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Sodium Lactate

What Sodium Lactate is & what it does

A salt of lactic acid and part of the skin's natural moisturizing factor, used as a humectant and mild pH buffer. It hydrates and helps keep the formula's acidity skin-friendly.

What is Sodium Lactate and what does it do in sunscreen?

Sodium Lactate is a humectant, the salt of lactic acid and a natural part of the skin's own moisturizing factor. In a sunscreen it pulls in and holds water so the formula feels hydrating rather than tight, and it doubles as a mild pH buffer that keeps the product's acidity skin-friendly. It works quietly in the water phase and does not affect the SPF itself.

Is Sodium Lactate safe?

Yes. It is a well-tolerated, widely used cosmetic ingredient and a substance the skin already produces as part of its natural moisturizing factor. At the levels used in sunscreen it is gentle for most people. Because it is mildly hydrating and helps buffer pH, it is considered a skin-friendly choice rather than an irritant.

Does Sodium Lactate clog pores?

Generally no. It is a water-loving humectant, not a heavy oil or wax, so it is not a typical pore-clogging ingredient. It sits in the water phase of a formula and rinses away cleanly. If you are breaking out, the richer emollients and oils elsewhere in a product are far more likely the cause.

What else is Sodium Lactate called?

On a label it appears under its INCI name, Sodium Lactate. Chemically it is the sodium salt of lactic acid, which is why you may see it described that way in ingredient explainers. It is the same hydrating compound whether the source lists it as a humectant or a pH adjuster.

Is Sodium Lactate vegan?

Usually yes. The Sodium Lactate used in modern cosmetics is typically made by fermenting plant sugars such as corn or beet, then neutralizing the resulting lactic acid. That route is plant-based and synthetic in the lab sense, with no animal-derived material involved. If a strict vegan claim matters to you, the finished brand is the place to confirm sourcing.

Sunscreens with Sodium Lactate

We rate 146 sunscreens that contain it, showing the top 10 by overall score:

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