Why this guide exists
Sunscreen is one of the few consumer products where the important information is printed on the pack in a code most people were never taught to read. A number that describes only half the spectrum. A symbol that encodes a ratio. A water resistance claim tested to a specific protocol that nobody explains. A filter list written in nomenclature designed for regulators rather than shoppers.
Meanwhile the buying advice available is mostly product roundups, and product roundups have a structural problem. They are usually funded by commission on the products they recommend, which sets up an interest in recommending something rather than in explaining what matters. Formulations change between seasons without the name on the bottle changing, so last year's tested winner may no longer be the same product. And no publisher outside a handful of consumer bodies is running independent SPF testing, which means most rankings rest on manufacturer claims and a writer's impression of the texture.
We took a different route. We score formulation categories against published standards and public evidence, and we never name a product. It is a narrower promise and it is one we can keep.
What we do
Eight category reviews cover the sunscreen buying decisions people actually face: mineral against organic filters, sensitive skin, water resistance, deep skin tones, wear under makeup, children and sport. Six explainers cover the standards and the science underneath: how SPF is tested, what UVA ratings mean, how much to apply, whether sunscreen expires, what reef safe claims are worth and what the evidence says about vitamin D.
Each review scores formulation types out of 100 against five weighted criteria set out in full on our method page. Each carries an ingredient table using INCI names, so you can take it to a shelf and check a pack against it.
What we do not do
- We do not name products or brands. Not in reviews, not in passing, not in a best of list.
- We do not take affiliate commission. There are no shopping links on this site.
- We do not accept sponsored content or paid placement. There is nothing to place.
- We do not run our own laboratory testing, and we do not imply that we do.
- We do not give medical advice. For anything about your own skin, ask a pharmacist or a GP.
Who publishes this
SPF Guide is published by Northbank Media, an independent UK publisher of specialist consumer and trade titles. The guide is funded by its publisher. It carries no sunscreen advertising and no commission arrangements of any kind.
Editorial work is produced by the guide's editorial team, reviewed against the source standards and public health guidance cited on each page, and dated. Where a page relies on a testing standard or a regulatory position, we describe the standard rather than paraphrasing a press release about it.
Our use of AI tools
We use AI tools for research support, drafting assistance and editing, in the same way most publishers now do. Every claim on this site is checked against a source by a person before publication, and no page is published unreviewed. We do not publish generated statistics, generated study citations or generated product claims, and any figure on this site should be traceable to a published standard or a named public body.
Sources we rely on
The public guidance we cite most often comes from the NHS, the British Association of Dermatologists, Cancer Research UK, the British Skin Foundation and the World Health Organization. None of them has any involvement with this site, and citing them is not an endorsement in either direction.
One clarification worth making, because it causes regular confusion: sunscreen is regulated in the UK as a cosmetic product, not as a medicine. The MHRA regulates medicines and medical devices and is not the body that authorises UV filters. Filter permissions and concentration limits sit under the cosmetics rules, with enforcement through trading standards.
Getting in touch
Corrections, questions about a score, and suggestions for categories we have not covered are all welcome through the contact page. We do not accept product samples, because we do not review products, and we do not take part in press trips or sponsored briefings.