Heatwaves and beauty routines: what nearly 4,000 panellists told us

Extreme heat does not only change how warm we feel. It affects sleep, fatigue, skin sensations and many everyday gestures. But how far does it really transform beauty routines? And which products or services would consumers like to find when they try to get through these episodes more comfortably?

To explore these questions, SYRES surveyed nearly 4,000 panellists in France between 29 July and 20 August 2026. The survey covered their experience of heat, their behaviours, their concerns, their skincare routines and their interest in a range of product concepts.

The results do not describe the whole population. They do, however, give solid orders of magnitude for the panel surveyed, and reveal consistent signals between the closed questions and the open answers.

Discomfort starts at 30 °C

Three respondents out of four say they suffer from the heat: 75.6% of the base. The median threshold at which temperature becomes uncomfortable is 30 °C. This widens the way we think about the subject: the experience of a heatwave does not start only at record temperatures. For a large share of panellists, discomfort begins on the first days around 30 °C.

That discomfort is mostly experienced in everyday spaces:

• 72.9% say they are exposed at home;
• 57.7% at work, indoors;
• 11.4% at work, outdoors.

Furthermore, 47.3% report no specific equipment to cope with the heat. Among those who are equipped, a fan is cited far more often than air conditioning. Usage therefore has to be imagined in a flat, a house or an office, not only in outdoor exposure. The search for freshness, comfort and practicality belongs first to ordinary life.

Sweat and shine dominate the experience

Two manifestations come almost level:

• excessive sweating, cited by 66.4% of respondents;
• facial shine, cited by 65.0%.

They come ahead of headaches (44.7%), dehydration (41.9%), heatstroke (32.1%) and having to change skincare or make-up habits (24.0%).

Skin perception changes too. 61.6% say their skin is oilier during heatwaves, versus 20.5% who feel it is drier and 12.3% who perceive no change. These answers do not establish a precise physiological state of the skin. They do show that respondents are looking for a difficult balance: removing sweat and excess sebum without adding discomfort or dryness.

That expectation shows directly in the concept test. Among the cleansers proposed, the concept that removes pollution, sebum and sweat without drying gathers 74.0% interest. For moisturisers, “hydration without a greasy feel” comes first at 65.6%, followed by an ultra-light gel texture at 61.1%. Lightness is therefore not just a sensory advantage. During a heatwave it becomes a condition of product acceptability.

Gestures change faster than skincare routines

Panellists already adapt many behaviours:

• 88.7% drink more water;
• 81.2% change clothes more often;
• 79.1% favour light clothing;
• 76.2% use more deodorant;
• 59.3% shower twice a day.

Hair habits are affected as well. 57.3% wash their hair more often; among them, the average declared frequency rises from about 2.5 to 4.4 washes a week.

Skincare routines evolve more moderately. 43.1% change nothing, 43.5% change “a little” and only 13.4% change “a lot”. Among those who adapt their face routine, the main gestures are wearing less make-up, applying sun protection, cleansing more often and lightening the texture of their cream. Thermal water is also mentioned, at a lower level.

The contrast suggests that consumers know how to change immediate gestures (shower, clothes, deodorant) but have fewer landmarks for reorganising a whole routine. Another result reinforces this reading: 73.7% would like more advice. The opportunity is therefore not only about new products. It is also about guidance: order of use, frequency of application, compatibility between formulas and simplicity of the routine.

Sleep and fatigue set the context

Heatwaves cause significant worry. 74.7% of respondents say they are fairly or very worried and 94.2% think these episodes will intensify or recur. When they specify their concerns, sleep and fatigue come far ahead:

• difficulty sleeping: 79.5%;
• fatigue: 70.7%;
• environmental consequences: 58.5%;
• heatstroke: 56.2%;
• dehydration: 52.5%;
• skin problems: 22.1%.

This hierarchy does not mean skin becomes secondary in beauty usage. It reminds us that products are evaluated within a wider experience of heat, marked by physical discomfort, difficult nights and lower energy. For brands, the opportunity is not to claim a cosmetic action on sleep. It is to better integrate the dimensions of freshness, comfort, sensory pleasure and simplicity associated with evening routines and moments of recovery.

The concepts that attract the most interest

The survey proposed several families of products and innovations. The results show strong consistency around three expectations: remove without stripping, refresh, and lighten textures.

Cleanse without drying

The cleanser designed to remove pollution, sebum and sweat without drying reaches 74.0% interest, well ahead of an anti-perspiration gel at 49.8% and a gentle exfoliant at 17.3%.

Refresh in an immediately perceptible way

For mists, the “ice-cube effect” comes first at 65.3%, closely followed by pollution and UV protection at 62.7%. A version enriched with electrolytes gathers 48.4% and an anti-shine mist 39.9%. The mist also shows a low rejection level in this family. Its appeal is probably explained by a known, quick, portable usage immediately associated with refreshment.

Protect without traces or a heavy film

For sun care, the invisible SPF 50 concept gathers 70.1% interest. Sweat resistance reaches 58.3% and a re-applicable stick 47.1%. These answers confirm the importance of sensory experience, but they do not on their own identify the barriers of non-users: interest in invisible SPF 50 is lower among people who rarely or never use sun protection. Invisibility probably does not remove every obstacle to use.

Simplify with a portable solution

Among the more transversal innovations, the travel-size heatwave kit comes first with 72.6% interest. It also gets the highest main preference in the open question asked right after exposure to the concepts. This result must be read with care: the kit is a meta-concept able to bring together several products and benefits. Its success may express a preference for simplicity and practicality as much as an expectation about formulation.

What the open answers add

After evaluating the concepts, participants could propose their own ideas. These answers are not fully spontaneous, since some themes had already been presented. They remain useful for specifying benefits, formats and usage constraints.

Freshness has to last

Cold is the first theme in the coding of usable suggestions: it appears in 39.1% of them, ahead of the mist or spray format at 20.4%. The vocabulary often goes further than the classic cosmetic promise of freshness: respondents mention an “ice-cube effect”, cold patches, cryo masks or products kept in the fridge. Above all, several answers ask for the sensation to last. This opens a genuine research and formulation subject: not promising a lasting change in body temperature, which would require another level of proof, but exploring the perceived duration of the cooling effect and how to measure it with consumers.

Some body areas emerge without being proposed

Body areas poorly covered by the concepts account for 14.4% of usable suggestions. This signal is particularly interesting because those areas were not part of the tested concepts. Heavy legs, feet and swelling are the most frequently cited, followed by the nape, neck, scalp, friction areas and zones particularly exposed to sweat. These answers do not yet measure a product’s commercial potential; they identify irritants concrete enough to justify a new test phase.

Facial sweat meets make-up

Another concept recurs in several formulations: a product to limit facial sweating while staying compatible with make-up. Verbatims link sweating to make-up wear, irritation, a greasy feel and the difficulty of reapplying sun protection. Some respondents imagine a mist, others a light cream or a long-lasting treatment. The concept is precise and directly tied to a lived problem. It still needs to be evaluated on several dimensions: interest on a wider base, tolerance, perceived efficacy, compatibility with other products and acceptability of the claims.

Non-greasy becomes a knock-out criterion

In the open answers, the demand for a light texture rarely appears alone. It almost always accompanies another expectation: sun protection, hydration, refreshment or make-up wear. “Non-greasy”, “non-sticky”, “light” and “absorbs quickly” describe a precondition rather than an extra benefit. A formula can meet the right functional need and still be rejected if its texture seems to add heat or sweat.

Four territories to explore further

The study does not conclude that any concept is ready to launch. It does identify four consistent territories to dig into:

• A compact, portable heatwave kit, designed around ease of use rather than a multiplication of references.
• A lasting-freshness platform, centred on the perceived duration of the effect and on evidence consumers can understand.
• An answer to facial sweating, compatible with make-up and sun protection.
• Treatments targeting specific body areas, notably legs, feet, nape and scalp.

These leads now have to be tested with indicators absent from this survey: purchase intent, acceptable price, distribution channel, priority benefit and trade-offs between concepts.

Key takeaways

The survey highlights an experience of heatwaves that is both everyday and multidimensional. Discomfort starts early, is mostly felt indoors and shows first as sweat and shine. Respondents adapt their clothes, showers and deodorant use more easily than their skincare routine. At the same time, the best-liked concepts share common qualities: simple to understand, light, portable and associated with an immediate sensation of freshness or cleanliness. The open answers invite brands to look beyond the face, to work on how long freshness lasts and to better handle the compatibility between sweat, make-up and sun protection.

These lessons are not a market validation. They are a working base for designing sharper concepts, then evaluating them with consumers before any development decision.

Methodology

Online survey administered to the SYRES panel in France from 29 July to 20 August 2026, with nearly 4,000 completed questionnaires. Results should be read as orders of magnitude on a non-weighted panel population; they are not representative estimates of the general population. Concept questions measured declared interest, not purchase intent. Open answers were collected after exposure to the tested concepts, so themes already presented may have been cited more often.

Want to explore a heat-related concept with Singapore consumers? SYRES supports brands in designing, prioritising and evaluating concepts. Get in touch to discuss your project.

Originally published in French by SYRES France on 24 August 2026: read the original article.