Tanned looks are gorgeous. Our contributor Ollie Wertheim, Founder and Chief Formulator at Sensitive Skin LLC, says, “Spending too much time in the sun isn't good for tanning. It can cause sunburn, make you look older faster, and even raise your chances of getting skin cancer. So, always wear sunscreen, find shade, and try to avoid the sun, especially when it's strongest.” However, the damaging effects of staying in the sun for long may not allow you to ace the perfect tanned look. That’s where gradual tanning lotions come into play! The best gradual tanning lotions can help you build the tan as per your liking and flaunt a sun-kissed look without affecting your skin’s natural barrier. Our findings show that these lotions offer customization features so that you can attain the tan that complements your natural skin tone and texture. These tanned lotions not only provide a flawless tanned complexion but also hydrate the skin. So, flaunt a beautiful summer glow with these beauties that are designed to make your skin look soft and supple. Explore our favorite picks to get a seamless tan.

Gradual tanning lotion has a smooth and soft texture. It features a buildable formula, so you can apply it 2-3 times and get the tan suited for your skin tone. What stands out about these lotions is that they don't develop instantly but take time to accentuate your natural glow. They blend in evenly to make your skin look soft and glossy naturally. Now that we have understood how tan lotions work, let us take a look at the best self tanning lotions that offer a natural sun-kissed tan. Our beauty experts have meticulously curated this list, keeping in mind the formulations, ingredients, and efficacy of the products.

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  BEST VEGAN FORMULA

  COOLA Sunless Tan Firming Lotion

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Indulge in COOLA's Sunless Tan Firming Lotion—an organic, caffeine-infused delight for gradual tanning. Dermatologist-tested, vegan, and non-GMO, this Pina Colada-scented lotion is a sublime choice for those craving soft, supple, sun-kissed skin. With a unique blend of organic ingredients and the added benefits of caffeine, it's a skincare essential that transforms your routine into a tropical escape. Elevate your self-tanning experience with a formula designed to nourish and enhance, ensuring a natural, radiant glow that evolves over time.

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Best Vegan Formula

Bondi Sands Everyday Gradual Tanning Milk

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This tanning lotion by Bondi Sands provides a gradual golden glow. It is infused with aloe vera and vitamin E to offer deep moisturization and excellent relief from sunburns and dark spots. Moreover, these soothing ingredients help strengthen the skin’s natural barrier to keep it firm and healthy. It glides smoothly on the skin for a lasting tan. The best feature of this lotion is it keeps the skin hydrated and nourished for a long time. You can apply it to get a natural colored tan that you can’t get enough of.

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Best Buildable Formula

St. Tropez Gradual Tan Classic Daily Firming Lotion

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Featuring a deep finish, this tanned lotion by St. Tropez is an ideal pick for flaunting an instant glow. The rich infusion of hyaluronic acid, marine algae, and antioxidants offers superior hydration and nourishment to keep your skin soft and supple. With a blendable texture, it spreads evenly and offers a gradual glow for making your glam-up moments special. Give yourself a lovely tanned look without drying up, as this product is crafted to give you a revitalized appearance.

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Best Soothing Ingredients

Body Drench Gradual Self Tanner Tanning Lotion

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Maintain a beach-like tan with this gradual self tanner by Body Drench. This tanner contains the goodness of aloe vera that soothes the skin, calms irritated skin and slows the signs of aging. The antioxidant-rich composition of this tanner works wonders to minimize the appearance of dark spots and discolored patches. It’s gentle on your skin, so you can use it daily to achieve a beautiful hued tan. When we tested the product, we found that it glides smoothly on the skin and can become your go-to for a year-round glossy complexion.

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TAN-LUXE The Gradual Illuminating Gradual Tan Lotion

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Lightweight and hydrating, TAN-LUXE’s lotion is a perfect pick for achieving a flattering sun-touched hue. It is infused with vitamin E and aloe vera to add softness to your skin. Plus, it contains a caffeine-rich cellutone complex that helps firm up the skin naturally. After testing out this product, we found that its anti-inflammatory properties help protect the skin from UV-induced damage. This amazing lotion has become a cult favorite, owing to its lightweight texture that melts into the skin easily and delivers a subtle glow. Don’t wait anymore, and grab this lotion right now to get glowing skin and complement your innate charm and sparkle effortlessly.

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Best Paraben-free Formula

+ Lux Unfiltered N°32 Hydrating Self-Tanning Cream

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You can get a picture-ready tan with this +Lux Unfiltered tanning cream. With the addition of key ingredients, shea butter, avocado oil, passion fruit oil, cocoa butter, and squalane, this lotion works wonders in boosting skin’s collagen production to make your skin firm and plump. The rich texture of this product smoothes fine lines and gives your skin a youthful-looking complexion. What our beauty experts loved about this gradual tanning lotion was its luxe rosewood scent that livened up the spirits and made them feel energized. Featuring a cruelty-free formula, it’s a must-have for getting a gorgeous, dewy look and upgrading your glow-up kit. You can also stash it in your purse for on-the-go sparkle.

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Best for Oily Skin

Norvell Venetian Gradual Self Tanning Lotion

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Brighten up your skin with this tanning lotion by Norvell Venetian. It is created with VIO-7, a potent mixture of anti-orange bronzer pigments that give your skin a natural-looking tan without turning it orange. What sets this gradual self-tanner apart from its counterparts is its multifunctional feature — it offers the benefits of CC cream and moisturizes and brightens the skin naturally. Featuring a gradual tan formula, it feels light and gentle on your skin. With superior moisturizing properties, you can use this to revive dull and lifeless skin. Plus, it is formulated without nasties like parabens and sulfates, making it safe to use for all skin types.

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Neutrogena Build-A-Tan Gradual Sunless Tan

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This tanning lotion by Neutrogena offers a healthy-looking glow you can’t have enough of. It features a deep moisturizing formula to make your skin soft and bouncy. This lightweight lotion offers a lovely sheer color and lets you create a unique shade of tan. The streak-free finish of this sunless tan makes attaining a natural-looking tan easy and breezy. With a gentle formula, it can be used daily to get the hues that can complement your distinctive style the best.

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Best Nourishing Formula

Loving Tan Deluxe Gradual Tan

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Loving Tan’s gradual tan lotion gives an instant boost of glow to make your complexion bright and fresh. The rich infusion of shea butter enhances the skin's elasticity to keep it silky and smooth. With a featherlight consistency, it doesn’t weigh down your skin and feels soft to the touch. Plus, it is packed with coffee extract and acai berries to make your skin appear more luminous. Based on our analysis of the product, it can be used both by beginners and professionals to create the perfect shade flawlessly. Quick to dry, it’s a go-to for sprucing up your looks even when you are running out of time. The best part is that you can use it daily to prolong your tanned look.

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Vita Liberata Fabulous Self Tanning Gradual Tan Lotion

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Elevate your glamor game with the gradual tanning lotion by Vita Liberata. It is loaded with nourishing ingredients like aloe vera, cucumber, hyaluronic acid, and shea butter — all of which work synergistically to maintain the moisture balance of your skin and keep the skin’s natural protective barrier strong to prevent the signs of aging and dehydration. The hydrating properties of this lotion renew your natural skin texture, leaving it supple and smooth. Formulated with skin-loving ingredients, it delivers a gradual buildable tan without drying the skin. So, protect your skin and flaunt a natural-looking fake tan with this amazing gradual tan lotion.

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Most Pleasant Scent

Australian Gold Gradual Sunless Lotion

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Whether you want to ace golden tan or give your skin a dose of moisturization, Australian Gold’s tan lotion won’t disappoint you. Equipped with the richness of shea butter, vitamin C, and Kakadu plum, it helps prevent acne and diminishes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The infusion of caffeine and skin softeners, like vitamin B and maka extract, provide long-lasting hydration. The potent tanning formula of this lotion features a darkening color blend that intensifies the tanning effect and delivers a natural bronze tan. Radiate natural bronzed tan effortlessly!

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Best for Daily Use

Tanologist Firming Gradual Tan Lotion

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Luminous and flawless is what this gradual tan lotion by Tanologist makes your skin look like. It is infused with the goodness of squalane, caffeine, and grapeseed oil that helps prevent your skin from free radical damage and boosts the skin’s collagen production. The nourishing formula controls premature aging of the skin to give it a youthful appearance. With a buildable texture, you can customize it to radiate a natural-looking glow effortlessly. Give your skin firmness and hydration as this product offers both powerfully.

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Best Gluten-free Pick

Versaspa Gradual Tanning Self-Tan Spa Butter SPA Butter

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You don’t need to step in the sun to get a tanned look, as this tanning butter by Versespa offers a beautiful fake tan. This rich butter contains glycerin that helps rejuvenate your skin and keeps it firm and healthy. The addition of algae extracts helps refine skin texture and keep it fresh and clean. Control the depth and color of your tan as it glides smoothly on your skin to brighten up your complexion. The regenerative properties of this product work like magic to protect your skin from environmental stressors

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Best Lightweight Formula

M-61 Hydraboost Body Butter Gradual Tan

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The tinted body butter by M-61 nourishes and hydrates your skin, leaving it bright and healthy. Owing to the powerful infusion of peptides, hyaluronic acid, vitamin B5, vitamin E, plankton extract, aloe, coconut oil, shea butter, and centella asiatica, it’s the perfect pick for maintaining the health of your skin and revealing your innate beauty and glow. These nutritive agents soothe and soften your skin to keep it calm and relaxed. Don’t be surprised if this becomes your go-to for achieving glamorous looks every day.

1. Assess Your Skin Tone & Skin Type

One of the most important factors to consider before buying the best tanning lotion is the shade of your skin. If you have a cool undertone, you may consider lighter options and build them as per your looking to achieve a natural tanned look. However, if you have warm undertones, you can go for medium to dark shades and customize them to accentuate your facial features. 

Skin type is another crucial factor you must consider before investing in a gradual tanning lotion. Those with dry skin should look for hydrating formulas enriched with shea butter, glycerin, and aloe vera. On the other hand, those with oily skin types should go for non-comedogenic formulas, and people with sensitive skin should prefer gentle and lightweight formulas. 

2. Read the Label

Another important factor to consider before buying the best tanning lotion is ensuring it’s free from harsh additives like parabens, sulfates, silicones, etc, as these can cause allergic reactions and dryness. So, it’s better to steer clear of products that contain harmful additives.

Sharing some information about harmful ingredients, our contributor Ollie Wertheim, Founder and Chief Formulator at Sensitive Skin LLC, says, “Silicones can potentially cause clogged pores and exacerbate acne or breakouts in some people. They may also create a barrier on the skin, preventing other beneficial ingredients from penetrating effectively. Additionally, prolonged use of silicones may lead to dryness or irritation in sensitive skin types.”

3. Longevity

There are a few self-tanners that provide a temporary tan, while others offer a natural-looking tan that lasts for a long time. Hence, longevity is another feature you must keep in mind before picking a self-tanner. 

4. Additional Features

There are many tanners that have an in-built sunscreen, while others have moisturizing ingredients that soothe dry skin. Choose the one that caters to your skin type and concerns to reap all the benefits of the product. 

Gradual tanning lotions offer a tan that develops gradually and enhances your natural glow. These are fused with nourishing ingredients and keep your skin healthy and youthful. By using gradual tanned lotions, you’re in control of the color and depth of the tan to make it seamless and even. You can get a summertime glow all year round without exposing yourself to the sun.

Step 1: Cleanse and exfoliate your face properly to get rid of dead skin cells and get clear skin. 

Step 2: Take a pea-sized moisturizer and massage it gently on your skin in circular motions to keep your skin nourished and cover up all the dry patches, if any.

Step 3: Use gloves to apply an appropriate amount of the tanning lotion. 

Step 4: Reapply if you want a deeper tan.

Contributor: Ollie Wertheim, Founder and Chief Formulator, Sensitive Skin LLC