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As winter thaws into spring and we begin to spend more time outdoors, perhaps there’s no better way to re-vamp a skincare routine than to give your daily sunscreen an upgrade.
After all, exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays is damaging to the skin—so wearing sunscreen every single day (regardless of the season) is crucial to reducing your risk of potentially fatal skin cancers. It also helps prevent premature signs of skin aging like fine lines, wrinkles and sunspots. But “there are a lot of sunscreen products on the market,” explains Joshua Zeichner, MD, the director of Cosmetic & Clinical Research in Dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital. “And, ultimately, the best product is the one that the consumer is actually using.”
With that in mind, I always get excited when a beauty brand launches a new sunscreen because it’s yet another opportunity for folks to find the perfect one for them. (‘Cause if you’re going to use a product on a daily basis, you should really like it, amiright?) So once I caught wind that Bubble—the bright and colorful skincare brand for all ages—was launching a new mineral sunscreen, I just had to give it a try.
Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick
Pros
- It's compact and easy to use while traveling.
- The formula is gentle on my sensitive skin.
- It leaves my skin feeling smooth and hydrated.
Cons
- The formula can feel greasy.
Read on to learn all my honest and unfiltered thoughts about the Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick, including whether it leaves a white cast on my olive skin, how it makes my face look and feel, and if it’s worth incorporating into your own skincare regimen.
What makes the Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick Unique?
The Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick ($15) is an affordable option compared to many other brands, and it manages to pack 20 grams of sunscreen into a small stick that literally fits in the palm of your hand. Plus, it comes in visually-appealing, butter yellow packaging that makes using the product a fun part of any skincare routine. Here are a few other qualities that make the product worth considering.
It’s a Mineral Sunscreen with SPF 40
The American Academy of Dermatology recommends people use a daily sunscreen with a sun protection factor, or SPF, of at least 30. That means wearing it makes it take 30 times longer for your skin to burn in the sun compared to if you weren’t wearing any sunscreen at all, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.
This Bubble sunscreen boasts an SPF of 40, which means I feel more than adequately protected when I use it. Plus, it offers broad spectrum protection, which means it shields the skin from both ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultraviolet B (UVB) rays. This is noteworthy because exposure to UVA rays causes your skin to tan (or burn!) and is associated with skin aging, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. Exposure to UVB rays, meanwhile, mostly causes sunburns. And both ultraviolet rays can raise skin cancer risk. To keep yourself adequately protected, it’s important to use sunscreens (like this one!) that protect your skin from both types of radiation, Dr. Zeichner says.
And there are technically 16 active sunscreen ingredients approved by the Food and Drug Administration. But only two of them are Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective—a legal standard for over-the-counter drugs like sunscreen that, as the name implies, ensures a product is safe to use and actually works. Those ingredients are the minerals titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, Dr. Zeichner says.
The Bubble mineral sunscreen contains the latter, and the brand “has gone through extensive testing and formulation trials to develop a product that delivers the safety and efficacy of zinc oxide as its main UV filter,” Dr. Zeichner says. The point is, you can use this product and know that it will truly get the job done.
It’s Easy To Use Anywhere I Go
Perhaps the defining feature of this mineral sunscreen is that it comes in the form of a stick. And that decision was an intentional one, says Shai Eisenman, founder of Bubble. “We wanted to solve for the biggest gap we see with SPF, which is consistency. People don’t skip sunscreen because they don’t care. They skip it because most formats don’t fit into real life,” she explains. “They can feel messy, inconvenient, or easy to put off in the middle of the day. The stick removes that friction. It’s quick, clean, and easy to use anywhere, so reapplying becomes something you can actually do, not something you have to plan for.”
And I have to say, I think Eisenman is right. I’m a beauty editor and sunscreen enthusiast, and reapplying multiple times a day can sometimes feel arduous—even for me. But the stick format of this sunscreen makes reapplication feel like less of a chore because all it takes is a quick swipe! Plus, the compact size of the product makes it perfect for your travel beauty routine.
In fact, the size of the product is so modest that it easily fits inside my smallest purse, making it easy to bring with me when I’m on the go. This perk is especially important considering that a significant part of my job is traveling to other cities to learn about innovations in the beauty industry. So the next time I head to the airport, I intend on sticking this sunscreen into my carry-on bag or personal item—and I wholeheartedly recommend that other frequent fliers do the same.
It’s Mess-free
Yet another perk of the stick format is that it’s as tidy as it gets. There’s no need to spray anything, so I don’t have to worry about accidentally leaving behind a sticky residue on my skin, clothes, or nearby surfaces. I also don’t have to contend with squeezing out globs of lotion—I simply rub the stick directly onto my face, just like how you’d swipe on deodorant, and the job is done. It quite literally doesn’t get much easier than that!
Again, the ease-of-use is something Bubble crafted deliberately, Eisenman says. “We think a lot about behavior. If something isn’t easy and enjoyable to use, it won’t become a habit,” she adds. “This format is about making daily SPF feel simple, seamless, and inclusive so people actually stick with it." In my experience, this sunscreen passes that test with flying colors.
How I used the Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick.
To truly get a feel of what it’s like to use this sunscreen stick, I swapped it into my morning skincare routine and used it as my primary source of sun protection for about a week. But one of the trickiest parts of using a stick sunscreen compared to a lotion, for instance, is ensuring that you actually use enough to get the sun protection factor advertised on the label.
For reference, whenever I use my lotion facial sunscreen, I use about a quarter-sized dollop to ensure I’m adequately protected—and that rule of thumb doesn’t translate to a stick. But Dr. Zeichner explained that four passes of sunscreen—like rubbing the stick from your nostril to your ear and back, twice, for instance—is enough to "ensure that you get enough of the sunscreen deposited onto the skin to deliver the level of protection on the bottle,” he says.
So that’s exactly how I applied the product to my cheeks, chin, forehead and nose bridge before stepping out the door in the mornings, as well as when I re-applied every two or three hours throughout the day. And I’ll be real: Like many other mineral sunscreens on the market, applying that amount left a gnarly white cast on my olive-toned complexion. But after thoroughly rubbing it in for a good minute or two, the product managed to melt in my skin and look completely invisible—a major feat. And while getting rid of the white-cast does require some elbow grease, I honestly found the experience to be relaxing…almost like giving myself a facial massage. Plus, having to rub in the product thoroughly helps ensure you don’t miss any spots, Dr. Zeichner says.
As someone with pretty sensitive skin, I’m happy to report that the formula didn’t cause any irritation. And though zinc oxide is the only active ingredient in this sunscreen, the moisturizing formula still managed to hydrate my skin and make it look soft and smooth—though it also felt a bit too greasy for my liking as a result.
The Bottom Line: Is the Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Worth It?
If you’re looking for an affordable, convenient, and effective sunscreen, consider adding the Bubble Sun Rise Mineral Sunscreen Stick to your skincare rotation. The texture may feel too sleek and oily for some, but the formula still offers light-weight sun protection that leaves skin looking, sheen, moist and plump…all without leaving behind a dreaded white-cast.
And as someone who appreciates the importance of sun protection to keep skin beautiful and healthy, I’ll always get behind sunscreens that are enjoyable and easy to use. Dr. Zeichner agrees: “Any new product coming to the market that delivers efficacy, safety, quality, and nice aesthetics is something I am very supportive of.”
So while I plan to stick to using lotion sunscreens on a day-to-day basis because I prefer the texture, I’m excited to make this Bubble sunscreen stick a staple in my travel beauty bag.
Katie Mogg is the beauty editorial assistant at Women’s Health. Since starting college at Northeastern University in 2020, her bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NBC News and The Boston Globe. She strives to help readers lead happier and healthier lives through science-backed stories that explain how to care for hair, skin and nails. When she’s not working, Katie enjoys live music, strolling through Central Park, planning her next beach getaway, and sharing hotpot with friends.
Brian Underwood is beauty director at Women’s Health, where he oversees content strategy for the brand across all platforms, including digital, print, and social. Underwood previously served as beauty and wellness director at Oprah Daily and O, The Oprah Magazine. During his tenure leading beauty content for the Oprah brand at Hearst, stories Underwood commissioned were awarded the Skin Cancer Foundation Media Award and a Fragrance Award for Editorial Excellence (his second). He was the launch Beauty Director of Dr. Oz THE GOOD LIFE, and has held additional editorial positions at Fitness, Organic Style, Good Housekeeping, Life & Style Weekly, and Woman’s Day and has written for Self, Shape, Seventeen, Redbook, Cosmopolitan, and many more. Underwood previously served on the Skin Cancer Foundation’s gala committee and as partnerships director of the Trans Beauty Clinic, a New York-based charitable organization that provided beauty services and workshops to the city’s trans community.
