Seasonal weekly benchmark — 2026-W16
Sunscreen
2026-W16The sunscreen category has a four-tier AI recommendation structure: La Roche-Posay + EltaMD dominate daily/clinical recommendations. ISDIN leads premium anti-aging, Supergoop owns texture-focused picks, and CeraVe/Blue Lizard/Neutrogena compete for budget. Imported brands (Beauty of Joseon, Biore, Anessa) have strong visibility in Claude specifically but are largely absent from ChatGPT, a real commerce-influenced divergence.
Top Brands by AI Mention Frequency
Mention frequency counts how many times a brand appeared across all AI responses. This differs from top-pick rank, which reflects each model’s #1 choice.
Why These Brands Win
- All four models emphasize broad-spectrum SPF 50 as the minimum for outdoor-heavy users.
- Every model highlights UVA protection as the key anti-aging factor, not just SPF number.
- All flag that consistency of application matters more than brand selection.
- Budget prompts universally feature CeraVe, Neutrogena, and Blue Lizard.
- Every model recommends a two-product strategy: one daily face sunscreen and one outdoor/body sunscreen.
Cross-Agent Comparison
How 4 AI models rank the same category. Hover a brand to trace it across models.
4 agents · top 3 each
| Agent | #1 | #2 | #3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| chatgpt | La Roche-Posay | CeraVe | Supergoop |
| claude | EltaMD | La Roche-Posay | ISDIN |
| gemini | ISDIN | Trader Joes | La Roche-Posay |
| perplexity | La Roche-Posay | Neutrogena | EltaMD |
What This Means
- ChatGPT is the most commerce-formatted with explicit prices and ratings, and introduces Eucerin and Beauty of Joseon in its rankings.
- Claude is the most opinionated, uniquely flagging the US vs European/Korean filter gap And calling out specific products that failed Consumer Reports testing (JLo Beauty, Australian Gold).
- Gemini surfaces premium brands (ISDIN, Shiseido, SkinCeuticals, Colorescience, Kiehls) and imported options (Trader Joes, Biore) that appear less in other models.
- Perplexity is the most conservative, sticking to the core US dermatologist-recommended brands.
Opportunity for Brands
- ISDIN only appears in Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity, absent from ChatGPT despite being the consensus anti-aging pick.
- Anessa only appears in Claude.
- Beauty of Joseon only appears in ChatGPT and Claude.
- Biore appears in Claude and Gemini.
- Trader Joes only appears in Gemini.
- Kiehls only appears in Gemini.
- Colorescience and Shiseido only appear in Gemini.
- Australian Gold, JLo Beauty, and AirDoctor only appear in Claude as brands to skip.
- Major brands like Coola, Banana Boat, Hawaiian Tropic, and Alba Botanica are absent or underrepresented.
How we measure this
Each benchmark runs the same standardized prompts across multiple leading AI systems, including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity. We use consistent, category-specific questions designed to surface genuine product recommendations — not sponsored results.
Responses are parsed to extract brand mentions, rank position, and frequency. We then analyze cross-model agreement, identify which brands consistently appear in top positions, and flag where AI outputs diverge from marketplace trends.
Seasonal categories are benchmarked weekly during active periods. Results reflect organic AI behavior at the time of testing. Read the full methodology
Your competitors are showing up in AI results. Are you?
The US sunscreen market has a clear winner in La Roche-Posay across all AI models. But major brands like Coola, Hawaiian Tropic, and Banana Boat are missing from recommendations. If your sunscreen brand targets the anti-aging segment and isn't La Roche-Posay, EltaMD, or ISDIN, you're fighting for secondary visibility. Korean/Japanese imports have strong Claude presence but zero ChatGPT visibility, a significant discovery gap.
Book Your Free AuditNeed help getting your brand into these AI recommendations? Robert Hu offers strategic consulting for e-commerce brands