11 Best Korean Sunscreens in 2023

We all know that a “one-size-fits-all" sunscreen does not exist, even those so-called sunscreens that are for all skin types (which ironically, the majority of suncare products claim to be). It really depends on your skin type, skin routine, season, and so on and so forth. Let’s acknowledge, it’s really frustrating when trying to find the right sunscreen, especially when there are tons of products available in the market that somehow all seem to be amazing choices.

Double the hassle ಠ ɞ ಠ.

Well, great news, Korean Buddies has done the homework for you and we have gone through a whooping list of thousands of product reviews, blogs, and youtube reviews etc., to bring these recommendations together. We’ve rigorously compared each product claim against their reviews to cross-check whether the product is true to what it says it is. Plus, we tried to include products that have good reviews but lower exposure compared to “the giant brands” to spice up our list with some diversity.

Some aspects that were considered when compiling this list:

✔︎ High UVA and UVB protection (products with a value above SPF 50 and PA+++)
✔︎ Clinically tested and approved by dermatologists
✔︎ Zero or minimal sunscreen pilling
✔︎ Sunscreens that don’t burn eyes
✔︎ High ratings (above 4.5/5)

Quick terminology check before we head on:

1. Physical or Mineral sunscreens = Sunscreens with zinc oxide and/or titanium oxide that create a physical barrier on the skin surface and reflect UV radiation.
2. Chemical sunscreens = Sunscreens that absorb UV radiation into the skin, then convert and release the UV outside the body as heat.
3. Reef-safe sunscreens = Sunscreens without oxybenzone and octinoxate.

Disclaimer: The prices do not reflect promotional events (e.g., discounts, 1+1, etc.)

Best Korean Sunscreens in General

1. Dr.G Green Mild Up Sun + 50 ml

The Dr.G Green Mild Up Sunscreen is inevitably the best sunscreen for everyone, including young children. This product has been in the market for a while and has received lots of love from its users ever since 2016. Going beyond, Dr.G showed that they cared for their customer feedback and launched a renewal in 2022 after refining the product. Ingredients include Centella Asiatica (Pennywort) and Houttuynia Cordata (Heartleaf) extract to soothe irritation-prone skin, along with pycnogenol and pro-vitamin D to promote skin health.

Texture	Thin, light cream
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Semi-matt, slightly greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Easy to apply and absorb • Slight tone-up • Strong protection • Little white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts
Cons	• Makes it hard to apply makeup • Somewhat powdery • Heavy after-feel for extreme dry and oily skin

2. Round Lab Birch Moisturizing Sunscreen 50 ml

KRW 25,000 | SPF 50+ | PA++++ | Chemical Sunscreen | Dermatologist Tested | Blue Light Protection | Reef-safe

If someone asks which sunscreen is the best in Korea, many people will point towards this Round Lab Birch Sunscreen. It’s a gentle sunscreen that contains birch tree sap (a natural ingredient rich in amino acids, nutrients, and minerals), dipotassium glycyrrhizinate, allantoin, and Portulaca Oleracea (common purslane) etc. These ingredients have been proven to have anti-inflammatory properties that relieves redness, swelling, itchiness, and irritation, as well as moisturizing and emollient properties that soften rough and scaly skin. If you have never tried out a Korean sunscreen till now, this sunscreen is one of the safest to start with before you explore other products.

Texture	Essence-like lotion
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Refreshing, very light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Hydrating and easy to apply • Helps reduce acne • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts
Cons	• Some people are reactive to birch sap • Needs to be applied in thin layers (due to its consistency, the product may not absorb well)

Best Korean Sunscreens for Combination Skin

3. Hanyul Yuja Vita-C Sun Cream 50 ml

Multi-vitamins constitute 3% of this Hanyul Vitamin C Sunscreen, including niacinamide (Vit B3), panthenol (Vit B5), ascorbic acid (Vit C), tocopheryl acetate + tocopherol (Vit E), and bioflavonoids (Vit P). People who are serious about skincare are likely to split their routine into two parts: suncare during the daytime and vitamin-rich skincare during the night. Hanyul has created this product so that its consumers could get the best of both worlds. In fact, their clinical test showed that prolonged use of the product results in brightened skin and melanin reduction. In case you’ve never heard of Yuja (or yuzu), it is a fruit in the citrus family that is rich in anti-aging properties. It’s commonly added to Korean vitamin C cosmetics due to its ability to stimulate collagen production, which then, improves skin elasticity and texture.

Texture	Creamy lotion
Suitable for	Combination skin, dry skin
After-feel	Refreshing, light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Hydrating and easy to apply • Brightens skin (offers more benefits than a short-term tone-up) • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • Little-to-no burning or stinging sensation in the eye • Citrus scent (non-artificial fragrance)
Cons	Some people find that the scent is too strong

4. Numbuzin Porcelain Base-skip Tone Up Beige 50 ml

This Numbuzin sunscreen is a natural skin beige tinted sunscreen that provides coverage for your skin imperfections. It’s a sunscreen primer that covers your pores and leaves your skin looking sleek and smooth. The product contains 11 calming ingredients including Centella Asiatica (Pennywort), tea tree, green tea, and rosemary extract — a good tone-up sunscreen to consider in case you have inflamed and irritated skin. Some details from the customer side to further help your decision: “the sunscreen is just enough to cover mild facial redness (closer to a BB cream rather than a foundation)” and is highly recommended when working out, or when putting on light makeup.

Texture	Lightweight BB cream
Suitable for	Combination skin, oily skin, sensitive skin
After-feel	Semi-matt, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Easy to apply • Long, durable tone-up that does not leave stains • Covers pores and facial redness • No white cast
Cons	• Weak coverage (not enough to cover acne) • Not for darker skin tones (shade 23 above)

Best Korean Sunscreens for Dry Skin

5. d’Alba UV Waterfull Essence Sun Cream 50 ml

The d’Alba Waterfull Essence Sunscreen is one of the most popular K-beauty sunscreens out there in the market. d’Alba has certainly geared this product towards people seeking suncare products filled with nutrient-rich properties. It contains white truffle, vitamin E, Centella Asiatica (pennywort), Portulaca Oleracea (common purslane), Houttuynia Cordata (heartleaf) extract, aquaxyl, hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid, and many other beneficial ingredients. When examining the d’Alba sunscreen reviews, it was clear that users were overall highly satisfied, except for those who had sensitive eyes. Generally, this sunscreen shouldn’t cause any stinging in the eye, but users who claimed to have sensitive and weak eyes found that this product was too harsh and hard to tolerate compared to other products.

Texture	Watery lotion
Suitable for	Dry skin, combination skin, sensitive skin
After-feel	Very light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Extremely hydrating • Easy to apply and absorb • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • Does not contain any of the 20 Ingredients to Avoid
Cons	• May cause extreme stinging and burning in the eye (avoid if you have sensitive eyes)

6. Re:NK Intense Brightening Cell Essence Sun Cream

This Re:NK sunscreen is packed with loads of cell science and will definitely take your suncare to a whole new level. Re:NK has included their patent ingredients to ensure that this sunscreen not only provides strong UVA and UVB protection but also protection from infrared rays and fine dust while also keeping your skin hydrated for up to 48 hours. They’ve used the key ingredient of their award-winning Cell-to-Cell Essence (Cell Power Complex 2.0 and Shine Power Complex 2.0) and their Enerwhite 2.0 to help improve skin impurities, and uneven skin tone, and to ensure that your skin looks vibrant and glossy. To sum up, this is one of the best facial sunscreens for hyperpigmentation and as a moisturizer.

Texture	Lightweight, watery cream
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Extremely hydrating (not oily) • Anti-ageing and brightening • Applies and absorbs easily • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • No stinging in the eye
Cons	• Contains artificial fragrance (Sweet Floral Musk)

Best Korean Sunscreens for Oily Acne-Prone Skin

7. Bonajour Witch Hazel No Sebum Sun Shield 40 ml

KRW 50,000 | SPF 50+ | PA ++++ | Physical Sunscreen | Whitening | Wrinkle Improvement | Vegan-certified by The Vegan Society

The Bonajour Witch Hazel sunscreenwas specifically created to help those with oily dehydrated and acne-prone skin. We found it extremely challenging to find sunscreens for acne-prone oily skin until we came across this product. It has been clinically tested for its sebum regulating effects (approx. -12.49% over 4 weeks in a small-scale experiment). It contains witch hazel water (42.49%), sebum control powder, and licorice extract to ease inflammation and soothe irritated skin while helping the skin maintain an adequate oil-water balance. The brand is GMP accredited and follows natural, cruelty-free, and ethical practices.

Texture	Light, soft cream
Suitable for	Oily skin, combination skin
After-feel	Semi-matt, refreshing, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Hydrating and absorbs fast • Easy to apply • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • No stinging in the eye
Cons	• Some say that it does not go well with makeup

8. Tocobo Cotton Soft Sunstick

KRW 22,000 | SPF 50+ | PA ++++ | Vegan-certified by Vegan Korea | Whitening | Wrinkle Improvement

The Tocobo Cotton Soft Sunstick is an award-winning product (once known as the “Super Rookie”) that helps your skin maintain a good oil-water balance. It contains cotton extract, herb AC complex*, and anti-sebum P** to protect, moisturize, relieve, and soothe the skin. It acts like a cosmetic primer and leaves your skin looking silky, soft, and smooth. This Korean sunscreen stick is clinically tested and approved for low skin irritation. Above all, if you are one of those people who hate applying sunscreen because of how it feels, you can give this one a try as most reviews stated that there was almost no difference before and after application.

*Contains four types of traditional herbs with anti-inflammatory effects.

**Contains evening primrose, Pueraria lobata root, pine needle, and Ulmus davidiana extract.

Texture	Soft, creamy sun stick
Suitable for	Oily skin, combination skin
After-feel	Matt, very light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Hydrating • Easy to apply • Compact to carry around and convenient to reapply • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts
Cons	• May cause a burning, stinging sensation in the eye for people who sweat easily.

9. Benton Skin Fit Mineral Sun Cream 50 ml

This Benton Mineral Sunscreen has covered the subtle details that are often overlooked by most eco-friendly products. While browsing through many different products, it was really hard to find an approved sunscreen that could be used by the whole family, but this brand has done its job. The brand strictly adheres to promoting sustainable beauty and uses ingredients that are healthy for the skin and for the environment. This sunscreen does not contain artificial fragrance, instead, it uses low-allergen rosemary essential oil to reduce the burden on the skin. Other constituent ingredients include witch hazel, Centella Asiatica (pennywort), and calamine.

Texture	Lightweight lotion
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Very light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Can be used by the entire family (including young children) • Hydrating and easy to apply • Slight tone-up • Little-to-no white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • No stinging in the eye
Cons	• May be greasy for extremely oily skin

Best Korean Sunscreens for Sensitive Skin

10. Cell Fusion C Laser Sunscreen 100 50 ml

KRW 42,000 | SPF 50+ | PA +++ | Hybrid Sunscreen | Dermatologist Tested | Highly Recommended by Dermatologists for Sensitive skin | Anti-pollution

Cell Fusion C is a top-selling and top-performing skincare brand in South Korea. Their award-winning Laser Sunscreen 100 has always ranked as one of the best sunscreens at Olive Young ever since 2017 and has achieved more than 12 million sales to date. Dermatologists highly recommend this product for people who have especially undergone dermatologic surgery procedures. It contains hydrolyzed collagen, ubiquinone, and acetyl hexapeptide-8 to protect, vitalize, and boost the skin.

Texture	Light cream
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Non-sticky, slightly greasy
Pros	• Hydrating and easy to apply • Little-to-no white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts
Cons	• May leave strong white cast for darker skin tones

11. Goodal Calming Moisture Sun Cream

KRW 18,000 | SPF 50+ | PA +++ | Chemical Sunscreen | Reef-safe | Vegan-certified by Biorius | Dermatologist Tested

The Goodal Calming Moisture Sun Cream is a gentle moisturizing daily sunscreen with cooling effects that helps maintain a pleasant skin environment. Its main ingredient, the Houttuynia Cordata (aka. Heartleaf or chameleon plant), is known to have powerful anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and humectant effects, and has been proven to be highly beneficial for acne-prone skin. Plus, the cooling effect, lotion-like consistency, and budget-friendly price make it a perfect body sunscreen to apply in summer. All in all, we couldn’t pinpoint any cons for this product as they were mainly individual differences and reviews showed high satisfaction across different skin types. However, if you ever had negative experiences using Heartleaf products, you should skip this product. You can check out their Vegan Rice Milk Moisturizing Sun Cream as an alternative.

Texture	Watery lotion
Suitable for	All skin types
After-feel	Very light, non-greasy, non-sticky
Pros	• Budget friendly • Hydrating and extremely easy to apply • Slight tone-up • No white cast • No skin irritation or breakouts • No stinging in the eye
Cons	• Not recommended for people who are reactive to Heartleaf products

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11 Best Korean Sunscreens in 2023 for Each Skin Type