When you tan with sunscreen on, Shade reminds you to reapply every two hours during your session, as the WHO recommends. The reminder arrives on your iPhone, and on your Apple Watch if you wear one, so you don’t have to keep track of the time yourself.
How it works
Choose sunscreen as your protection before you start a tanning session. From then on, Shade runs a reapply countdown and nudges you when two hours are up. Mark that you’ve reapplied, even straight from the Lock Screen, and the countdown starts again.
If you swim, sweat a lot or dry off with a towel, reapply sooner. Water-resistant sunscreen still comes off.
Sunscreen and your burn time
Sunscreen changes your estimated burn time, but not by as much as the label suggests. SPF is measured in a lab with about 2 mg of sunscreen per square centimetre of skin. Most people use a quarter to half of that, and protection drops with it.
So Shade counts sunscreen conservatively: a few-fold extension of your bare-skin estimate, not the full SPF number. An SPF 50 doesn’t turn 15 minutes into 12 hours.
What the reminder can’t do
A reminder can tell you when it’s time; it can’t check how much you put on or whether you missed a spot. Generous, even application matters, and so do shade, clothing and a hat when UV is high.
Free and Plus
Turn-over and reapply cues are part of Shade Plus. Your first sun session includes everything, so you can see how the reminders fit your day before you decide.
Where the guidance comes from
The two-hour reapply interval follows WHO sun protection advice; see the WHO UV Index page. UV data comes from Apple Weather.
Frequently asked questions
How often does Shade remind me to reapply sunscreen?
Every two hours during a sun session when you’ve chosen sunscreen as your protection, in line with WHO guidance. Reapply sooner after swimming, sweating or towelling off.
Why doesn’t Shade use the full SPF number?
SPF is tested with a thick layer that few people actually apply. Shade counts sunscreen as a modest extension of your burn time, well below the label, so the estimate doesn’t run long.
Are sunscreen reminders free?
Reapply cues are part of Shade Plus. Your first sun session includes them for free, so you can try them before deciding.