Medik8 Physical Sunscreen™ Broad Spectrum SPF 50+
70/100 overall score
Sign in to see this product's score for your skin.
About this sunscreen
Medik8 Physical Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50+ is a pure-mineral formula using zinc oxide as its only UV filter. It has a balanced finish but a high white-cast rating, so it can leave a visible whitish tint, and its medium heaviness means it feels a touch more substantial than the lightest sunscreens. It does not commonly sting and is rated low for pore-clogging, which makes it friendlier for sensitive or breakout-prone skin. Protection is moderate and the overall score is 69.6/100, a decent mineral option if you can work past the cast.
Ingredient & SPF scores
☀️
UV protection
Moderate
43
- +41 Zinc Oxide at #2, UV filter (UVA1 +18)
- +2 Label claims (SPF 50)
👻
White cast
High
30
- +100 Starting score
- −55 Zinc Oxide at #2
- −15 Pure mineral formula
🪨
Heavy feel
Medium
55
- +100 Starting score
- −40 Zinc Oxide at #2
- −5 Cetearyl Alcohol at #7, rich gel-network thickener
🍄
Fungal acne
Medium
70
- +100 Starting score
- −28 2 long-chain (C12+) esters that feed Malassezia (Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, PEG-30 Dipolyhydroxystearate)
- −2 1 ubiquitous fatty ingredients (Cetearyl Glucoside), weak Malassezia signal
👕
Fabric stains
Low
85
- +100 Starting score
- −15 Zinc Oxide at #2, white marks, worst on dark fabric (washable)
💧
Moisture
Hydrating
LightNourishing
- ← 5 Zinc Oxide at #2, mild sebum absorbent
- → 10 Glycerin at #6, the anchor humectant
- → 2 Light emollient/solvent (Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride)
- → 1 1 fatty-alcohol emollients (Cetearyl Alcohol)
✨
Finish
Balanced
MatteDewy
- ← 3 1 dry-touch emollients reduce greasy shine (Coco-Caprylate/Caprate)
💄
Makeup base
Okay
PillsPrimer
- → 3 Primer-style base, volatile silicones and dimethicone slip
- → 3 Dry-touch esters, smooth fast-absorbing base
- ← 0.5 Gel polymers prone to pilling under friction (Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer)
- ← 3 Humectant syrup tackiness
- ← 15 High mineral load at #2 greys under foundation
🌊
Water resistance
Not resistant
Non-water-resistantWater-resistant
Nothing flagged in the ingredient list.
How we rate water resistance →Full ingredient list (20)
What each ingredient does and how it moves each rating: green helps, red hurts, ↑ / ↓ give the direction, and ← / → shift a slider toward its ends (finish, moisture, makeup base). Auto-derived from our scoring rules and the ingredient's position.
-
1 Water
Solvent base, the water phase
-
Mineral UV filter (Zinc Oxide), high in the list, a primary filter
- ↑ 41 UV protection, incl. long-UVA (UVA1)
- ↑ 15 white marks, worst on dark fabric (washable)
- light ← 5 mild sebum absorbent
- pills ← 15 High mineral load greys under foundation
-
Emollient, softens and smooths skin
- matte ← 3 dry-touch emollient, anti-shine
-
Emollient, softens and smooths skin
-
Emollient, softens and smooths skin
- 2 → nourishing light emollient
-
6 Glycerin
Humectant, pulls water into the skin
- 10 → nourishing the anchor humectant
-
Fatty alcohol, an emollient and thickener, not the drying kind
- ↑ 5 rich gel-network thickener
- 1 → nourishing fatty-alcohol emollient
-
Emulsifier, keeps oil and water blended
- ↑ 14 feeds malassezia
-
Emulsifier, keeps oil and water blended
- ↑ 14 feeds malassezia
-
Preservative, keeps the formula from spoiling
-
Emollient, softens and smooths skin
-
Thickener and texture, structures the gel or cream
-
Emulsifier, keeps oil and water blended
- ↑ 2 minor malassezia feeder
-
Thickener and texture, structures the gel or cream
-
15 Xanthan Gum
Thickener and texture, structures the gel or cream
-
Botanical extract
-
17 Carnosine
Antioxidant, protects the formula and skin
-
Antioxidant, protects the formula and skin
-
Chelator, binds stray metal ions to keep the formula stable
-
Humectant, pulls water into the skin
Does Medik8 Physical Sunscreen leave a white cast?
Yes, it is rated high for white cast, so it can leave a visible whitish tint. This is common for pure-mineral zinc oxide formulas.
Is Medik8 Physical Sunscreen mineral or chemical?
It is a mineral sunscreen, with zinc oxide as its only UV filter.
Is it good overall?
It scores 69.6/100, a decent result. Protection is moderate and it is rated low for pore-clogging, so the main trade-off is the visible cast.