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Woman & Home
Woman & Home
Lifestyle
Annie Milroy

Choosing between SPF30 vs SPF50? Dermatologists explain the difference and how to get the protection on the label

Sun Angela Tewari
A wwoman's shoulder and the back of her head, pictured on a beach spraying on a blue bottle of sunscreen.

We all know that we should be wearing sun cream, especially during long hot summers like the one many of us are having this year - but which factor should you be using - SPF30 or SPF50?

The SPF number you see on your best facial sunscreen stands for Sun Protection Factor, and quantifies the level of protection against UVB radiation. It's a measurement of how long the sun's UV radiation would take to redden your skin when using the product versus the amount of time without any sun cream. So, SPF30 would take you 30 times longer to burn than if you weren't wearing any protection, while for SPF50, it would be 50 times longer.

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