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Polymethyl Methacrylate

What Polymethyl Methacrylate is & what it does

A smooth spherical polymer powder (PMMA) that gives a soft-focus, blurring finish and silky slip. It fills the look of fine lines and pores.

What is Polymethyl Methacrylate and what does it do in sunscreen?

Polymethyl Methacrylate, often shortened to PMMA, is a smooth spherical polymer powder used as a mattifier and texture agent. Its tiny round particles roll over the skin to give a silky slip and a soft-focus, blurring finish that softens the look of pores and fine lines. In sunscreen it improves feel and helps tone down shine.

Is Polymethyl Methacrylate safe?

Yes. As a cosmetic powder it is an inert polymer that sits on the skin surface and is not absorbed, used in foundations and sunscreens without notable concern. At the amounts used for texture and mattifying it is well tolerated. It is a finishing and feel agent rather than an active.

Does Polymethyl Methacrylate clog pores?

Generally no. It is an inert, spherical powder rather than an oil or wax, and it is not flagged as comedogenic in our data. Its smooth particles are meant to sit lightly on the surface and blur, not to occlude. It is an unlikely cause of clogged pores.

Is Polymethyl Methacrylate natural or synthetic?

It is synthetic. PMMA is a man-made polymer of methyl methacrylate, processed into uniform microspheres for a smooth, soft-focus feel. It does not occur in nature, which here just means it was engineered for consistent texture.

What else is Polymethyl Methacrylate called?

On a label it appears as "Polymethyl Methacrylate," and it is widely known by the abbreviation PMMA. You may also see it described in marketing as a soft-focus or blurring powder. It is the same spherical polymer in each case, used to mattify and smooth.

Sunscreens with Polymethyl Methacrylate

We rate 427 sunscreens that contain it, showing the top 10 by overall score:

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