Can You Mix Sunscreen With Moisturizer?

While mixing your sunscreen and moisturizer may sound like a lazy person’s dream, it’s surprisingly not recommended. Sunscreen is regulated as a drug by the FDA in the United States. Because of this, sunscreens are required to undergo a significant amount of efficacy and safety testing. This ensures the product will do what it says it’s going to do which is to protect the skin from sunburn. This testing will also include claims like determining the SPF number, if and how long the formula is water-resistant, and if it’s broad spectrum.

Mixing products (as in two products in the palm of your hand) like moisturizer, face oil or foundation dilutes the sunscreen filters and decreases the ability to block or absorb UV rays. Those tests and claims are listed with the formula as is, not mixed. This is unsafe because it essentially provides a false sense of security making you think you wearing adequate sun protection when in fact, you’re not. That SPF 50 may be reduced to an SPF 25 if you are mixing 50/50 moisturizer and sunscreen. The same goes for if you are adding a moisturizer to a tinted sunscreen that is too dark or foundation to a light sunscreen to make it darker.

I would say the only exception is if you have a tinted sunscreen that is too dark you can mix it with another sunscreen to lighten it.

My best advice…DON’T MIX, LAYER! Here are some of my favorite sunscreens.