I’ve Gone Through 8 Bottles of This Beauty of Joseon SPF in 6 Months – Here’s Why
Main image – Courtesy of writer
There are beauty products I test because it’s my job. And then there are beauty products I apparently single-handedly attempt to keep in business.
Beauty of Joseon’s Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen (£17 from Cult Beauty UK / $20 from Olive Young US) falls firmly into the second camp – I’m currently somewhere around my eighth bottle in six months.
And before you assume that means the rest of this review is going to be one long love letter, there’s something you should know; this stuff is oily. Very oily.
On my dry skin, it never fully dries down, stays tacky to the touch and has transferred onto everything from clothes and towels to my phone (and, occasionally, unsuspecting people I’ve hugged). And yet I wear it every single day.
That’s partly because its incredibly sheer tint gives me the kind of lightly blurred, glass-skin finish I’d normally be trying to achieve with makeup. But mostly it’s because this is one of the few tinted mineral sunscreens I’ve found that I can happily apply to my dry, sensitive, melasma-prone skin in generous amounts, layer over other SPF and – crucially – reapply over makeup throughout the day without everything underneath ending up halfway across my face.
So is this the perfect tinted SPF? Absolutely not. In fact, I can completely understand why some people seem to hate it.
But if, like me, your idea of a good skin day involves plenty of glow and very little foundation, I think you might just find yourself keeping Beauty of Joseon in business too.
AT A GLANCE
Beauty of Joseon Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen
- Finish: Very dewy, sheer and lightly blurring
- Coverage: Minimal – think more even-looking skin than foundation
- Best for: Dry skin and serious glow lovers
- Watch out for: It stays tacky and can transfer
- Shade range: 12 surprisingly forgiving shades
- Our rating: 4.5/5
- Our verdict: Not remotely for everyone, but after eight bottles, it’s become our reviewer’s everyday SPF-and-foundation-in-one.
Beauty of Joseon Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen details
Firstly though, the basics. Beauty of Joseon might be a relatively young brand, but it’s already become something of a sunscreen heavyweight – thanks largely to the frankly enormous popularity of its Relief Sun formulas.
Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen is the brand’s hero mineral alternative. Instead of the chemical UV filters you’ll find in products like Relief Sun, this uses 20.9% zinc oxide, alongside iron oxides to create its sheer tint.
There is one slightly confusing detail here depending on where you’re shopping. The US version is SPF 40, while the European version is SPF 30, so don’t panic if you’ve seen different protection levels listed online. Mine is the SPF 30 version.
The sunscreen comes in a 50ml bottle and an impressively broad 12 shades, ranging from very fair to deep. Beauty of Joseon also offers both a shade-finding quiz and a tool that lets you match your existing complexion shade, which is useful because actually shopping for this stuff can be surprisingly confusing – I’ve found shade names and listings aren’t always consistent between retailers.
And then there’s the finish. Beauty of Joseon describes this as “not too dewy, not too matte” and says it’s designed to keep excess shine at bay while letting your natural glow show through.
How I tested it
I’ve personally bought and used three shades- LN110, MY210 and MY220- over the last six months, switching between them to wear this every day.
And I really do mean every day. I’ve worn it while travelling, sitting in air conditioning, walking around in the sun and sweating through the Spanish summer heat. I’ve worn it on its own and over a mineral SPF 50, and I’ve reapplied it throughout the day in just about every combination I can think of.
Swatches of Beauty of Joseon Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen in shades LN110 and MY210. Image – Courtesy of writer
That includes reapplying the Beauty of Joseon itself, as well as layering other mineral sunscreens – including Supergoop! Mineral Glowscreen and ISDIN’s tinted mineral SPF compact – over the top.
Underneath, I’ve tested it with everything from my prescription azelaic acid to hyaluronic acid and exosome serums and a fairly rich Cetaphil moisturiser. Over it, I’ve worn my usual cream and liquid makeup, including concealer and blush.
In other words, I’ve given this considerably more opportunities to pill, streak, irritate my ridiculously SPF-sensitive eyes or generally annoy me than is probably reasonable.
Spoiler: it hasn’t done any of those things.
My first impressions
It’s been so long that I’ve been using Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen that it’s difficult to cast my mind back to my exact first impression when I initially tried it – but I’ll do my best.
I do know I was surprised by how liquid this SPF is – it really is incredibly runny, with a serum-like, almost oily texture. I also know that the first shade I bought, LN110, was visibly too fair for my skin tone as soon as I squeezed it out of its rectangular bottle.
I needn’t have worried too much though – the sheerness of this tint combined with its shade adaptability meant that, once fully on the skin, you could barely tell the shade discrepancy. And the same was instantly true with shades MY210 and MY220 too. Honestly, I could buy either without giving it a second thought. Once they’re blended onto my skin, I can barely tell them apart.
I would add though that I’ve seen some deeper-toned reviewers report an ashy cast with some of the darker shades, so my experience of the shades being this forgiving clearly isn’t universal and I would generally say that if in doubt, go up one shade.
The other things that instantly struck me were a. how comfortable this is on the skin (thanks to my sensitivity, I like a hydrating, non-irritating formula), and b. how dewy its finish is. And I mean like 1,000 megawatt beam dewy (look at the light on my cheekbone below – after Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen and concealer but before other makeup). I was impressed – but that’s just me, I love a glowy finish.
Image – Courtesy of writer
It does mean that I unfortunately can’t agree with the brand’s description that this sits in between dewy and matte and I hate to say that if the thought of shine makes you wince you may very well despise this formula.
Beyond that, in terms of first impressions, this is scentless and is so liquid that it’s incredibly easy to work on to skin (which also makes it excellent for reapplication – more on that later).
Despite the brand’s claims that this fully absorbs in around 15 minutes though, the I found from my first use that getting this to absorb is almost impossible – it really does just want to sit on top of my skin. In fact, in order to use the right amount of SPF (normally two fingers but I use three because melasma, baby) I have to wait a few minutes between each layer, otherwise I’m literally wiping off what I’ve just applied.
My results after six months of using Beauty of Joseon’s Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen
Six months in, the main reason I keep buying this sunscreen is simple: it protects my skin and makes it look really good.
The coverage is definitely sheer – my melasma and redness are still visible underneath, as you’ll see from my photo below – but it makes everything look softer, more uniform and lightly blurred, with that extremely dewy, glass-skin finish I love. In fact, for everyday wear, this has completely replaced foundation for me.
Image – Courtesy of writer
It’s also proved ridiculously easy to layer. I’ve had no pilling with any of the skincare, SPF or makeup combinations I’ve tried, while cream and liquid makeup sits beautifully over it and lasts just as well as normal. Even better, despite having eyes that seem personally offended by an alarming number of sunscreens, I’ve had absolutely no stinging or irritation from this.
But probably my favourite thing about the formula is how easy it is to reapply. Because it’s so liquid, I can gently work another layer over makeup without dragging everything underneath around my face, while the tint is sheer enough that it barely alters my concealer or blush. I’ve also successfully reapplied other mineral SPFs over it without any issues.
As for how it wears, not much happens – and I mean that as a compliment. I’ve worn this sweating outside in the Spanish summer, travelling, sitting in air conditioning and everything in between, and it doesn’t suddenly become patchy or streaky on me. It essentially keeps looking the same, particularly since I’m topping up my SPF throughout the day.
Unfortunately, it also keeps feeling much the same. That tackiness I noticed from the beginning never really disappears on my skin, and transfer remains its biggest drawback. Clothes, towels and phones have all fallen victim, and I’ve learned to be careful when changing or hugging anyone while wearing it.
Image – Courtesy of writer
So no, six months of use haven’t made me suddenly agree with the brand that this is neither too dewy nor too matte. It’s very dewy on me, and I completely understand why that makes it a love-it-or-hate-it product.
I’m firmly in the love camp though. Eight bottles probably gave that away.
What other users are saying
If you’re thinking my experience with the oiliness is unusual, I’m definitely not alone. Reddit user m4vie_ says, “It doesn’t set at all,” adding that even after waiting around 10 minutes, it still felt freshly applied. Clovertree71 had a similar experience: “It didn’t set and transferred everywhere.”
Not everyone agrees though. Aljini10, who describes their skin as being on the drier side, says, “It dries down just fine for me,” which really does seem to reinforce just how skin-dependent this formula can be.
Experiences with pilling are similarly mixed. I’ve never managed to make mine pill despite layering it with an almost unreasonable number of products, but AdJumpy9641 says, “Mine keeps pilling whenever I use it.”
One interesting plus for sensitive skin types is that the formula doesn’t contain niacinamide. That’s a big deal for some users, including zoltharthedestroyer, who says they were “SO happy” to see it omitted after finding the niacinamide in Beauty of Joseon’s chemical sunscreen didn’t agree with their skin.
It’s also worth noting that Beauty of Joseon has since launched its Tinted Mineral Dayscreen SPF 30, which some users are suggesting as an alternative for anyone who likes the idea of Daily Tinted Fluid but struggles with its oiliness or transfer. I haven’t tried that one yet though, so I can’t personally vouch for the comparison.
Overall value for money
This is probably the easiest part of the review for me. The value for money is excellent.
At under $20 for 50ml, one bottle lasts me almost a month even though I’m using it properly every day and reapplying regularly – and I’ve found it’s frequently discounted too. Beauty of Joseon’s official US price is $20 before offers.
That matters more to me with sunscreen than almost any other beauty product. There’s little point buying an expensive SPF if the price makes you precious about using enough of it, and I never find myself rationing this.
It’s also cheaper than my two nearest favourite mineral SPFs; Supergoop’s Mineral Glow Screen and ISDIN’S Compact, making this one of those rare beauty products where I genuinely struggle to find fault with the cost.
The takeaway
So, would I recommend Beauty of Joseon’s Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen? Absolutely – with one very shiny caveat.
If you love a dewy, barely-there tint and want an affordable mineral SPF that’s ridiculously easy to reapply, just get it. If you hate oiliness, tackiness or transfer though, this probably isn’t the sunscreen for you.
As for me? Bottle number nine is surely only a matter of time.
