Consumer champions Which? have named Garnier Ambre Solaire Sensitive Advanced Sun Spray as the top high street sun cream after comparing it with Nivea Sun Protect & Moisture Spray. The Garnier product, priced from £6.93 in supermarkets, offers SPF 50+ and a five-star UVA protection rating.
Which? said the Garnier sun cream is easy to apply, absorbs well, leaves no greasy residue, and has a pleasant scent. The review states: “This sun cream pairs easy application with a nice feel and brilliant sun protection, flying through our UVA and SPF tests.”
Nivea Sun Cream Test Results
The Nivea sun cream, costing £8 in supermarkets, also has SPF 50+ and a five-star UVA rating. It absorbs well, leaves no residue, has a good sustainability score, and smells pleasant. However, Which? noted that while the product passed overall, it initially fell short in the SPF test. The review says: “Overall, this product passed our tests. It breezed through our UVA tests with no issues, but in our first SPF test, it fell slightly short of the UVB levels required.” Nivea conducted two further tests, both passed, but Which? could not recommend it as a Best Buy due to the inconsistent UVB results.
A Nivea spokesperson said: “As the UK's No.1 sun care brand, the safety of our products is of utmost importance. Nivea Sun prides itself on its decades of experience in sun care for adults and children and is dedicated to developing products that reliably and effectively protect against sun damage. To ensure we comply with industry standards, Nivea Sun rigorously tests each of our Sun formulations and their labelled SPFs according to internationally standardised test methods.”
Testing Methodology
Hannah Fox, principal researcher and writer at Which?, explained: “Every sun cream we review is subject to British Standard tests to ensure it offers its claimed level of protection against UV radiation. We also look at whether the claimed SPF matches the label, how well the product absorbs into the skin and how much of an environmental impact the ingredients have.” She added that both sun creams passed UVA protection tests and felt good on the skin, but Nivea missed out on a Best Buy due to its initial SPF test failure.
