Sunscreen sticks

in terms of hygiene I think they're fine. you can easily clean them by just swiping the part that touched your skin. otherwise I have to agree with you. they are often much more expensive than regular sunscreen and contain less product! in addition they really don't have a very high level of sun protection. to get the advertised spf you would have to swipe them so often that your skin will feel oily and just uncomfortable in general. I think personally sunscreen sticks are great for reapplying throughout the day, but they should never be used on their own!

In terms of hygeine, if you're scared about germs then you can always wipe the sunstick on a clean tissue before applying it to your face or spritizing some high alcohol sanitizer spray and letting that evaporate before applying it on your face. Formulators and chemists have put enough preservatives to make sure that a harmful level of bacteria cannot live on the stick itself. Yes they are on the expensive side, most sunsticks range in the 13g range, and they're usually more expensive than regular sunscreens. Typically people do not apply enough to receive the advertised SPF. Basically, you would need to apply a gross amount of sunstick to get that advertised SPF. It's only recommended to use it for touch ups.

I really love a mineral sunstick on hikes and the beach, I go surfing regularly and the oiliness of them protects my sensitive skin from the sea, and I don’t mind looking like a ghost, since it hides the tomato shade of my skin underneath 😅 but otherwise, I prefer a mineral powder for touch up , hope this helps!

I always say SPF sticks shouldn't be applied on its own. I can't stop tagging Lab Muffin Beauty Science video about this https://youtu.be/rDZGu68c5sU" I love every video from her 🥰 Besides that, I always buff it out before and after applying it on a tissue, just because I'm very prone to acne and right now it's been under control. Also, I do feel it's expensive but it's a bit of a whim as it is not necessary and it's also a "support" for normal, liquid SPF. I must say I'm a data lover and I have an Excel devided in categories (cleansers, toners, serums, SPFs, SPFs sticks) that tell me how much it costs and how much it cost if it was a 100ml/100gr product. This way I can compare and contrast between similar products