If You Can’t Use Your Sunscreen Around The Eyes, Try These Eye Creams With SPF

Best Eye Creams With SPF

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For some of us, the eye area simply needs special treatment. But the good news is eye creams with SPF do double, heck, triple duty. Eye creams that contain SPF keep the eye area protected from the skin-damaging effects of UV rays and help maintain your healthy collagen. If that isn’t anti-aging, I don’t know what is. Plus, they provide major skincare benefits as most of them contain potent antioxidants. And they even have cosmetic benefits as some of them are tinted and can help with under-eye discolorations too!

But first and foremost, know that you don’t actually need a separate sunscreen for the eye area. You can use your facial sunscreens on the under-eyes and all over the eyelids. However, you’re not alone if your sunscreen irritates your eyes when you use it around the eyes. Because it happens. And it’s more common when you already have sensitive eyes or ocular rosacea. That’s when you can consider separate sun protection for your eyes.

The eye area is among the first ones to show signs of aging. And it can take a toll on your confidence. Whether it’s in the form of discolorations, crow’s feet, or loss of elasticity, the sun does damage your skin’s integrity.

While the benefits of eye creams are plenty, sunscreens have no competition when it comes to skincare that prevents aging. They basically prevent oxidative stress caused by sun exposure.

And in doing so, they prevent future damage but also allow your skin to bounce back from existing sun damage. And if you’re not able to use your face sunscreen around the eyes, eye creams with SPF are the next best thing!

The only downside with SPF eye creams is that they’re pretty rare. And when I say that they’re rare, I mean eye creams with SPF above 30! And that leaves us stuck with pretty pricey options.

But rest assured, if you really need an eye cream with sun protection, these will not disappoint!

The Best Eye Creams With SPF

Find below the best eye creams with SPF to use around the eyes for the ultimate sun protection.

1. Colorescience Total Eye 3-in-1 Renewal Therapy SPF 35

Colorescience Total Eye 3-in-1 Renewal Therapy SPF 35 - Best Eye Creams With SPF

If you already have sensitive eyes, your facial sunscreen is probably a mineral one. And that’s the one to go for to use around the eyes too. Because mineral sunscreens are very unlikely to irritate, burn, or make the eyes all watery. This one is unrivaled in this department. The mineral SPF eye cream is 100% fragrance-free and plumps the skin with hyaluronic acid and vitamin B5.

And it has signal peptides and vitamin E for added anti-aging action. It comes with an applicator tip for convenience. And it is really light and feels weightless around the eyes. Plus, it comes in different shades to match different skin tones. And the fact that it has different shades also allows you to get some concealer benefits too. If you don’t have major discolorations under the eyes, you don’t even need to apply concealer on top of this.

Key Ingredients: Vitamin B5, hyaluronic acid
SPF: Mineral, 35
You’ll Like It If: You prefer tinted SPF eye cream
Good To Know: The applicator tip reduces puffy eyes, fragrance-free, vegan

2. Supergoop! Bright-Eyed 100% Mineral Eye Cream SPF 40 PA+++

Supergoop! Bright-Eyed 100% Mineral Eye Cream SPF 40 PA+++ - Best Mineral Eye Creams With SPF

This is by far the most raved-about SPF eye cream. Well, I think it’s brilliant. The eye cream has a light pink tint to it that blends out but it leaves the eye area super radiant like a healthy glow. Plus, it has caffeine to help with dark circles in the long run too.

And it plays well with your concealer. The mineral SPF is water-resistant for up to 40 minutes, which is handy if it’s raining or if you’re sweating. But if you’re like me, it means you’ve got yourself a good 40 minutes of crying before you need to start worrying about reapplying your sunscreen.

Key Ingredients: Caffeine, probiotics, green tea
SPF: Mineral, 40
You’ll Like It If: You prefer high-concentration sun protection
Good To Know: Cruelty-free

3. Naturopathica Calendula & Butterfly Ginger Eye Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 40

Naturopathica Calendula & Butterfly Ginger Eye Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 40

Similar to their brightening vitamin K eye cream, this is a natural eye cream made with mineral sunscreen (zinc) with SPF 40. It’s super replenishing and is great for dry, flaky under-eyes. Plus, it offers some impressive skincare benefits. It has green tea and other botanicals that are rich in polyphenols.

Polyphenols are natural plant compounds with major antioxidant benefits. And it has caffeine to brighten up the eyes, calendula for anti-inflammatory benefits, and lightly emollient oils to boost moisture. It’s all-natural, cruelty-free, mineral, and an overall great investment to care for the eyes on mature, aging skin that needs special care.

Key Ingredients: Caffeine, green tea, calendula
SPF: Mineral, 40
You’ll Like It If: You prefer natural skincare
Good To Know: Cruelty-free

4. PCA Skin Sheer Tint Eye Triple Complex Broad Spectrum SPF 30

PCA Skin Sheer Tint Eye Triple Complex Broad Spectrum SPF 30

This tinted SPF eye cream has a creamy consistency and a very moisturizing base. It’s made with hydrating hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and other humectants to plump the eye area. And it contains shea butter and coconut oil to lock moisture in.

And it has a universal tint that adapts to your skin tone. It won’t work as well as a concealer but it helps neutralize mild discolorations and can definitely be used for no-makeup makeup days. The eye cream also contains peptides for firmer skin around the eyes and vitamin E for added antioxidant benefits.

Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, peptides
SPF: Mineral, 30
You’ll Like It If: You prefer added anti-aging benefits
Good To Know: Has a universal tint, fragrance-free, cruelty-free

5. Origins A Perfect World Age-Defense Eye Cream With SPF 20

Origins A Perfect World Age-Defense Eye Cream With SPF 20

This is a mineral SPF eye cream. But it’s easy on the sun protection but heavy on the eye cream. Even though the SPF could be higher, I wanted to include this because it’s oil-free. And that’s hard to come by in SPF eye creams. SPF is difficult to remove as it is.

And if you’re prone to milia around the eyes, it’s always safer to go for oil-free, non-comedogenic options. It has white tea and cranberry extract for their antioxidant benefits. And it also contains strong humectants like hyaluronic acid, sodium PCA, glycerin, as well as squalane, for lightweight hydration around the eyes.

Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, squalane, cranberry extract
SPF: Mineral, 20
You’ll Like It If: You have oily eyelids and are prone to milia
Good To Know: Scented, oil-free

6. SkinCeuticals Physical Eye UV Defense SPF 50

SkinCeuticals Physical Eye UV Defense SPF 50

This one is a rare gem in that it’s the one with the highest SPF. And it’s all mineral. So it’s the one to go for if you really want the most sun protection and can’t afford to irritate your eyes with chemical SPF eye creams. And because it’s mineral, it has a tint to it to reduce the potential white cast around the eyes.

And its emollient base contains ceramides and jojoba oil to moisturize the eye area and help spread the product too. You can use it all over the eye area to protect that sensitive skin from UV damage.

Key Ingredients: Ceramides
SPF: Mineral, 50
You’ll Like It If: You want maximum sun protection
Good To Know: Has a universal tint

7. Coola Day SPF 30 & Night Organic Eye Cream Duo

Coola Day SPF 30 & Night Organic Eye Cream Duo

On the flip side, if you don’t have sensitive eyes or don’t mind chemical sunscreens and you’re just looking for a good eye cream with SPF, you can try this. This is like the fast lane to smooth, bright, youthful eyes. This has 2 different eye creams, one for the day and one for the night.

And considering the total amount, the level of protection, and the price, this is actually more cost-effective than most SPF eye creams. The daily eye cream contains SPF 30 as well as vitamin C to protect the eye area and reduce dark circles. The night eye cream contains an equally potent antioxidant, resveratrol, to rejuvenate the eye area. Both creams are moisturizing and helpful in minimizing fine lines by plumping up the skin.

Key Ingredients: Vitamin C, resveratrol
SPF: Chemical, 30
You’ll Like It If: You prefer organic skincare
Good To Know: Cruelty-free, vegan

So these are some of the best eye creams that contain SPF. If you’re not sure how to pick one, keep reading.

How To Choose an Eye Cream With SPF

You can divide SPF eye creams into two categories: the one that focuses on sun protection and the one that focuses on eye care. Because it can be difficult to achieve both.

First of all, if your priority is sun protection, go for eye creams that contain at least SPF 30. That’s the recommended SPF protection. Additionally, go for eye creams with mineral sunscreens. Because mineral sunscreens are usually safer to use around the eyes.

If you need more skincare benefits, know that there are other low-SPF eye creams that I did not include in this list. Because the more ingredients the eye cream contains, the lower the SPF.

It’s because some ingredients are difficult to formulate together with sunscreens. So you’ll have to choose between more skincare and more sun protection.

Read Next: The Best Anti-Aging Moisturizers with SPF

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