Laser Hair Removal
A laser that heats the pigment inside a hair to damage the follicle growing it. It reduces hair rather than removing it for good, and it does not work on gray, white, red or very blond hair.
Key facts
Treats
Unwanted dark hair and razor bumps
Recovery
Usually minimal downtime
Treatment plan
Often 6–8 initial sessions
Typical cost
Priced per area and session
What is it?
It reduces hair long-term.
It is more accurately called long-term hair reduction.
It targets follicle pigment.
The laser is absorbed by pigment in the hair.
Several sessions are needed.
Hairs cycle through growth phases.
Device must suit skin type.
Tanning, medicines and sudden new hair growth should be discussed.
What it treats
Unwanted Hair
Lasting reduction after a full course.
Ingrown Hairs
Prevents razor bumps.
Hirsutism
Reduces unwanted hair.
Hidradenitis Suppurativa
Reduces flares in some people.
Melasma
Laser heat can darken nearby patches.
Treatment areas
Laser Hair Removal
Upper lip, chin, underarms, legs and back.
Laser Hair Removal
Upper lip, chin, underarms, legs and back.
Skin tones
Lighter skin
Low risk
Best with dark hair.
Medium skin
Some risk
Needs the right laser and settings.
Deeper skin
Some risk
Safe only with a long-wavelength Nd:YAG laser and an experienced provider; wrong lasers burn.
How it works
Diagram explanation
Light reaches a pigmented hair: The device and wavelength are chosen for the hair and skin. The follicle absorbs heat: Melanin absorbs energy that injures hair-producing structures. Treated hairs shed: Repeated sessions can reduce growth; complete removal is not assured.
Schematic illustration. Technique and response vary. This explains a mechanism and does not specify treatment settings.
Types
Different lasers are matched to skin tone. Longer wavelengths pass over pigment in the skin, so they are safer for darker skin.
Alexandrite
Fast and effective on lighter skin.
- Wavelength
- 755 nm
- Best for
- Light to olive skin
- Speed
- Fast
Diode
A versatile laser for many skin tones.
- Wavelength
- 800–810 nm
- Best for
- Light to medium-brown skin
- Speed
- Fast
Nd:YAG
The safest choice for darker skin.
- Wavelength
- 1064 nm
- Best for
- Brown and Black skin
- Note
- Less effective on fine hair
Before your treatment
2–4 weeks before
Sun and tanning: Avoid sun and self-tanner on the area, and never be treated on tanned skin.
4 weeks before: Actives and hair removal: Stop retinoids and acids a few days before.
4 weeks before: Actives and hair removal: No waxing, plucking, threading, epilating or hair-removal creams for the whole course; the laser needs the root in the follicle.
Day of treatment
Arrival & prep
Skin and hair are assessed and settings chosen for your skin tone and hair type.
Treatment
The handpiece is pressed on the skin and pulsed in overlapping passes.
Each pulse feels like a hot elastic band flicked at the skin, with a smell of singed hair. An upper lip takes a couple of minutes, full legs 30 to 60. The Nd:YAG stings more than the diode, and the first session on dense hair is the worst.
Before you leave
Pink skin with small raised bumps around each hair, like goosebumps; that means the follicles absorbed the energy.
After your treatment
First 24 hours
Days 1 to 3: The bumps and pinkness settle over hours to two days, and the area feels like mild sunburn.
Weeks 2–4
Weeks 1 to 3: Treated hairs work their way out of the skin and look exactly like regrowth.
Weeks 4 to 8: The area stays smooth, then resting follicles enter their growing phase and hair appears.
Time to results
Hairs shed in 1–3 weeks
How long results last
70–90% reduction; occasional touch-ups
Risks
Redness and small bumps for a day or two are expected. The problems that matter come from too much energy for the skin tone, tanned skin, or the wrong device.
Burns and blisters
Usually from a setting too high, the wrong wavelength for your skin tone, or tanned skin. They need treating promptly to avoid a lasting mark.
Dark patches
Brown discoloration a few weeks later, post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. More common on deeper skin tones and after sun, and usually fades over months.
Pale patches
Loss of pigment in the treated area. Less common than dark patches, slower to recover, sometimes permanent.
Paradoxical hair growth
Uncommon, but new fine hairs can appear at the edge of a treated area, usually on the face and neck. Managed by treating that area too.
Folliculitis
Red or pus-topped bumps a few days later, from sweat or bacteria in healing follicles. Settles on its own.
A cold sore flare
Treatment around the mouth or bikini line can set one off.
Cost
Typical cost
Per area per session
Pricing
In the US it is priced per session by area.
Insurance
Packages of six are cheaper per session, but buying before a test patch means paying before you know whether your hair responds.
Alternatives
Electrolysis
The only method that works on any hair color, including gray, white, red and blond, and the only one described as permanent removal. The trade-off is speed: it treats one hair at a time, so a large area takes months to years.
Waxing, threading and epilating
Weeks of smooth skin for a low price, repeated indefinitely. They cannot be used during a laser course, because they remove the follicle target.
Shaving
Free, safe and immediate, with no effect on the follicle. It is also the correct way to manage hair between laser sessions.
Prescription eflornithine cream
For slowing facial hair. It is not a removal method and works only while it is being used, so it is usually combined with something else.
Hormonal treatment
Where a hormonal condition is driving the hair. It treats the cause rather than the hair, works slowly over months, and needs a prescription and monitoring.
Home IPL devices
Much cheaper over time and done on your own schedule. Lower powered, so results are smaller and slower, and many are not suitable for deeper skin tones.
Depilatory creams
Dissolve hair at the surface and leave the root in place, so they can be used during a laser course. They irritate some skin, so stop a few days before a session.
Waxing, plucking, threading and epilating
Remove hair for weeks at a time, but they pull out the root the laser needs. Stop 4 weeks before starting and for the whole course.
Questions
Is laser hair removal permanent?
It is permanent hair reduction, not removal. A course leaves far fewer, finer hairs, with a top-up once or twice a year. Some follicles are destroyed for good, others only weakened.
Does it work on gray, blond or red hair?
No. The laser targets pigment, and these colors have too little of it. No device or setting changes that. Electrolysis works regardless of color.
How many sessions will I need?
Usually 6 to 8 for the main result, 4 weeks apart on the face and 6 to 8 on the body, then top-ups. Hormone-driven hair needs more, and the cause treated alongside.
Is it safe on deeper skin tones?
Yes, with a 1064 nm Nd:YAG and careful settings. The risk comes from older alexandrite devices, IPL, energy too high, or tanned skin. Ask which wavelength will be used and for a test patch.
Why does hair appear a week after my session?
Treated hairs are pushed out over the next one to three weeks, which looks exactly like regrowth. Wipe or exfoliate them away. New growth from resting follicles shows around week four to eight.
Can I shave between sessions?
Yes, and you should. Shaving leaves the root in place, which is what the laser needs. Waxing, plucking and threading remove the target and waste the appointment.
Related
Ingrown Hairs
Hidradenitis Suppurativa
Electrolysis
Melasma
Electrolysis vs Laser Hair Removal
Laser Hair Removal vs Nd:YAG Laser
Dermaplaning vs Laser Hair Removal
Folliculitis
Ingrown Hairs vs Hidradenitis Suppurativa
Acne Nodules vs Ingrown Hairs
Acne vs Ingrown Hairs