Man looking through a stamp album while wearing the black Kivorla red light therapy mask

Red Light Therapy Facial: What Happens, How Often, Cost and Results

A red light therapy facial is a short session of LED light on clean skin, usually about 20 minutes with goggles on, repeated weekly for about a month and then topped up. Cleveland Clinic LED, 2021 Red and near-infrared light are used for fine lines and skin quality, and blue light, alone or with red, for inflamed spots. Below: the appointment, colours, session counts, results, prices, home masks, peels, darker skin, who should skip it, and a home routine.

Key takeaways

  • An in-office LED session usually lasts about 20 minutes, and weekly sessions for about a month are often followed by maintenance every month or every few months. Cleveland Clinic LED, 2021
  • A 2025 consensus of 21 experts in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology rated light for skin rejuvenation as backed by at least one randomised controlled trial. Maghfour, 2025
  • In a 12-week sham-controlled trial of 60 adults using a home LED mask, 86.2% of the mask group improved by at least one wrinkle grade, against 16.7% with sham. Park, 2025
  • A 2025 review of 6 randomised trials of home LED devices for acne found inflamed spots improved about 45% more than with control. Ershadi, 2025
  • A 2024 US cost survey put the average red light therapy session at $55, with a range of $43 to $106. CareCredit, 2024

What happens during a red light therapy facial?

You lie on your back with a clean, make-up-free face and goggles on while the provider places an LED device above your face, usually for about 20 minutes. It is painless, may feel warm, and you can go back to your day straight afterwards.

At a spa or dermatologist's office, the LED step may come after other treatments such as a facial. Cleveland Clinic LED, 2021 A typical appointment runs like this:

  • Before: your face is cleansed and any make-up removed, because light needs bare skin to reach.
  • Eyes: you wear protective goggles. The AAD says: "Don't substitute sunglasses for protective goggles." AAD, 2024
  • During: the device sits above the face without touching it, and you rest with your eyes closed.
  • After: moisturiser and, in daylight, sunscreen. Red light complements but does not replace "strict sun protection". Harvard Health, 2025

Which LED colour is used for wrinkles, and which for spots?

Red and near-infrared light are used for fine lines, texture and firmness. For breakouts, the research centres on blue light, alone or with red.

  • Red and near-infrared: red reaches further into the skin than blue and may calm inflammation and support collagen, and near-infrared reaches deepest. Cleveland Clinic LED, 2021 Studies mostly used 600 to 700 nm red and 780 to 1,100 nm near-infrared. Maghfour, 2025
  • Blue: it acts on the uppermost layer of skin, where it may destroy acne bacteria. Clinic blue light for acne uses about 405 to 420 nm. DermNet, 2024
  • Blue with red: combined blue and red light is what many home acne trials used, and the AAD says light devices "can treat pimples". AAD acne

For lines, a well-known clinic trial gave 76 people 633 nm, 830 nm, both, or sham light twice a week for 4 weeks. Lee, 2007 Wrinkles fell by up to 36% and elasticity rose by up to 19% in the treated groups.

For spots, a trial of 107 people compared blue and red light, used for 15 minutes a day, with other options. Papageorgiou, 2000 In the blue and red group, inflamed spots fell by a mean 76% over 12 weeks. In a home mask trial of 105 people, blue and red light cut inflamed spots by 24.4%, against 17.2% with benzoyl peroxide. Nestor, 2016

Visible light does not clear blackheads, whiteheads, cysts or nodules. Deep, painful cysts need a dermatologist.

How many LED facial sessions do you need, and how often?

Clinic courses usually run once or twice a week for about four weeks, followed by top-up sessions every month or every few months. Home mask trials ran two to seven sessions a week for 8 to 12 weeks.

Study or guidance Setting Light Minutes Sessions a week Weeks
Cleveland Clinic, 2021 Spa or dermatology office Red, blue or near-infrared About 20 About 1 About 4, then maintenance
Lee, 2007 Clinic LED, half the face 633 nm, 830 nm or both Not stated 2 4
AAD example Not stated Red LED Not stated 2 (8 over 4 weeks) 4
Bragato, 2022 Mask fitted in a clinic 660 nm 21 2 or 3 4
Sonbol, 2020 Clinic LED lamp About 630 nm 3 2 Up to 8
DermNet, 2024 Dermatologist's rooms 405 to 420 nm blue About 15 2 4
Park, 2025 Home mask 630 + 850 nm 9 5 12
Couturaud, 2023 Home mask 630 nm 12 2 About 12
Nestor, 2016 Home mask 445 + 630 nm 15 7 12
Papageorgiou, 2000 Portable lamp 415 + 660 nm 15 7 12
Man arranging photos in an album while wearing the black Kivorla red light therapy mask

The AAD's example study gave 90 patients 8 red LED treatments to the face over 4 weeks, and more than 90% reported some improvement. AAD, 2024 As the AAD puts it: "This is not a one-and-done treatment."

Two sessions a week can be enough. In a trial of 95 women using a 660 nm mask, satisfaction reached 73.4% with two sessions a week and 79.6% with three, both above sham. Bragato, 2022

For reactive skin, 30 adults had about 630 nm light for 3 minutes twice a week, and 28 of 30 saw their sensitive-skin score fall by at least 60%. Sonbol, 2020 There was no control group.

Will one session before an event make a difference?

A single session is relaxing, but the measured changes in trials built up over weeks. In the 60-person home mask trial, the difference from sham was not significant at week 4 and became clear from week 8.

The AAD notes that "it takes time to see the results and not everyone sees them". AAD, 2024 For a wedding or another big date, start a course two to three months ahead.

How long do red light facial results last?

In trials, gains were still there weeks after sessions stopped. Clinics plan maintenance sessions every month or every few months to keep them.

  • Home mask trial: the wrinkle result was still significant at week 16, four weeks after sessions ended. Park, 2025
  • Uncontrolled study: in a 12-week study of 20 adults with no control group, results held 28 days after stopping. Couturaud, 2023
  • Acne: after in-office light for acne, maintenance is often once or twice a year. AAD acne

To help maintain results after in-office treatment, the AAD says a dermatologist may recommend a home device. AAD, 2024

How much does a red light facial cost?

A 2024 US cost survey puts the average red light therapy session at $55, with a range of $43 to $106. A US health system quotes $25 to $200 per session, depending on the area treated.

The same survey puts blue light therapy at an average of $55, with a range of $43 to $108. CareCredit, 2024 The per-session range of $25 to $200 comes from Brown University Health, which adds that sessions are "not usually covered under insurance". Brown Health, 2025

Because a course runs to several sessions plus maintenance, ask for the price of the whole plan. Our cost guide works through course totals and questions to ask a provider.

Is a home LED mask as good as a professional LED facial?

Not exactly, but home devices still produce measured change when used regularly. A home mask is a convenient way to have LED sessions on your own schedule, between appointments or instead of them.

A clinic visit adds a trained provider and often a full facial; a home mask adds shorter sessions on more days, without travel.

  • Lines: 86.2% of home mask users improved by at least one wrinkle grade at 12 weeks, against 16.7% with sham. Park, 2025
  • Spots: home LED devices improved inflamed spots about 45% more than control in a review of 6 trials and 216 people. Ershadi, 2025

If you have clinic sessions too, tell the provider you use a home mask, and on the day of an appointment follow their advice rather than adding a home session. Count every home session within the mask's weekly limits. Our professional red light therapy device guide compares the clinic and home formats in more depth.

Can you use red light after a chemical peel, extractions or retinoids?

Follow the aftercare from whoever did the peel or extractions, and only use light once the skin has healed and is not broken. No source sets a fixed waiting time, so the provider's advice decides.

After a peel, the doctor directs cleansing, moisturising and any protective ointment, and new skin needs sunscreen every day because it is more sensitive. Mayo Clinic Our guide to red light after a chemical peel covers healing times and how to restart.

  • Peels: wait until peeled skin has healed, with no peel solution, acid or ointment left on it, and the person who did the peel agrees.
  • Extractions: never put light on raw skin or open marks; wait until they have closed.
  • Retinoids: light goes first, on clean bare skin, and a retinoid goes on afterwards in the evening, as our guide to red light before or after skincare explains. If your retinoid is on prescription, ask the prescriber.

Is red light suitable for melasma or darker skin?

Red light is the better fit for skin that darkens easily: in a 2014 comparison, 415 nm blue light caused pigmentation while 630 nm red light did not. Photochem Photobiol Sci, 2020 If you have darker skin or melasma, talk to a dermatologist first and keep to red light.

The AAD says "Visible light has been shown to worsen melasma, especially for people with darker skin tones." AAD, 2023 It recommends a tinted sunscreen containing iron oxide, SPF 30 or higher.

A 2023 review found darkening from blue light was more marked in skin types IV to VI, while studies of 633 and 660 nm red reported lower melanin signals. He, 2023

  • Melasma-prone skin: use the red mode only, at 50% brightness for 5 minutes in the first week, and leave the blue mode aside.
  • Darker skin with spots: if your dermatologist agrees to blue light, start the blue mode at 50% for 5 minutes.

Our melasma guide has more detail.

Who should skip a red light facial, and are goggles needed?

Skip it if you take a medicine that makes skin sensitive to light, such as isotretinoin or lithium, or have a light-sensitive condition such as lupus. Our own precautions also rule out use during pregnancy, with epilepsy, with a thyroid condition or thyroid medication, and on broken skin.

  • Medicines: Cleveland Clinic names isotretinoin and lithium, and Harvard Health names certain antibiotics. Our precautions rule out use with photosensitising medication, so anyone taking a medicine should check with their pharmacist or doctor first.
  • Conditions: light-sensitive conditions such as lupus can worsen. AAD, 2024
  • History: anyone with a history of skin cancer or inherited eye disease should check with their doctor first. Cleveland Clinic LED, 2021
  • Age: the JAAD consensus restricts light treatment to adults for now.
  • Pregnancy: our devices are not for use while pregnant; see red light therapy while pregnant.

Goggles are needed in a clinic, and the JAAD panel recommends eye protection matched to the wavelength. With our mask, the eye opening has no diodes over the eyes: keep your eyes closed and never look into the light.

Side effects are uncommon and short-lived. After office light for acne, mild redness and swelling, sometimes stinging, usually fade within hours or by the next day. AAD acne

How do you do a red light facial at home with the Kivorla mask?

Cleanse and dry your face, choose the red mode for lines and texture or the blue mode for spots, and start at 50% brightness for 10 minutes with your eyes closed. Keep two to four fixed days a week and judge the result at 8 to 12 weeks.

The 4-Wavelength Red Light Therapy Mask is a cordless full-face silicone shell with an eye opening. Its red mode combines 665 nm red with 850 and 1064 nm near-infrared, and its blue mode combines 460 nm blue with 850 nm near-infrared. You choose brightness (50, 70 or 90%) and timer (5, 10 or 15 minutes) by voice or on the handheld controller's colour screen, and the mask switches off by itself when the timer ends.

  • Prepare: cleanse, pat fully dry, and remove make-up and tinted or mineral sunscreen.
  • Choose: the red mode for fine lines, texture and redness; the blue mode for breakouts, earlier in the day. For both goals, alternate on different days, for example blue on two mornings and red on two evenings, 10 minutes each.
  • Start low: 50% brightness and 10 minutes in the first week, or 5 minutes in the red mode for reactive or melasma-prone skin.
  • Build up: the manual allows 10-minute sessions up to 4 times a week at high brightness, or 15-minute sessions up to 3 times a week after a week of three 10-minute sessions. Never go over 20 minutes a day, and count red and blue sessions together.
  • Afterwards: serum and moisturiser, then SPF 30 or higher in the morning.
  • Track: photos in the same light at week 0, 4 and 8, plus week 12 for spots.

The shell covers the face but not the jaw or neck. For those areas, the 9-Spectrum Red Light Therapy Panel is used side-on or from behind at neck level, goggles on and eyes closed, never aimed straight at the face, and is not for skin types V or VI.

Read the precautions before ordering. Standard shipping to the US, UK and Germany is free. Under our return and refund policy, returns are accepted within 30 days: an unopened device with its seals intact is refunded less a 10% restocking fee, and an opened device that is undamaged and complete is refunded less 20%.

Kivorla devices are general wellness devices, not medical devices, and are not intended to treat acne, melasma or any skin condition. See a dermatologist for painful cysts, a spot that changes, or before starting light if you have skin that darkens easily.

Back to blog