Review: Niod Survival 30

24. 07. 2019
Reviews

I’ve made so much hype lately on my Instagram account about SPF protection products that it is most definitely time to have a sunscreen review as a cherry on the top of the cake. If you’re already my follower you may already know that my absolute favorite sunscreen product (so far) in my morning skincare routine is NIOD Survival 30. So let’s do this!

Ingredients

Oh, this baby is packed with everything you need for perfect protection. First, it offers broad spectrum physical protection with Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide without nanoparticles that offer 30SPF and PA+++ (UVA protection), but this is just the beginning. This baby gives a whole different meaning to the word protection, because it is also packed with potent antioxidants that work synergistically to protect your skin against aging and environmental stress on the spot. Simply put – it is not just a shield it is also an active fighter against all kinds of crap your skin gets to deal with in general. I will not name every active ingredient at this point because it will take ages to read, but if I sum up their effects, you can expect this:

Active protection also against blue light
Increase of visible dermal elasticity
Decrease of inflammation under direct UVB exposure
Effective fight against free radicals formed as a result of UV exposure
Minimizing and reversing the appearance of photo damage
Reducing the appearance of redness associated with light exposure
Contributing to a good balance of microorganisms on our skin which keeps your skin healthy
Shielding against pollution

As Beautiful with Brains put it well – this is a sunscreen on Steroids. Too good to be true? It might be, but NIOD is a well trusted no-bullshit brand that I believe in, so I’m just going to fall for it. The only ingredients that might be on the »black list« are silicons (some skins just don’t tolerate them well) but they are necessary with physical sunscreens if we want an elegant texture. I actually like them in general, so no hard feelings here!

Packaging

Minimalist and pharma-like packaging is just how I like it aesthetically. It comes in a sexy box that opens /slides out on the side and uncovers this little jewel. Yeah little, just 30ml. If you’ve already read my posts about SPF (if not, you can find them here and here) you already know that you need at least »2 fingers« of sunscreen for reliable protection, so 30ml doesn’t last all that long (approx 1,5 months with daily applications) so I would like a bigger packaging (for the same price of course :P). The bottle is very appropriate for this type of product – made of quality dark glass and comes with a handy pump. You need approximately 5 pumps for your face for reliable protection. The product sometimes dries on the pump which can surprise you from time to time with a spurt in the wrong direction, but this is rather a matter of negligence by my side as I don’t wipe it properly after each use.

Texture

And here it comes the cherry on the top. If you ever had to deal with non-nano physical sunscreens, this one will swipe you of your feet. All the typical characteristics of »physicals« in terms of heaviness, greasiness and whiteness are non-existing with this product. I’m sure we’re talking about some kind of witchcraft, because I still can’t grasp that this lightweight texture, that leaves no white residue, absorbs instantly without any shine can be a non-nano physical sunscreen. Even if you put more than 5 pumps on your face it performs perfectly. My blogger colleague Maja – Maestra Parokeets which introduced me to this baby says that it is »superior« and I absolutely agree with her.

The texture might look a little tinted but it is actually not (it doesn’t contain pigments). The pale-grayish-nude color comes from its ingredients and it can actually leave some residue on your skin if you’re dark toned or tanned. Therefore the color might be slightly grayish on darker skin which is not really flattering, but it can be easily covered with makeup (it works very good as a primer). I’m medium toned and on my skin looks transparent with a slight pearly finish. The finish is actually matte and it can be drying for dry skin. I use a hydrating serum or a light moisturizer under it, to avoid the matte effect and dryness. I’d prefer a little more hydration and maybe some nourishment, but you can’t have it all. After all it is designed for every skin type.

To make a long story short: the best texture ever for a non-nano physical sunscreen.

NIOD Survival compared to other quality physical sunscreens, my trio:

NIOD Survival 30 SPF30 Clinique Mineral Sunscreen Fluid SPF 50 Missha A’Pieu Pure Block Mild SPF32

Compared to Clinique Mineral Fluid SPF50 and Missha A’Pieu Pure Block Mild the texture of NIOD Survival 30 is much lighter without any white residue. Clinique is the greasiest among all, A’Pieu is is a little bit lighter and more »watery«, both leave a slight white cast. In general all three perform better than common physical sunscreens in terms of whiteness and heaviness. Clinique and A’Pieu contain nano-particles though.

Price vs. Performance

The price is about 30€ for 30 ml. Definitely not cheap if you consider that you need to use 5 pumps a day and it lasts you approximately 1.5 months with regular use. I’m cheating on it and I use other physical sunscreens when I don’t necessarily need an elegant solution, I also combine it with other physical sunscreens to make it last longer (in any case you need to use it up within 6 months from the date of opening). So yeah, it is expensive but in my opinion it is worth every penny, because the ingredients and the texture are Unicorn. I will definitely restock it and until I find a dupe 😛 it will be always in my arsenal.

Last but not least, little Mr. Perfect has only SPF30, I’d most definitely prefer a 50 with higher PA (UVA protection). More is more, when it comes to sun protection!

Intrigued? You can buy it on SUPERSKIN: click. For all my lovely readers and followers there is also a special discount for this baby. Use the code TIKA10 at checkout for a 10% discount. Valid until 4.8.2019.