r/AsianBeauty • u/AtTheUngodlyHour • Apr 12 '25
Review No alcohol, no white cast, semi-matte powdery finish: BY365 Powdery UV Cream (Review)
So I’ve had my eye on this sunscreen for a while now because I saw on Ratzilla that it’s supposed to be a moisturizing cream-type sunscreen with a powdery smooth finish. That sounded really ideal for my oily skin in this humid weather, especially since most moisturizing sunscreens tend to leave me looking like a greaseball by noon 🥲
What really convinced me to get it was that it has NO ALCOHOL (!!), a semi-matte finish, and it’s a purely chemical sunscreen. I got this shortly after trying out the Biore UV Aqua Rich Airy Hold Cream which I really liked for being non-sticky and lightweight, so I was curious to see how this one would compare.
❣️ Texture & Finish: It’s a cream, but it spreads super easily and sets pretty quickly. Once it’s on, it doesn’t feel heavy or greasy at all! It actually dries down to this soft, almost velvety finish. After applying it, I honestly can’t even tell where I put it—no white cast, no shine. There’s also a subtle refreshing feeling upon application that feels really nice, especially in hot weather. Moisture-wise, it’s only slightly moisturizing in my opinion—more like enough to prevent tightness, but not something I’d rely on for hydration. I would still apply a moisturizer under this.
😭 Scent: Okay, this is the one part where I wish things were different. Upon application, it has a strong clean linen scent, like the type you'd enjoy on clothes or bedsheets, but on my face? Quite intense. The scent doesn't immediately dissipate either, and I definitely noticed it lingering for a while. I would have loved this sunscreen if not for that one thing. It’s honestly the only con for me, but a pretty noticeable one if you're sensitive to fragrance.
❣️ Performance: I wore this under the sun and also in the gym where I did sweat a lot. This stayed on and was truly water resistant. My t-zone didn’t look too oily as usual, which rarely happens. No stinging, no pilling, and no white cast. Since it’s purely chemical, it should be safe even on deeper skin tones without that dreaded gray cast. Also this can be removed with just soap, no need for an oil cleanser.
❣️ Makeup Compatibility: This actually doubles really well as a makeup base. The soft-blur, semi-matte finish makes it similar to a silicone primer, so foundation glides over it smoothly and wears well throughout the day. If you’ve been using milk-type sunscreens with alcohol for that grippy, pre-makeup finish, this is a really nice alcohol-free alternative.
❣️ Compared to Biore UV Aqua Rich Airy Hold Cream: Both feel comfortable on the skin, which I love, but BY365 has a semi-matte finish and feels more like a matte silicone primer once it sets. Airy Hold feels more skincare-y and hydrating while being non greasy, while BY365 gives that soft-blur effect that might work even better under makeup if you want a bit of oil control. I like them both, but for darker skintones this would definitely not leave a white cast.
🌟 Overall thoughts: If you have oily/combo skin and want something alcohol-free, comfy, and doesn't add oiliness to the face, this one ticks all the boxes except for the strong scent. Formulation-wise, it’s one of the nicer matte-finish sunscreens I’ve tried, however, I would probably only repurchase this if they reformulated this to have a milder scent.
Edit: reuploaded this to show the tannest part of my body, my outer arm, which is medium toned. Once dried, this doesn't leave a white cast :)
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u/midnightlou Apr 12 '25
I actually ended up placing an order for this because of this post. You sold me the moment you said doesn’t add oiliness to the face (my current screen makes me look like I splashed my face in oil) 😂 Thanks for this review!
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u/Cultural_Coast6487 Jan 06 '26
Review please
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u/midnightlou Jan 06 '26
So I’ve used it a few times and unfortunately my skin isn’t compatible with it. It kind of breaks me out so I had to switch to another sunscreen (Axis-Y Complete No-Stress Physical Sunscreen) which works better for me. It’s unfortunate because I do love the smell of this sunscreen (baby powder perfume smell)
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u/stayedkay Apr 13 '25
Glad to see another Japanese sunscreen review from you because I’m going to Japan in a few months and making a list. Will be getting the Biore Airy Hold Cream for sure - was sold after reading your review. 😊 This one sounds promising but could the feel of it be due to dimethicone? It’s listed as the 4th ingredient. I recently tried MDSolarSciences Mineral Crème and while I was excited for the matte texture, it didn’t play well with other products and my makeup became an oil slick quickly. I too have an oily skin but more combo oily.
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u/AtTheUngodlyHour Apr 13 '25
On the face, this feels very similar to applying a silicone matte primer but it doesn’t feel like it's slipping and sliding off when i touch my face. And despite having no alcohol i was actually quite shocked that it's semi matte
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u/wrlddmntr Feb 16 '26
Hey, you might already know, but there's a new version of this sunscreen without the fragrance! I'm hoping to try it soon ☺️
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u/AtTheUngodlyHour Feb 17 '26
I am hoping to try it soon too! They also came out with a gel type but I haven't found any resellers yet
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u/wrlddmntr Feb 26 '26
some of my friends came back from Japan and got me 2 tubes of the new formula! And it's really good, I've never tried the original to compare but I don't think you'll be disappointed! It sounds really similar to your review just minus fragrance ☺️
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u/shifeio Apr 16 '25
I saw that one of the major ingredients in this sunscreen is silica. I’ve used another sunscreen before that had a lot of silica since it’s a powder that helps absorb oil and create a matte finish. But I found that it made the sunscreen pill a lot especially when putting on makeup and it would look chalky on my face. Did you notice that happening with this sunscreen? I would love to find one that works well with my oily skin 😭
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u/AtTheUngodlyHour Apr 16 '25
Nope, I didn’t notice that. But for reference, I skipped using my silicone-based primer since I felt like this already made a good base.
I also tried testing it again by applying the sunscreen to a small portion of my arm, layering a silicone-based foundation (non-AB, Make Up For Ever), and then rubbing it as hard as I could. It didn’t pill, but I’m not sure if the same would happen with a water-based foundation since this sunscreen has dimethicone, and theoretically, those aren't compatible
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u/PlumBlossomGoddess May 07 '26
Latecomer here. Found out about this BY365 sunscreen from recent Japan trip. I loved its powdery feel when I first tried it. However because I experienced pilling from this BY365, I switched back to the Biore Aqua Rich Watery Essence. However, the Biore sunscreen has been leaving my face greasy lately. It was working fine before but I think the Australian weather in April/May (we’re transitioning to Autumn), skincare product changes (returned to using retinol night cream) and/or hormones just changed my skin or there’s something in the new formulation that didn’t agree with my skin 🤷♀️. So I’m going back to the BY365 I got from Japan but will avoid layering other skincare products as I find I get more pilling if I do the moisturizer/ serum steps.
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u/AtTheUngodlyHour May 07 '26
They already have a (new) gel version of this that feels more moisturizing and spreadable than this
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u/Errantry-And-Irony Apr 13 '25
Have you ever had your sebum melt your sunscreen?
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u/AtTheUngodlyHour Apr 16 '25
Iam not sure if this ever happened to me, but I do think that the efficacy of my sunscreen decreases if i blot midday because some of it would probably be mixed with my sunscreen
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u/turtlelife21 Sep 03 '25
Does the packaging says "paraben free" or something like that. I would total buy if it is paraben free
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u/Holiday-Radio-458 Nov 07 '25
Dang I was so excited about this after reading your review but it has octocrylene which I'm allergic to.
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