Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder Sunscreen contains one active ingredient, non-nano zinc oxide at 22.1%, for broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection. Its skin-support ingredients are niacinamide at 2%, hyaluronic acid at 1%, a stable vitamin C, ethyl ferulate, bisabolol, squalane, jojoba, marula and rice bran extract. It contains no chemical filters and no titanium dioxide, and it is water resistant for 80 minutes.
When I started this business fifteen years ago, we had a truly great product. But one thing I have always done is ask whether our products are the best they can be, which means going back and taking a hard look at our own formulas. Sunscreen development and testing can take quite a long time, raw materials are constantly improving, and suppliers continue to develop ingredients that weren’t available before. With all of that in mind, we began a major reformulation of our SPF 30 mineral powder sunscreen four years ago.
One thing was certain during this reformulation: I wanted skincare to play a bigger role in the final product. Sunscreen has evolved over the last 15 years. Customers want their products to do more than one thing, and they’ve gotten specific about which ingredients they’re looking for and what they want them to do. Our powder was already a good sunscreen. I wanted it to be good skincare too, and I wasn’t interested in adding a token amount of anything just to get a word on the carton.
Our SPF 30 mineral powder does not have a long ingredient list, and everything in there had to earn its place. Squalane, jojoba and marula are lightweight facial oils that condition skin and help the powder blend evenly, and rice bran extract adds a second antioxidant alongside the vitamin C. But here are five of my favorites that I’d point to first.
Bisabolol is the compound that makes chamomile soothing.
Niacinamide, at 2%
Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it’s our star inactive ingredient. Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder contains niacinamide at 2%, which is a working level that works well for daily use. It helps regulate oil, support the skin barrier, and calm irritation. That last one is what I hear about often from customers, because a sunscreen needs to be gentle enough for daily use, not make your skin worse.
Hyaluronic acid, at 1%
Our SPF 30 powder formula uses sodium hyaluronate, the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It’s smaller and more stable, so it can work in a powder without breaking down. As a humectant, its job is to pull moisture toward the surface of your skin and hold it there. Most people expect that a powder will dry them out, and that expectation is fair given that many powders do. This ingredient is our answer to that concern.
Vitamin C, as tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate
Most vitamin C in skincare is L-ascorbic acid. It works, but it’s famously unstable, which is why a vitamin C serum can turn brown in the bottle. We use tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate instead, an oil-soluble form that holds its structure. Water is what breaks vitamin C down, and there’s no water in this formula, so a powder turns out to be a great place for it.
Ethyl ferulate
Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder Sunscreen contains ethyl ferulate, a form of ferulic acid. That’s the antioxidant you’ve probably seen paired with vitamin C in serums. Sunscreen stops most of the UV, but no sunscreen blocks 100% of it, so some gets through no matter what you’re wearing. An antioxidant like ferulic acid goes to work on the free radicals that result.
Is Brush On Block good for sensitive skin?
I started this company because my daughter Grace couldn’t wear sunscreen. She was reacting to the chemical filters, and going all mineral is what solved it, which is why every Brush On Block formula is built on zinc oxide and we have never used a chemical UV active. A lot of people find mineral sunscreen the same way, because something else did not work first. Our SPF 30 formula adds bisabolol, the compound that gives chamomile its soothing properties, so the powder helps calm skin as well as protecting it. If you have spent years reading labels looking for a reason a sunscreen might not sting, a mineral sunscreen with a soothing ingredient is a combination worth looking for.
What isn’t in it
Our SPF 30 powders contain no chemical filters and are zinc-oxide only, with no titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide is a perfectly good mineral active and we still use it in our SPF 50 powder, but customers continued to ask for a titanium dioxide-free option, so taking it out of the SPF 30 was an intentional formulation choice.
Zinc oxide protection in a powder format makes reapplication quick and easy, with no mess and no mirror.
The same SPF 30 formula can also be used on the scalp and along the hairline. Read our guide to protecting your scalp with mineral powder sunscreen.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the active ingredients in Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder?
There is one active ingredient: non-nano zinc oxide at 22.1 percent. It provides broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection on its own without the need for other active ingredients.
Does Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder contain titanium dioxide?
No. The SPF 30 Mineral Powder is zinc-only, as are all BOB KIDS formats and Quick Stick SPF 40. Our SPF 50 Mineral Powder does contain titanium dioxide alongside zinc oxide, because that combination is what is required to reach an SPF 50 claim.
What skincare ingredients are in the SPF 30 powder?
The formula includes 2% niacinamide, 1% hyaluronic acid as sodium hyaluronate, a stable vitamin C ester, ethyl ferulate, bisabolol, squalane, jojoba, marula and rice bran extract. These skin-support ingredients help support the skin barrier, draw in moisture, and defend against environmental stressors.
Is Brush On Block SPF 30 powder good for sensitive skin?
Yes. Brush On Block uses zinc oxide as its only UV filter in the SPF 30 powder, with no oxybenzone, no octinoxate and no chemical UV filters. Many people with sensitive skin choose mineral sunscreen for this reason. The SPF 30 powder also contains bisabolol, a soothing compound found in chamomile, and is dermatologist tested.
Is the zinc oxide in Brush On Block non-nano?
Yes. Every Brush On Block and BOB KIDS product uses non-nano zinc oxide. Non-nano means the particles are larger than 100 nanometers, the size cutoff regulators use to define a nanomaterial.
Does Brush On Block SPF 30 powder contain antioxidants?
Yes, two of them. Brush On Block SPF 30 Mineral Powder contains ethyl ferulate, a form of ferulic acid, and a stable vitamin C as tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate. Both help address the free radicals UV exposure generates, which is a different job from filtering UV in the first place.
How much niacinamide is in Brush On Block SPF 30 powder?
Two percent, which is a working level rather than a trace amount. Niacinamide helps regulate oil, supports the skin barrier and helps calm irritation. Those benefits help make the SPF 30 powder comfortable to wear and reapply every day.
Why did Brush On Block reformulate the SPF 30 powder?
We regularly review our formulas and reformulate when better ingredients become available. This round was driven by demand for zinc oxide as the only active ingredient, along with skincare ingredients. The powder was rebuilt on zinc oxide alone with niacinamide, hyaluronic acid and vitamin C added. The new formula went on sale in early 2025.
