Beet The Sun SPF 50 Sunscreen

There is a certain kind of product launch that feels less like marketing and more like an apology. When KraveBeauty released the reformulated Beet The Sun SPF 50 PA++++ for international markets in 2024, every aspect of the formula read like a response to specific criticism — as if Liah Yoo had taken every comment from the 2021 SPF controversy, every complaint about the original Beet Shield, and every limitation of the interim SPF 40, and used them as a brief.

The UV filter system is the most immediately impressive change. The original Beet Shield used three next-gen filters. This version uses five. The core Tinosorb S (Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine) and Uvinul A Plus (Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate) remain, joined by Ethylhexyl Triazone for UVB. But the two additions are significant: Terephthalylidene Dicamphor Sulfonic Acid — better known as Mexoryl SX — brings a water-soluble UVA filter that distributes differently on the skin surface than the oil-soluble filters, providing a more even protection profile. Polysilicone-15 adds UVB coverage through a silicone-bound cinnamate. Five filters from four different chemical classes, covering UVA and UVB through multiple mechanisms with overlapping absorption spectra. This is not a budget filter system.

The base formula has been rebuilt entirely around hydration rather than the original’s alcohol-antioxidant philosophy. The EGCG, resveratrol, and sodium ascorbyl phosphate trio is gone, replaced by a different approach: eight forms of hyaluronic acid spanning different molecular weights and modifications. Standard sodium hyaluronate and hyaluronic acid handle surface hydration. Hydrolyzed sodium hyaluronate and hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid penetrate deeper. Potassium hyaluronate and sodium acetylated hyaluronate provide sustained-release moisture. Dimethylsilanol hyaluronate and hydroxypropyltrimonium hyaluronate bind to skin proteins for lasting hydration even through environmental stress. It is, by any measure, one of the most thorough hyaluronic acid complexes found in a sunscreen.

The supporting cast has been thoughtfully chosen. Avena Sativa oat kernel extract — an ingredient with well-documented soothing and barrier-supporting properties — provides the calming base that the original’s alcohol undermined. Beta-glucan adds anti-inflammatory and wound-healing support. Cynara Scolymus artichoke leaf extract contributes antioxidant activity, and Camellia Sinensis leaf water (green tea) carries over a trace of the original’s antioxidant identity. Biosaccharide Gum-1 provides prebiotic support for the skin microbiome. Every addition addresses a specific need rather than padding the ingredient list.

Texturally, this is the best version KraveBeauty has produced. Without alcohol driving rapid evaporation, the formula relies on its emulsion system — Polyglyceryl-3 Distearate, Glyceryl Stearate, and Caprylyl Methicone — to deliver a silk-soft, lightweight feel that absorbs quickly and sets into a genuinely invisible finish. It looks like skin, not sunscreen. Multiple reviewers on Cult Beauty describe it as moisturizing without heaviness, and several note they skip their separate moisturizer entirely when using this product. No white cast, no greasiness, no pilling.

The beetroot extract is still there — because it would not be a Beet The Sun without it — though positioned more modestly in the formula than in previous versions. Its betalain antioxidants provide supplementary photoprotection, but this formula is no longer asking one ingredient to carry the antioxidant load. The burden has been distributed across oat, beta-glucan, green tea water, artichoke, and vitamin E (tocopherol).

The significant limitation is geographic: this formula is available only in international markets. The UV filters — particularly Mexoryl SX, Tinosorb S, and Uvinul A Plus — are not FDA-approved for sunscreen use in the United States. US consumers are limited to the SPF 40 version, which uses an entirely different filter system. This is a regulatory reality, not a brand choice, but it means the best KraveBeauty sunscreen is not available to the brand’s home market.

At approximately $21 for 50 mL, this competes favorably with European pharmacy sunscreens that use similar filter technology but typically cost more. For a five-filter system with an eight-form hyaluronic acid complex, the pricing is generous — reflecting KraveBeauty’s commitment to accessibility even as the formulation has become significantly more sophisticated.

The Beet The Sun SPF 50 PA++++ represents what responsible brand evolution looks like. A product was found wanting, the brand took accountability, and three years of reformulation produced something measurably better in every dimension — better filters, better base, better skin benefits, better comfort. It is too new to have a long-term track record, and the review count is still growing, but the formula itself suggests that KraveBeauty’s hardest years produced its best work.

Formula