheer, untinted daily lotion with no greasy residue

Skip if

You need water resistance for swimming or sport, or you want a fully mineral filter list

Size: 1.7 fl oz (50 ml) pump
Format: Oil free, fragrance free untinted lotion sunscreen
Key ingredients: Zinc oxide 9.0 percent, octinoxate 7.5 percent, niacinamide, sodium hyaluronate
Use: Final step of the morning routine on face and neck, worn alone or under makeup
Sun protection: Broad Spectrum SPF 46; not water resistant

View on AmazonPremium listing verified: Official EltaMD storefront listing (From EltaMD) on Amazon; manufacturer EltaMD and part number 02500 as printed in product details; CP Skin Health Group brand content on the listing

No. 2

EltaMD UV Clear Tinted Broad-Spectrum SPF 46

Best EltaMD Tinted Sunscreen

The tinted twin of the icon: same oil free brief, a sheer beige tint doing cast control

The same published actives and oil free brief as the original, with iron oxides turning the faint zinc cast into a sheer beige tint. For light to medium skin that wears its sunscreen as its base, this is the more flattering of the twins.

Suits

Sensitive and blemish prone skin that loves the untinted UV Clear formula but wants its faint cast replaced by a sheer tint

Skip if

Your skin tone sits outside the light to medium range this single standard tint was blended for, or you need water resistance

Size: 1.7 fl oz (48 g) pump
Format: Sheer tinted, oil free lotion sunscreen
Key ingredients: Zinc oxide 9.0 percent, octinoxate 7.5 percent, niacinamide, sodium hyaluronate, lactic acid, iron oxides
Use: Final morning step on face and neck, worn alone as a sheer base or under makeup
Sun protection: Broad Spectrum SPF 46; not water resistant

View on AmazonPremium listing verified: Official EltaMD storefront listing (From EltaMD) on Amazon; manufacturer EltaMD and item model number 02520 as printed in product details

EltaMD UV Physical Broad Spectrum SPF 41 lightly tinted face sunscreen 3 oz tube

No. 3

EltaMD UV Physical Broad-Spectrum SPF 41 Tinted

Best EltaMD Fully Mineral Sunscreen

The fully mineral, lightly tinted tube for extra sensitive skin

The mineral purist's tube: zinc oxide 9 percent and titanium dioxide 7 percent and nothing chemical in the filter list, a light tint with a matte finish, 40 minutes of water resistance and 3 oz of product. Extra sensitive skin starts here.

Suits

Extra sensitive skin and anyone who wants mineral only filters, a matte finish and a tint that works as quiet cast control

Skip if

Your skin tone is deep, since the light tint is a single fair to medium shade, or your skin is dry and flaky, where a matte mineral texture can cling

Size: 3 oz (85 g) tube
Format: Lightly tinted, matte, fully mineral tube sunscreen
Key ingredients: Zinc oxide 9.0 percent, titanium dioxide 7.0 percent
Use: Morning face and neck sunscreen over moisturizer; blend carefully at the hairline and jaw
Sun protection: Broad Spectrum SPF 41; water resistant 40 minutes

View on AmazonPremium listing verified: EltaMD brand listing shown under Premium Beauty on Amazon, ships from Amazon; manufacturer EltaMD as printed in product details

See all 10 picks in the Best EltaMD Products 2027: The Sunscreen Authority, Ranked guide

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