This post is a follow-up to Do You Really Need SPF at Night? A Look at Tinted Moisturizers Without Sunscreen, exploring two popular SPF-free tinted moisturizers—Jones Road and Glossier—and how their formulations reflect different approaches to clean beauty, ingredient transparency, and user experience.
Jones Road: The Cleaner Classic
Jones Road’s Just Enough Tinted Moisturizer is designed to even out your skin tone while letting your skin breathe, delivering lightweight, natural coverage. The formula is fragrance-free and emphasizes minimalism and skin-friendly ingredients, creating a breathable finish that feels a bit more like skincare than makeup.
Importantly, Jones Road confirms that its titanium dioxide is non-nano, aligning with clean beauty expectations for transparency and ingredient safety. This added clarity reinforces the brand’s skincare-first ethos and its thoughtful, no-fuss formulation approach.
Made in the USA. Vegan formula.
$44 for 1.69 fl. oz.—approximately $26 per fluid ounce.
Link to Jones Road official site
Buy Jones Road Just EnoughGlossier: Makeup-Forward with a Silky Feel
Glossier’s Perfecting Skin Tint leans into a makeup-forward experience, featuring silicones like cyclopentasiloxane and cyclohexasiloxane that lend a silky, smooth texture and easy spreadability. However, its formula includes:
- PEG-10 Dimethicone, polymethylsilsesquioxane, and alcohol—ingredients that may irritate sensitive skin
- Synthetic preservatives such as chlorphenesin
- Fragrance-adjacent ingredients
Though vegan and cruelty-free, this formula feels less “clean skincare” and more cosmetic.
Made in Italy, $28 for 1.01 fl. oz., roughly $28 per fluid ounce.
Link to Glossier official site
Buy Glossier Tinted MoisturizerThe Common Thread: Titanium Dioxide and Iron Oxides as Mineral UV Filters
Both tints rely on titanium dioxide and iron oxides as physical UV and visible light blockers, providing a natural shield against UVA and UVB rays. These mineral filters work by reflecting and scattering harmful rays without chemical absorption.
Transparency & Titanium Dioxide: Nano vs Non-Nano
A standout point: Jones Road explicitly states their products contain only non-nano titanium dioxide, underscoring their commitment to clarity in clean beauty.
Glossier, on the other hand, does not specify whether their titanium dioxide is nano or non-nano. This detail is not mandated in the U.S., creating a regulatory gray area. However, Jones Road’s transparency sets a meaningful precedent, showing that brands can provide clear ingredient information when they choose to align with clean beauty values.
Across the European Union, nano materials must be clearly labeled, fostering greater consumer awareness. In contrast, U.S. brands often omit this detail unless voluntarily disclosed, making Jones Road’s disclosure particularly notable.
