The Product Missing From Nearly Half of Skin-Care Shelves

For years, dermatologists, beauty editors and other experts have called sunscreen the most important step in any skin-care routine—it’s a nonnegotiable every day. But new data suggest that even among highly engaged beauty consumers, SPF is still falling through the cracks.

Ahead, a closer look at what the photos reveal about where sunscreen fits—and doesn’t fit—into today’s skin-care routines.

SPF Is Missing From Otherwise Stacked Routines

Sunscreen ranked behind moisturizers, serums and cleansers in how frequently each category appeared. While almost 85 percent of shelves contained a moisturizer, approximately 84 percent had a serum and nearly 65 percent included a cleanser, just 54.9 percent featured SPF.

The average shelf contained 9.4 products from 7.3 different brands, suggesting that many participants had extensive, multi-step routines without giving sun protection the same priority.

The Gap Persists With Age

Among members ages 55 and older, 47 percent of photographed shelves lacked sunscreen. For this group, daily SPF is especially important for helping prevent additional signs of photoaging and protecting the results of certain in-office treatments.

What the Photos Can—and Can’t—Tell Us

The findings reflect only what participants included in their photos, not necessarily everything they own. Someone could keep sunscreen elsewhere or have omitted it from the image.

Still, because the analysis relied on observed products rather than self-reporting alone, it offers a useful snapshot of how prominently SPF figures into these routines.

Reported Habits Tell a Similar Story

Participants’ reported habits largely aligned with the images. Approximately 96 percent of members who said they use sunscreen had an SPF product pictured, while only 2 percent reported using it without one appearing in their collection.

Overall, the data reveal a striking disconnect: Consumers are building sophisticated routines filled with serums, moisturizers and treatment products, yet many still appear to be overlooking the step experts consider most essential.