I recently reviewed Supergoop Unseen Screen, along with a cheaper dupe from Trader Joe’s. I also got a tube of Glow Screen in the shade Sunrise as part of the same Supergoop SPF Bestsellers Start Kit from Sephora.

Here’s my review – I also reviewed it in a video, with footage of the application and texture.

Supergoop Glow Screen

• SPF 40, PA+++
• Filters: Avobenzone 3%, Octisalate 5%, Octocrylene 10%

Supergoop Glow Screen is a popular sunscreen in the US, although not quite as popular as Unseen Sunscreen. It comes in 4 shades. I tried the shade Sunrise, which is their original formula and described as “champagne glow”.

I’ve seen some people say that it’s like the glowy version of Unseen. I don’t know exactly what they meant by that, but to me, it’s a really different experience.

Related post: Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen vs Trader Joe’s Dupe: Sunscreen reviews

This is a chemical sunscreen that uses older US filters (and butyloctyl salicylate, an SPF booster). Unlike Unseen, this has water as the top ingredient. It has a creme gel formula, but it feels very different on the skin compared to the Korean cream gel sunscreens I’ve talked about before. That’s because it contains a lot of makeup-style pigment and effect particles, listed as bismuth oxychloride, mica, titanium dioxide, and iron oxides in the ingredients list.

Related post: Top Sunscreen Recommendations 2022

I actually prefer the texture of this during application compared to Unseen. It’s a lot easier to get the full amount onto my face! But after it dries down, it still feels very noticeable on my skin – likely because of all those shimmer particles and the texturising agents keeping the shimmer spread out.

Now, the shimmer: it is just TOO MUCH.

I tested this as a sunscreen, so I used a sunscreen amount – in other words, enough to get that full SPF 40 protection. On my face this is about 0.8 grams, or about 1/6 of a teaspoon. 

Related post: How Much Sunscreen Do You Need For Your Face?

At this use level, I looked properly metallic. It also really accentuated any texture I had on my skin, and some of it seemed to have bunched up and added extra bumps as well:

There’s also a tint which dried kind of orange, which was pretty off-putting.

However, if I applied a tiny, primer-like amount, I ended up with a really beautiful glow without a noticeable tint.

It’s possible that it could work as a sunscreen if you just happened to be the exact right shade. But I think Glow Screen is far better suited for people who are looking for a primer with some SPF protection and glow, rather than an actual protective primary sunscreen.

I am really curious to know if anyone likes Glow Screen when they’re applying the right amount – I feel like a lot of positive reviews are just coming from people who aren’t applying enough!

Related Post: Answering (Almost) Every Sunscreen Question

Marketing note: There are also some “protects against blue light from tech” claims which are pretty dubious, as well as “No List” clean beauty pseudoscience on the Supergoop site.

Related post: Clean Beauty Is Wrong and Won’t Give Us Safer Products

They also have “Clean Chemical Sunscreen Actives” on top of their sunscreen labels, which is a bit ironic because they use homosalate in several formulas. This is one of the few chemical sunscreen ingredients that the EU has recently limited, and would probably be one of the “least safe” chemical filters, if you had to make a list. 

In fact, Supergoop Play with homosalate at 10% wouldn’t be allowed under the new EU regulations for face or body use. (Another irony: their “no list” page claims that they formulate their products to be EU-compliant, under a list of ingredients that are much more “compliant” with EU regulations than Play!)

Related post: US Sunscreens Aren’t Safe in the EU? The Science

Active ingredients: Avobenzone 3%, Octisalate 5%, Octocrylene 10%.

Inactive ingredients: Water, Propanediol, Butyloctyl Salicylate, Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Niacinamide, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Bismuth Oxychloride, Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Lauryl Lactate, Isododecane, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Glyceryl Stearate, Diisopropyl Sebacate, Cetyl Phosphate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Coco-Caprylate, Ethylhexyl Hydroxystearate, Butylene Glycol, Arginine, Hydroxyacetophenone, Caprylyl Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Iron Oxides, Sodium Hyaluronate, Chlorphenesin, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Phospholipids, Limonium Gerberi Extract, Leuconostoc/ Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Extract, Pantothenic Acid, Tocopherol, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Ferulic Acid. 

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