Best Sun Shirts for Running of 2026

As runners, we tend to spend a lot of time outdoors in the sun, which can lead to significant UV exposure for our skin. While slathering on sunscreen multiple times a day can help mitigate sun damage, wearing a sun shirt for running is also an excellent choice. A crossover outdoor garment for fishing and other low-output activities, modern long-sleeved, hooded sun shirts are now light enough to wear during runs on all but the hottest days and provide ample coverage for the neck, arms, ears, and head.

Protecting your skin from the sun is vital for preventing sunburn, reducing the risk of skin cancer, and overall skin health. To help you find the best sun shirt for running, we researched over 50 options, from shirts specifically made for running to those marketed toward thru-hiking, fishing, and other outdoor activities.

Our main tester has worn sun shirts in the high-UV environments of the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, the deserts of Moab and southern Utah, and New Zealand, while many other team members tested throughout California and Colorado. We rated the shirts based on their sun-protective properties, fit, hood shape, size, material breathability, and unique features.

After hundreds of miles of wearing sun shirts while rambling through a variety of environments, we chose the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve as our favorite because of its light weight, big hood, and nice thumbholes. We turned to the Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie when things really got hot, and when we needed to run with a smile on our faces, we went with the Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie.

For more background information about the best sun shirts for running, see our buying advice, testing methodology, and frequently asked questions below the picks.

Best Sun Shirts for Running

• Best Overall Sun Shirt for Running: Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve
• Best Sun Shirt for Running in Hot Weather: Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie
• Best Unique Features in a Sun Shirt for Running: rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0
• Best Wool Sun Shirt for Running: Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie
• Best Budget Sun Shirt for Running: Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie
• Most Fun Sun Shirt for Running: Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie
• Other Great Sun Shirts for Running: Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie, Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody, Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt

Best Overall Sun Shirt for Running: Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve ($88)

Pros:

• Lightweight
• Deep hood
• Good thumb holes

Cons:

• Gets stinky after a single use

When looking for a long-sleeve shirt that is lightweight enough to wear on hot days and provides ample sun protection, we couldn’t find anything better than the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve. With a UPF 50 rating, meaning it only allows 2% of sun rays through, you can trust it to protect your skin. We were impressed with just how lightweight the polyester and Spandex blend was. Compared to all the other sun shirts tested, the stretchy material felt cool and light.

Janji has earned a reputation for creating well-fitting clothing — and this sun shirt is no exception. The sleeves are long, and the thumbholes are high enough that the shirt provides ample coverage on the back and front of the hands when needed. The hood is deep and big enough to wear over a hat. While there isn’t a hole for a ponytail, our ponytail-wearing testers had no issue fitting the hood over their hair and the front brim of a hat.

The looser fit is ideal for maintaining air circulation and staying cool on hot days. It also allows for a full range of motion, even with thumbs in the sleeves and the hood over a hat. The seams are off the shoulders to minimize the chance of chafing while wearing a pack.

Janji is known for being an environmentally friendly company. It donates 2% of its profits to clean water projects worldwide and uses recycled materials whenever possible, including for this shirt. The company also backs all of its clothing with a 5-year guarantee, so you can trust it to last.

Unfortunately, this material does pick up a lot of stink after wearing it even for a single run.

Materials: 84% recycled polyester, 14% Spandex | UPF Rating: 50 | Actual Weight: 5.8 ounces (men’s medium)

Shop the Men's Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long SleeveShop the Women's Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve

Best Sun Shirt for Running in Hot Weather: Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie ($90)

Pros: 

• Super lightweight material
• Protective hood

Cons:

• Minimalist thumbholes
• Potential durability issues

The Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie verges on what ultralight aficionados consider “scary light,” in that its low weight and breathability are exceptional, but its ability to stand up to a lot of miles of use is questionable. That said, if treated with care and worn in appropriate terrain — not bushwacking — then it’s a great option for hot days when you still want some sun protection.

The four-way stretch fabric drapes loosely and allows for ample airflow, but it does feel prone to snagging. This isn’t a sun shirt to be worn when you’re fighting through trees or bushes. We’ve tried it, and snags do pull threads out of place, but after plenty of use, we haven’t ripped the material or caused excessive damage.

The thinner material also means it has a lower UPF rating than many other shirts in this guide. Its UPF 20 rating puts it in the “Good” category, meaning it will block 93% to 96% of the sun’s harmful UVA and UVB rays. In comparison, a shirt with a UPF 50 rating will block about 98% of the sun’s rays. The 100% polyester material has a great skin feel and dries incredibly quickly — potentially too quickly if you want to dunk it in a creek and use it to stay cool for an extended period. The material is bluesign approved, and the shirt is made in a Fair Trade Certified factory.

The hood provides ample coverage and can stretch over a short-brimmed hat, even with a ponytail in the back. There is no ponytail hole, but it didn’t feel like an issue given the space inside the hood. The front of the hood comes up high under the chin to protect the front of the neck as well. When down, the hood stayed in the back and didn’t get caught by the wind.

Instead of standard thumb holes, the Eclipse uses a small stretchy band sewn on the inside of the cuff to keep the sleeve down over the hand. The sleeves are long enough to accommodate being pulled down a bit, but at best, the sleeve only protects about half of the back of the hand.

The shirt has a small pocket on the left hip. It doesn’t have a zipper and feels insecure enough that we wouldn’t store keys or anything else important in it. It does work for temporarily storing a pair of gloves or a hat.

Materials: 100% polyester | UPF Rating: 20 | Actual Weight: 4.1 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's Himali Eclipse Sun HoodieShop the Women's Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie

Best Unique Features in a Sun Shirt for Running: rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 ($70)

Pros:

• Very lightweight
• Underarm perforations
• Good hood

Cons:

• The material gets stinky after a single use

The rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 is one of the lightest feeling and most comfortable sun shirts we tested, and it also has a handful of unique features not seen on other sun shirts. Offering UPF 50 protection, one of the highest of any sun shirt on the market, it’s an excellent option for hot sunny days for protecting your arms, head, and neck from the sun. The underarm perforations add extra ventilation to this shirt and release heat effectively. While you can wear many sun shirts casually, the perforations make this one look a little more techy than others.

The breathability and light weight of the material made this sun shirt one of our favorites. We could wear it in warmer temperatures than other options in this guide without overheating.

Rabbit took care of the small details that make a big difference with this shirt. The thumb holes to keep the sleeves down and over the hands are solid, comfortable, and easy to get on and off. The hood is large enough to fit over a hat and a ponytail, and it stayed securely on our heads when the wind picked up. A small brim on the hood provides extra protection if you’re not wearing a hat underneath it.

The other fun feature of this sun shirt is the watch window. Trying to tug a long-sleeve shirt over a watch while running can be annoying, and keeping the sleeve above your watch can expose your hand and wrist to the sun. If you want to keep an eye on your splits or pace, this is a great sun shirt option that lets you see your watch without having to futz with rolling up your sleeves.

Made of a blend of synthetic materials, this shirt does pick up an odor fairly quickly. That said, the rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 is an excellent option if you frequently run in heat and want sun coverage that you can trust.

Materials: 67% recycled polyester/25% polyester/8% spandex | UPF Rating: 50 | Actual Weight: 6.2 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0Shop the Women's rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0

Best Wool Sun Shirt for Running: Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie ($150)

Pros:

• Doesn’t pick up a stink
• Secure hood

Cons:

• Expensive
• Thicker than other options

The Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie is ideal for mid-temperature, sunny days when you want to take advantage of wool’s features while still staying protected from the sun. Wool tends to be more porous than synthetic fibers, and thus provides less sun protection at similar material thicknesses. While there are very thin wool options on the market, often blended with synthetic materials, they are often less durable than their full-synthetic counterparts. But, for the days that aren’t scorching, or for lower-effort activities like multi-day fastpacking trips where you don’t want your clothes to stink after a single day of use, a wool sun shirt is hard to beat.

This sun shirt is made of a blend of 83% merino wool, 12% nylon, and 5% elastane. The wool gives the shirt all of its anti-odor and thermoregulating properties, while the latter two synthetic materials provide durability and stretch. For being thicker than most other shirts in this guide, it runs surprisingly cool, thanks to the wool’s wicking properties. You can read more about wool, and how it performs its magic, in our Best Wool Running Apparel guide. We tested this shirt on day runs and multiday outings and appreciated that it didn’t smell bad, even after multiple days of use.

The thumb holes feel a bit tight and do stretch the sleeves a bit, but not uncomfortably so. Because they’re located low on the cuffs, they only pull the sleeves halfway up the hand and provide less coverage than some other sun shirts. The hood fits relatively snugly but has enough material to help cover the sides of the face. A high ponytail can make this hood feel a bit small. Instead of a scuba-hood design that always covers the front of the neck, this sun shirt has a single button that can tighten the hood under the chin to provide a bit of extra protection and keep the hood up in the wind.

One of the big drawbacks of wool apparel is its expense, and this sun hoodie is no exception. That said, when properly cared for, it’ll last for a long time and can serve multiple purposes in a running wardrobe. Because wool can insulate even when damp, this is an ideal shirt to wear under a jacket on chilly days as well.  While we’d say this sun shirt fits true to size, it’s on the smaller end of true-to-size. If you’re in between sizes, we would recommend sizing up.

Materials: 83% merino wool, 12% nylon, and 5% elastane | UPF Rating: 35+ | Actual Weight: 6.8 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's Ibex Springbok Sun HoodieShop the Women's Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie

Best Budget Sun Shirt: Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie ($50)

Pros:

• Lightweight
• Inexpensive

Cons:

• Smaller hood
• No thumbholes
• Potential durability issues

The Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie holds its own in terms of performance against any sun shirt out there, and at a much lower price. Outdoor Vitals is a direct-to-consumer company, which helps keep its overhead costs low, and they pass these savings directly on to the consumer. The material is most like the Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie reviewed below in feel and appearance. The 100% polyester is lightweight and has enough stretch to move with the body. Unlike many sunshirts that hang loosely, this one has a slightly more fitted — but far from tight — fit. It doesn’t flap in the wind, but it doesn’t feel restrictive at all either.

With the thinner fabric comes a sacrifice in UV protection. The brand claims that UPF rating tests are inconclusive as a result of the fabric being too thin and light to test properly. This feels a bit dubious to us, but if the fabric is on par with the Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie, with its UPF 15 rating, then it seems fair to assess this shirt as on the lower end of the sun protection spectrum. While the material is treated with a silver-based anti-microbial treatment, it still picks up a smell reasonably quickly, especially compared to wool options.

Durability is always a concern with lightweight materials, and this sun shirt is not meant for bashing through tree branches or shrubbery. After multiple years of use in alpine, desert, and forested environments, it’s held up impressively well with only a handful of threads pulled out of place from snags. It feels slightly more snag-resistant than the ultralight Himali Eclipse reviewed above, but less so than the Janji Sunchaser 50 or the rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0.

The sleeves of the Altitude don’t have any sort of thumbholes and aren’t long enough to pull down over the hands, and the hood is on the smaller side. While it’ll still fit over a hat, there’s not enough material to pull over the brim, and it doesn’t protect the sides of the face as much as other options. The hood design protects the front of the neck but can’t be pulled up over the chin.

Materials: 100% polyester | UPF Rating: Unknown | Actual Weight: 3.8 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun HoodieShop the Women's Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie

Most Fun Sun Shirt for Running: Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie ($70)

Pros:

• Fun designs
• Big hood
• Did we mention fun designs?

Cons:

• Hood won’t stay up in wind
• Material gets smelly
• Heavy-ish

There are sun shirts that we choose for their exceptional performance, and then there is the Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie. We appreciated that this shirt worked just fine for big days out in the sun, but mostly we love it because the designs are fun and they make us happy when we wear them. At 9.1 ounces for a unisex size small, it’s not light. But the flamingo design! The polyester-spandex blend is stretchy, breathes well enough, and definitely starts to smell quickly. But check out the jellyfish design! The hood is huge but has a tendency to blow off in the wind because it’s open in the neck area. But the jungle juice design is so fun! There are trade offs.

All this to say: If you’re looking for the highest performance sun shirt on the market, this is not it. If you’re looking for a sun shirt that will protect you from harmful UV rays and keep you and your running companions smiling all day long, this is an exceptional option. Everyone needs a party shirt.

This shirt does pack a bit of performance into its fun package. The sleeves are plenty long with thumb holes far up the cuffs to provide full hand coverage, and elastic on the cuffs and hem keep the shirt in place. There is also a bit of elastic around the hood. The hood opens fairly low, so it doesn’t protect the front of the neck, but it does allow for plenty of air flow. This isn’t a hood to stay up on a windy ridgeline, but it drapes comfortably over the head and is big enough to hook over the front of a hat brim.

The fit is fairly loose, and the shirts run large. For men’s sizing, we recommend going down a full size. A unisex small is still significantly larger than a women’s medium, so size accordingly.

Every shirt runs a line between function and fashion, and for being so much fun, this shirt is actually plenty functional enough for us to wear regularly when we want to make sure we’re not taking ourselves too seriously.

Materials: Polyester, spandex | UPF Rating: Unknown  | Actual Weight: 9.1 ounces (unisex small)

Shop the Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie

Other Great Sun Shirts

Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie ($85)

Pros:

• Very lightweight and breathable
• Good cut and fit

Cons:

• Relatively low UPF rating

When running in hot weather and wanting to wear long sleeves for sun protection, we turned to the Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie. This incredibly lightweight material works on hot days, but the tradeoff is that it’s so thin that it isn’t as sun protective as thicker materials.

The light colors of this shirt only have a UPF 15 rating, which is the lowest a garment can have to be considered sun-protective. The darker colors of the shirt have a slightly higher UPF 20 rating. You might want to consider wearing sunscreen under this shirt to maximize sun protection, but you’ll have to be less concerned about sweating it off over time.

This synthetic shirt was reasonably odor-free after use due to its ActiveFresh odor-control technology. We found the 100% recycled polyester material breathable, stretchy, and comfortable. We liked the loose but not baggy cut of the shirt and found that the hood stayed in place, even over a hat and ponytail.

Outdoor Research backs all of its clothing with a lifetime guarantee, so you can trust that this shirt will last. We didn’t worry about the smooth material snagging on trailside brush as much as some of the other shirts we tested, and haven’t noticed any damage even after well over a hundred miles of wear, with much of it during off-trail brushy travel.

The thumb holes are just large slits in the cuff of the shirt. They hold the sleeves in place but don’t pull sleeve material up over the hands for added sun protection.

Material: 100% recycled polyester | UPF Rating: 15 | Actual Weight: 4 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's Outdoor Research Echo HoodieShop the Women's Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie

Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody ($110)

Pros:

• Great hood
• Off-the-shoulder seams
• Can be worn casually

Cons:

• A little warm for hot-weather runs
• No thumb holes

The Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody feels equally at home on a run as it does hanging out afterward. It doesn’t scream tech shirt, but it still performs as one. The material has a UPF 50+ rating, the highest rating available. You can feel confident that the skin covered by this shirt is protected. The material features BD.cool technology, which uses minerals embedded in the shirt fibers to reflect away heat from the sun before it has the chance to warm your skin. This makes the shirt feel cooler than its thickness would indicate. The shirt also has a Polygiene treatment to prevent odor buildup.

We found the overall fit of this shirt to be fairly casual. The hood isn’t huge and won’t fit over a helmet like some other hoods in this guide, but it’ll fit over a ponytail and a hat. The seams are off the shoulder, reducing the chance of chafing if you’re wearing a pack.

This shirt doesn’t have thumb holes, and the sleeves only comfortably come down to the wrists. While this makes it more stylistically acceptable for social situations, we do lament the lack of coverage for our hands.

Materials: 87% polyester, 13% elastane| UPF Rating: 50+ | Actual Weight: 7.4 ounces (women’s medium)

Shop the Men's Black Diamond Alpenglow HoodyShop the Women's Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody

Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt ($98)

Pros:

• Soft and comfortable
• Great hood

Cons:

• Not great for super hot days

The Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt comes from a company focused on making women’s mountain bike apparel, but it works great for running and is one of the most pleasant sun shirts that we’ve tested in terms of skin feel and fit. The UPF 50 material is soft and smooth, and it’s light enough for mid-temperature days. The recycled polyester has proven to be incredibly durable in bushwacking situations and doesn’t snag easily. After countless hours of use, we haven’t managed to tear it, and there’s only a very slight amount of pilling shown along the inside of the sleeves.

This shirt gets a lot of the small details right while skipping the extraneous features that don’t really add much to the functionality of a shirt. The scuba-style hood provides plenty of coverage for the front of the neck when the hood is up, but doesn’t feel restrictive. There is plenty of hood material to fit over a ponytail and the brim of a hat, and the sides of the hood drape to provide side protection for the face. There’s a ponytail hole in the hood, but we found it requires a really high ponytail in order to work.

The sleeve cuffs are incredibly long and have well-constructed thumb holes. When deployed, the shirt covers up to the knuckles. It makes the sleeves feel a little bit tight, but not enough to be a nuisance.

Instead of the normal small, medium, large sizing, this sun shirt comes in sizes 0 to 18, in even size increments, offering more options to get the type of fit you’re looking for. A size 8 fits very much like a women’s medium shirt from most other brands.

This is simply an incredibly comfortable, no-frills, and no-extras shirt that offers a high level of sun protection while looking good in the process.

Materials: 100% recycled polyester | UPF Rating: 50 | Actual Weight: 5.4 ounces (women’s size 8)

Shop the Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt

Comparing the Best Sun Shirts for Running

 

SUN SHIRT	PRICE	MATERIAL	UPF RATING	WEIGHT
Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve	$88	Recycled polyester/spandex	50	5.8 ounces
Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie	$90	100% polyester	20	4.1 ounce
rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0	$70	67% recycled polyester/25% polyester/8% spandex	50	6.2 ounces
Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie	$150	83% merino wool/12% nylon/5% elastane	35+	6.8 ounces
Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie	$50	100% polyester	Unknown	3.8 ounces
Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie	$70	Polyester, spandex	Unknown	9.1 ounces
Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie	$85	Recycled polyester	15	4.0 ounces
Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody	$110	87% polyester, 13% elastane	50+	8.6 ounces
Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt	$98	100% recycled polyester	50	5.4 ounces

Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose a Sun Shirt for Running

There are endless possibilities for long-sleeve shirts to run in, but a few key considerations set the best sun shirts for running apart from the rest.

UPF Protection

Since the goal of a sun shirt is to protect the skin from the sun, it needs to keep the sun’s rays from penetrating. Clothing receives an Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) rating, which indicates the percentage of the sun’s UVA and UVB rays that will penetrate the material. For example, a UPF 50 shirt, like the rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 or Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt, will allow 1/50th, or 2%, of the rays through. The higher the UPF factor of the material, the more protective the clothing will be.

To receive the Seal of Recommendation from the Skin Cancer Foundation, a shirt must be rated at least UPF 30. Clothing with a UPF rating under 15 isn’t considered sun protective. The Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie has a UPF 15 rating, which is on the low end of protection, but we appreciate its lightweight, breathable feel. As a reference, a thin cotton shirt will have a UPF rating of about 5, allowing 20% of sun rays through.

Most of the shirts in this guide have a UPF rating above 30. If you’re looking for maximum sun protection, choose a shirt with a UPF 50+ rating, like the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody.

Generally, materials with a tight weave or reflective material provide the highest level of UPF protection. Unfortunately, tighter weaves or heavier materials are also hotter, so it’s a tradeoff of comfort and protection when running in a sun shirt on a hot day.

Colors can also impact a piece of clothing’s UPF factor. Darker and brighter colors have higher UPF factors than lighter colors. Again, there is a trade-off for runners: darker colors absorb more heat on a hot day.

Material

Most sun shirts are made of a polyester blend. The denser weave of this material provides ample sun protection, and when blended with Spandex or elastane, it is stretchy and comfortable. The downside of polyester is that it’s prone to odor retention. Many polyester-blend shirts in this guide, like the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody and Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie, are treated with odor-control technology to prevent the dreaded stink.

Several wool-blend sun shirt options are also on the market, and our favorite is the Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie. This shirt features a merino wool, elastane, and nylon blend, and we found it worked better on mild days than the really hot ones. Woven wool is a more porous material than polyester, so it doesn’t provide the same sun protection as synthetic options, but it’s still significantly better than cotton or other materials.

Breathability and Moisture Wicking 

As with any piece of gear, if you’re not going to use it, it’s useless — and sun shirts are no exception. If you choose a shirt that’s too hot or not breathable enough, you won’t want to wear it in the sun. We chose the Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie as the best option for hot weather because of its weight and breathability. The Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie is another incredibly lightweight option, even though it has the lowest UPF rating of the bunch. It’s still much better than not wearing anything at all.

Sun shirt material is all about tradeoffs. A thicker weave will provide more sun protection, but it will also reduce the material’s breathability. Darker colors provide more sun protection but absorb more heat.

All sun shirts included in this guide use breathable and wicking materials. Whether wearing the synthetic Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve or the wool-blend Ibex Springbok Sun Hoodie, we never experienced the clammy, sweaty feeling associated with cotton or other poorly wicking materials.

Coverage

The more skin a shirt covers, the more it can protect you from the sun. For this reason, most sun shirts come with a hood that can cover the back — and sometimes the front — of the neck and the ears. If you’re not wearing a hat underneath the hood, it can also potentially cover your forehead.

The Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie, Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie, and Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt have full scuba-style hoods that cover both the front and back of the neck.

Most sun shirts have longer sleeves, allowing you to pull them over the tops of your hands for extra sun protection. Conveniently placed thumbholes can keep the sleeves down without causing discomfort from over-stretched sleeves. We appreciated the placement and construction of the thumb holes of the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve as they didn’t compromise the range of motion of the sun shirt.

Fit

Most sun shirts have a looser fit to provide high breathability and increased sun protection. The material of tighter fitting clothing will stretch more and allow more sun rays through, so it’s better to err on the side of a sun shirt that’s a little bit big than a little small. The sun shirts in this guide, with the exception of the Party Shirt International Sun Hoodie that fits quite generously, fit true to size.

Most of the shirts in this guide, including the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve, have a bit of stretch to the material.

Thumb Holes

While seemingly a small detail, the thumb holes of a sun shirt can be a make-or-break feature. Most people don’t think much about protecting the skin on the backs of their hands, but it’s an area that gets a lot of UV exposure in daily life and during runs. For many people, the wrists and hands are sweaty areas, making it harder to keep them effectively covered with sunscreen. Having thumb holes that pull long sleeves down over the back of the hands can protect this bit of skin.

We appreciated the thought that went into the rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 thumb holes. They were placed high enough on the sleeve to cover the backs of the hands and had a comfortable diagonal cut. We were disappointed that the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody didn’t have thumb holes at all.

Hoods

In our opinion, a sun shirt is nothing without a good hood that can protect the back of the neck, ears, and sides of the face. Our favorite sun shirts had big hoods that stayed in place when running, even on windy ridgelines.

Several of the testers for this guide were women who frequently ran with their hair in ponytails and wearing hats. All the hoods in this guide easily fit over the setup, and many of them were big enough to fit over a bike helmet as well. The Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody and Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie had tighter fitting hoods.

Why Trust Us

The iRunFar team has decades of running experience, much of it in the high-UV areas of the mountains of Colorado, Utah, and New Zealand. Much of the testing for this specific guide happened throughout two New Zealand summers on single- and multi-day trips around the South Island, mainly in Central Otago.

For various reasons, the UV index in New Zealand frequently reaches 12 on a scale where 10 is considered extreme. Kiwis take their sun protection seriously, and we deemed it the perfect place to take out over a dozen different sun shirts for testing. The backcountry of New Zealand also provided an ideal testing ground for the durability of the shirts, as matagouri and speargrass are always quick to draw blood and destroy clothing. We also took sunshirts romping throughout the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, the French Alps, and the Wind Rivers in Wyoming.

We rated the shirts based on their breathability in hot conditions, fit, comfort, and durability, and we also considered the hood’s size and shape, and the thumb holes’ location — two important features in any sun shirt.

Frequently Asked Questions About Sun Shirts for Running

What is a UPF rating?

All materials can receive an Ultraviolet Protection Factor rating, which measures the percentage of sun rays that can penetrate them. The higher the UPF rating, the more protection a material offers. A material must have a UPF rating of over 30 to receive a Seal of Recommendation from the Skin Cancer Foundation. A UPF rating of 15 to 29 is considered good, 30 to 49 is very good, and over 50 is excellent.

You can calculate the percentage of rays a material allows through by using its UPF rating. For example, a UPF-50-rated material will allow 1/50th of the rays through, or 2%. Even our lowest UPF-rated shirt, the Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie, with a UPF 15 rating, only allows 1/20th of sun rays through, or 5%. A material needs a UPF rating of at least 15 to be considered sun-protective.

A thin cotton shirt will have a UPF rating of about 5 and let about 20% of rays through. If you’re looking for the most protection possible, choose a shirt like the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody with a UPF 50+ rating.

What UPF rating should I look for in a sun shirt?

Sun shirts are all about compromise. While in most hot conditions, it’s cooler to wear short sleeves or a tank top, a good sun shirt can keep you comfortable enough and provide important sun protection. To maximize sun protection, look for a shirt with a UPF 50+ rating, like the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody.

On the other hand, if you’re running in hot conditions and want to stay as cool as possible, a shirt like the Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie or Outdoor Research Echo Hoodie will do the trick while still providing a decent level of protection. Our favorite shirt, the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve, has a UPF 50 rating and is also made of very light material.

What’s the difference between UPF and SPF?

UPF is a rating used to measure the amount of sun that can make it through a material. The most protective sun shirts for running, including the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody, will have a UPF 50+ rating. The rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0, Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve, and Wild Rye Sawyer Sunshirt all have a UPF 50 rating. A UPF rating takes into account the penetration of both UVA and UVB rays. Meanwhile, SPF, or Sun Protection Factor, measures the level of protection provided by sunscreen. Theoretically, if your skin would take a certain amount of time to redden without protection, a sunscreen with an SPF 15 rating would extend that time by 15.

When is it too hot to wear a sun shirt?

The main drawback of sun shirts is that they can get hot, especially if you’re running with the hood up. The maximum temperature at which you can get away with wearing a sun shirt is entirely a personal choice.

While getting material wet can decrease sun protection, dunking a sun shirt in water is a great way to cool your upper body, including your arms. Choosing a lightweight sun shirt like the Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie or Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve can extend the temperature range that you can wear long sleeves and a hood without overheating.

Why are thumb holes important in a sun shirt?

One of the body’s most neglected areas of skin is the backs of the hands. Properly placed thumb holes in a shirt with longer-than-average sleeves will let you pull the sleeves down over the tops of your hands and keep them there. They are also helpful for keeping sleeves from riding up if you’re running in cooler weather and wearing extra layers.

Shirts like the Janji Sunchaser 50 Hooded Long Sleeve and rabbit UPF Deflector 2.0 have great thumb holes, while the Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie doesn’t have them at all.

Does a sun shirt need a hood?

Technically, a sun shirt doesn’t need a hood, but it significantly increases the level of protection it can provide. Hoods can cover the back of the neck and the ears, two areas prone to burns. It’s common to find skin cancer behind the ears because it’s an area where people frequently forget to apply sunscreen.

Some sun shirt hoods, like that on the Himali Eclipse Sun Hoodie, will also cover the front of your neck. A good hood will fit over a hat or ponytail and stay in place even if the wind picks up. Even the tighter hoods of the Black Diamond Alpenglow Hoody and the Outdoor Vitals Altitude Sun Hoodie fit easily over a hat.

Call for Comments

• Do you like running in a sun shirt, or do you prefer to use sunscreen on your arms, neck, and ears?
• Do you have a favorite sun shirt that we don’t have listed here?

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