Is Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30 The Only Sunscreen Oily Skin Needs?

Last Updated on December 26, 2025 by Giorgia Guazzarotti

It’s easy to say, “Apply your sunscreen generously and top it up every couple of hours.” How the heck do you do that when your skin is covered with its own grease?! Oily skin + sunscreen = tricky relationship. Go down the mineral sunscreen route and you’re left with a white, oily cast that makes you look like Caspar The Ghost after a workout session. Opt for chemical sunscreen and the high alcohol content will dry out your skin worse than the Sahara.

What’s a girl to do?! It’s not like you can skip sunscreen. Unless you’d be happy to see wrinkles creep up on your face anytime soon… Enter Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30. It uses the next generation of chemical Uv filters + absorbing agents to keep you safe from UV harm and excess shine. Bonus point, it’s alcohol-free.

What’s In Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30?

CHEMICAL UV FILTERS FOR LIGHTWEIGHT & SAFE SUN PROTECTION

Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30 use a bunch of first and second generation chemical UV filters to keep you safe from UV harm:

• Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol: A.k.a. Tinosorb M, an hybrid filter that absorbs, reflects and scatters both UVA and UVB rays. It’s stable and helps protects other UV filters from degradation, too.
• Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate: A.k.a. Uvinul A Plus, a chemical filter that provides excellent UVA protection. It’s photostable and helps stabilize other UV filters in the formula.
• Ethylhexyl Triazone: A.k.a. Uvinul T 150, a chemical filter that protects against UVB rays. It’s highly photostable and doesn’t degrade easily when exposed to sunlight.
• Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine: A.k.a. Tinosorb S, a hybrid filter that absorbs and scatters both UVA and UVB rays. It’s photostable and water-resistant, making it ideal for sunscreens.

There’s this misconception that chemical filters are more dangerous than mineral filters. That’s not true. So how did this myth originate? Chemical UV filters, like avobenzone, are more likely to cause irritations in sensitive skin. This new generation of UV filters are gentler and rarely cause irritations. These filters have a lighter texture that leaves no oil slick and no white cast. Take it from a fan of mineral sunscreen. If your skin’s oily, chemical is the way to go.

Related: Is Avobenzone As Dangerous As They Say?

OIL-ABSORBERS TO KEEP SHINE AT BAY

Texture aside, what makes Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30 ideal for oily skin is the addition of oil-suckers:

• Corn Starch Modified: A modified carbohydrate powder that acts like a sponge for oil. Its porous structure absorbs excess sebum on the skin’s surface, helping to control shine and maintain a matte finish throughout the day.
• Silica: A microporous mineral powder with a high surface area that absorbs up to 1.5 times its weight in oil. It sits on the skin’s surface, soaking up sebum without clogging pores, creating a soft-focus, velvety matte finish.

This duo soaks up excess oil from your skin, leaving it matte for a few hours. Granted, the effect is only temporary. But hey, you need to reapply sunscreen anyway, right?

Related: Is Silica In Skincare Products Dangerous?

Is your sunscreen up to the job? Download your FREE “Sunscreen Audit” to find out if your sunscreen is both effective AND safe:

The Rest Of The Formula & Ingredients

• Aqua/Water/Eau: Water. That’s it. It’s the base that everything else dissolves into so this sunscreen can actually spread on your face.
• C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate: A light oil that makes this feel silky when you rub it in, not like you’re smearing lard on your face, and it helps the UV filters spread out evenly so you actually get protected everywhere.
• Potassium Cetyl Phosphate: The peacekeeper that stops the oil and water in this formula from having a divorce and separating into two disgusting layers.
• Brassica Campestris/Aleurites Fordii Oil Copolymer: A film-forming polymer made from plant oils that creates this breathable layer on top of your skin to boost water resistance, so when you’re sweating your ass off or jumping in the pool, this sunscreen actually stays on.
• Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer: This is the reason your sunscreen has that nice bouncy gel texture when you pump it out. It keeps all the ingredients stable and mixed together so the formula doesn’t separate into a science experiment in your cabinet.
• 1,2-Hexanediol: A preservative helper that keeps bacteria from setting up camp in your sunscreen and multiplying like they’re at an all-you-can-eat buffet, while also pulling a bit of moisture into your skin as a side benefit because apparently it likes to multitask.
• Decyl Glucoside: A gentle surfactant made from sugar that helps the formula spread smoothly and rinse off.
• Glycolic Acid: An AHA that sloughs off dead skin cells to brighten your complexion and smooth things out, though at whatever concentration it’s probably in here, it’s likely just adjusting the pH of the formula rather than giving you a full-on exfoliation treatment.
• Boron Nitride: A mineral powder with this special platelet structure that absorbs oil while also bouncing light around on your skin, so it mattifies shine and blurs out fine lines and pores to give you that airbrushed soft-focus effect.
• Salicylic Acid: A BHA that’s oil-soluble so it can actually dive into your pores and dissolve all that sebum and dead skin gunk that’s clogging everything up and causing breakouts, plus it’s anti-inflammatory so it calms down redness and irritation instead of making your angry skin even angrier.
• Tocopheryl Acetate: A stable version of vitamin E that acts as an antioxidant to fight off free radical damage from UV exposure and pollution.
• Propylene Glycol: A humectant that grabs moisture from the air and pulls it into your skin while also helping other ingredients penetrate better.
• Xanthan Gum: A natural thickener that bacteria make during fermentation (I know that sounds gross but stay with me), and it’s what gives this sunscreen that gel-like consistency you feel when you squeeze it out.
• Sodium Hydroxide: The pH police that makes sure everything stays at a skin-friendly pH level.
• Polysorbate 60: An emulsifier that convinces oil-based and water-based ingredients to actually get along and mix together instead of separating like oil and vinegar.
• Sorbitan Isostearate: Another emulsifier working alongside Polysorbate 60 to keep everything stable and blended.
• Ectoin: This wild molecule that extremophile bacteria produce to protect themselves when they’re living in absolutely brutal environments like boiling hot springs or super salty lakes. In skincare, it just has antioxidant properties.
• Mannitol: A sugar alcohol doing double duty as both a humectant that draws moisture into your skin and an antioxidant that fights oxidative stress.
• Xylitol: Another sugar alcohol that attracts water to your skin.
• Rhamnose: A plant sugar that acts as a humectant to maintain moisture levels.
• Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract: Loaded with antioxidants that protect your skin from free radical damage caused by UV rays and pollution and all the other crap floating around in the air.
• Fructooligosaccharides: A prebiotic sugar that feeds the good bacteria living on your skin so they can thrive and multiply and keep doing their important job of protecting you, which helps maintain a healthy microbiome and strengthens your skin barrier.
• Propyl Gallate: An antioxidant that prevents the oils in the formula from oxidizing and going rancid over time.
• Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride: A lightweight emollient derived from coconut oil that makes the sunscreen feel silky and luxurious when you spread it across your skin.
• Tocopherol: Pure vitamin E in its most natural form working as a powerful antioxidant to neutralize free radicals.
• Laminaria Ochroleuca Extract: An extract from golden algae that supercharges your skin’s own natural antioxidant defense system.
• Fragrance (Parfum): Added to make this smell pleasant instead of like a chemistry experiment gone wrong, but fair warning – if you’ve got sensitive skin or fragrance allergies, this is the ingredient that might piss your skin off and cause irritation or reactions.

Texture

This has a lightweight texture that’s ridiculously easy to layer throughout the day without your face turning into a greasy oil slick, and honestly it’s so comfortable and invisible on the skin that I genuinely forget I’m even wearing sunscreen half the time.

Fragrance

It’s got this subtle floral scent that doesn’t assault your nose or give you a headache, just sits there quietly in the background being pleasant. But it may still irritate sensitive skin.

How To Use It

Slap this on as the last step of your morning skincare routine after all your serums and moisturizers have sunk in, be really generous with the amount because skimping on sunscreen completely defeats the purpose of wearing it in the first place, and make sure you reapply throughout the day whenever you need to top up your protection.

Packaging

A white tube with yellow accents. It has changed since Bioderma has reformulated the sunscreen (I may be too lazy to change the pic, but I’ve rewritten the entire review to match the new formula you now find in stores 😉 ). It’s not the prettiest, but it’s practical and does the job well.

Performance & Personal Opinion

Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30 has a lightweight texture that dries down to a matte finish that helps keep shine at bay for a few hours. How long depends on how shiny your skin is. If your skin’s super oily, you may need the help of a mattifying power. On my slightly oily t-zone, this sunscreen’s all I need. Summer’s in full swing in London, with some days reaching 30ºC. Feels like being back in Italy sometimes! It’s the perfect weather to test how well the sunscreen fares under intense heat.

I’m happy to say it lives up to its promises. I skip moisturizer and foundation, and use just sunscreen as my base. It does a great job at keeping my skin safe from UV harm. I didn’t get any sunburns, bad tans (FYI, all natural tans are bad tans) or anything like that. It’s waterproof, so if you sweat a lot, this will keep you safe for around 40 minutes. But you do have to reapply it often to get adequate sun protection.

Even the best sunscreens fail at their job if you apply a thin layer in the morning and don’t touch-up during the day. The tube’s small enough to snugly fit into your bag, so you have no excuses ladies. Reapply your sunscreen!

What I Like About Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30

• This lightweight texture dries down to a proper matte finish that keeps my slightly oily t-zone looking normal for hours
• I can skip moisturizer and foundation completely and just use this as my base
• It actually protects my skin from UV damage like it’s supposed to – no sunburns, no dodgy tans (remember, all natural tans are bad tans), just proper sun protection even when London’s randomly pretending to be Italy with its 30ºC heatwaves
• The tube’s small enough to fit in my bag without taking up half the space, so I have zero excuses for not reapplying throughout the day like I’m supposed to

What I DON’T Like About Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30

• If your skin’s super oily, this matte finish won’t be enough on its own and you’ll need to layer a mattifying powder on top to really control the shine
• It’s waterproof for about 40 minutes if you’re sweating, which is decent but means you need to be on top of reapplication if you’re out in the heat for longer
• There’s fragrance in here, so if your skin hates scented products or you just can’t stand floral scents, this will annoy you

Who Should Use This?

If you’ve got normal to oily skin and you’re sick of sunscreens that turn you into a grease ball, this is for you. It’s perfect if you want something lightweight that can work as your base without needing moisturizer or foundation underneath, especially during hot weather when piling on products feels disgusting.

The tube fits easily in your bag so you can reapply during the day without lugging around something massive, and it actually does its job of protecting your skin from UV damage when you use it properly. Just don’t expect miracles if your skin’s extremely oily without some powder backup, and make sure you’re okay with fragrance because it’s definitely there.

Does Bioderma Photoderm AKN Mat SPF 30 Live Up To Its Claims?

Price & Availability

Available at: £14.50 at Escentual and Look Fantastic

Do You Need It?

If you have oily skin and you’re looking for a sunscreen that won’t turn you into a grease ball, this is a good option to consider. It’s one of the few sunscreens that actually delivers on the matte finish promise without feeling heavy or suffocating on your skin.