According to Mintel’s suncare market analysis, volume growth remains stagnant in the suncare products market as sales are driven primarily by price increases.
Suncare Market Analysis – Current Landscape
Although opportunities for innovation in the suncare products market are limited, brands can succeed by emphasizing beyond-protection skin benefits in addition to enhanced skin feel and finishes. Notable growth from brands like CeraVe, La Roche-Posay and Eucerin underscores the strong connection between dermacosmetic attributes and consumer appeal.
Although interest in foreign suncare products among US consumers may be stymied by rising prices and stricter regulatory oversight, this trend highlights the ongoing demand for improved application experiences.
Looking ahead, added skincare benefits and expert endorsements will help lift daily and weekly use within both self-tan and suncare. Relevance to challenged skin types and specific skincare goals, such as anti-aging and hyperpigmentation, can strengthen brand positioning in year-round skin health.
US Suncare Products Market Statistics
- Suncare Market Size: Long-term growth of 6.7% in retail sales is forecasted for the next five years.
- Suncare Products Market Trends: Foreign-branded sunscreens pose a challenge as they appeal to 21% of US consumers.
US Suncare Market Research – What’s Inside?
Key Topics Analyzed in this Report
- Suncare products market trends in the US.
- Key challenges and opportunities for suncare and skin protection stakeholders.
- Use of suncare and skin protection products in the US.
- Consumer perceptions of select suncare and skin protection concepts and claims.
- Consumer attitudes and behaviors towards suncare and skin protection.
Meet the Expert Behind the Analysis
This report is written by Joan Li, Senior Analyst. Joan joined Mintel in 2023 as a Senior Analyst in Beauty and Personal Care. Prior to this role, she was an agency-side brand planner and consumer insights analyst for multiple CPG accounts.
Despite limited innovation opportunities, brands in the suncare products market can thrive by focusing on dermacosmetic positionings, skinfeel, finish, and sustainability.
Joan Li
Senior Analyst – Beauty & Personal Care
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Market size & forecast
- Market predictions
- What consumers want & why
- Opportunities
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MARKET DYNAMICS
- Market context
- Market drivers
- Consumer sentiment reached an eight-month high
- Graph 1: consumer sentiment index, 2022-24
- Potential FDA approval may bring innovation around a new active ingredient on the horizon
- Anticipated price hikes and regulations to stymie growing competition from foreign brands
- The teen/tween BPC market presents a new pipeline
- Graph 2: teen/tween usage of select personal care categories by age and gender, 2024
- Market size and forecast
- Market definition
- Retail sales and forecast of suncare and skin protection
- Retail sales and forecast of suncare and skin protection, at current prices
- Retail sales and forecast of suncare and skin protection, inflation-adjusted
- MULO* volume sales reflect price-driven sales growth
- Retail channels outside of supermarkets and drugstores drive category growth
- Market share/brand share
- Smaller brands gain market share in a stagnant year for larger players
- L’Oréal’s double-digit sales growth is owed to the success of its dermacosmetic brands
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INNOVATION AND MARKETING STRATEGIES
- Skin sensitivities and dermatological approval are emergent nodes of consumer selectivity
- Graph 3: Top rate of change in suncare claims, 2019-2024
- Invest in expert-driven marketing
- Sun protection to encompass reversal of sun damage and broader skin goals
- Self-tan to also broaden its relevance to skin health
- Pair core suncare with multi-modal products
- Look to trending formats to inspire secondary and core products
- Graph 4: change in formats and textures of suncare and skin protection product launches, 2022-24
- Anticipate the renovation of new eco-ethical claims
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CONSUMER INSIGHTS
- Consumer fast facts
- Suncare & skin protection: usage & frequency of use
- Overall use of skin protection products remains stable
- Graph 5: Usage of suncare and skin protection products, 2024
- Women prefer multifunctional positioning
- Graph 6: usage of select suncare and skin protection products by gender and age, 2024
- Sunscreen use is weekly, while protective personal care use is daily
- Graph 7: Frequency of use of suncare and skin protection products, 2024
- Body sunscreen is particularly challenged by infrequent use among consumers 55+
- Graph 8: Year-round consumption of body sunscreen by gender and age, 2024
- Keep an eye out for supplements and haircare, which have a small-but-strong core of early adopters
- Graph 9: usage of select suncare and skin protection products by gender and age, 2024
- SPF-fortified BPC elaborates and extends core sunscreen habits
- Graph 10: Usage of suncare and skin protection products by usage of suncare and skin protection products, 2024
- Suncare & skin protection: textures & formats
- Creams and lotions remain the most sought-after texture
- Graph 11: suncare formats and textures used, 2024
- Newer formats must compete with lotions and aerosols on parental trust and desire for convenience
- Graph 12: suncare formats and textures used by parental status, 2024
- Update convenient aerosols with safer spray technology & packaging
- Tailor variety towards regional preferences
- Graph 13: sunscreen formats and textures used by region, 2024
- At-home tanning: usage & frequency
- Self-tanning habits remain stable after 2022-23 growth
- Graph 14: usage of self-tanning products, 2022-24
- Support weekly routines for broadest relevance
- Graph 15: frequency of use of self-tanning products, 2024
- Inclusive, skin-health-conscious messaging pays off
- Graph 16: usage of self-tanning products by ethnicity, 2023 vs 2024
- Tap into the male tanning market
- Graph 17: usage of self-tanning products by gender and age, 2024
- At-home tanning: formats & textures
- The self-tanning market is open to experimentation
- Graph 18: self-tanning textures and formats used, 2024
- Men drive interest in non-lotion applications
- Graph 19: self-tanning textures and formats used by gender, 2024
- New formats and application experiences align with desires for convenience
- Perceptions of suncare & skin protection claims
- Over a third of consumers look for added skincare benefits
- Graph 20: perceptions of suncare and skin protection claims, 2024
- Interest in foreign brands presents a long-term challenge
- Graph 21: perceptions of foreign brand sunscreen products, 2024
- Reef-safe claims show signs of losing cache
- Graph 22: perceptions of select suncare claims, 2024
- Mineral sunscreens benefit from marketing buzz, while hybrid options have the opportunity to grow
- Graph 23: perceptions of sunscreen filters, 2024
- Consumers with melanated skin see value in hybrid sunscreens…
- Graph 24: perceptions of hybrid sunscreens by ethnicity or race, 2024
- …but demand for hybrid is shaped by mineral-first, shade-inclusive priorities
- Suncare & skin protection: pain points
- Re-application remains a top-of-mind concern for a third of suncare users
- Graph 25: suncare pain points, 2024
- A fifth of young and middle-aged adults worry about ineffective protection
- Formulate for fast absorption and easy removal
- Graph 26: suncare pain points by gender, 2024
- Beauty entrants focus on making application more luxurious
- Suncare & skin protection: attitudes & behaviors
- Suncare routines remain rooted primarily in preventative health
- Graph 27: select attitudes towards sunscreen by gender and age, 2024
- Innovate for finish and skinfeel to create distinction
- Graph 28: select attitudes towards sunscreen by gender and age, 2024
- Diversify offerings by activity level and season
- Encourage personalization in suncare regimens to lift trial and engagement
- Graph 29: select suncare research and shopping behaviors by age, 2024
- Melanated protection needs are a continued area of opportunity
- Graph 30: shopping for suncare and skin protection products by ethnicity or race, 2024
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APPENDIX
- Market size methodology
- Consumer research questions
- Bases: usage of suncare and skin protection products
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
- Consumer research methodology
- Forecast methodology
- Forecast fan chart methodology
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