How Often Should You Use Red Light Therapy on the Face? (Expert Advice)
Are you wondering how often to use red light therapy on your face? Are you doing red light therapy for wrinkle reduction and skin rejuvenation, and want to get it right?
I studied the science to see exactly how long they used the therapy for the most successful wrinkle reduction results. I’m sharing my findings with you here.
Use facial red light therapy three to five times per week for the reduction of wrinkles, acne, scars, eczema, psoriasis, and melasma. The time per session is usually between 5 and 30 minutes. There is a range that depends on your specific device. If you’re not sure, send me a note, and I’ll look it up for you. The rule of thumb is 10 minutes a day, five days a week.
Therapy Times Quick Summaries
To gain the best result, light therapy users should get the dosing down to a schedule.
The “dose” is the amount of light you receive in a treatment session.
You can also think of a dose as the amount of light you receive in a day. This is because you might absorb too much light at one time or during the day.
Light therapy stimulates cellular healing processes that need time to run their course.
It’s important that you understand your device’s power and your own skin’s response to the therapy. It’s not hard to do, but you need to follow these rules to get good results.
To help you with your treatment schedule, I created a list of popular devices, and how often you should use them.
MitoPRO 300 Face Time
Use the MitoPRO 300 on your face for 2 minutes and 30 seconds, 3-5x. Work up to no more than ten minutes per session over the course of a week or two.
Visum Light Face Time
If you are using the Visum Light wand, paint the area using the “skin” setting for two minutes a day, every other day.
CurrentBody Face Time
Use the CurrentBody Mask on your face and neck for ten minutes, 3 to 5 times weekly.
Custom Red Light Therapy Face Time
To calculate your dose using another device, contact me or use the instructions below. Aim for a 25-joules dose.
Hydraskincare PDT Face Time
Use the Hydraskincare PDT for 5 minutes, 3 to 5 times per week
Facial Treatment Times for Popular Products
How Often You Should Use CurrentBody Mask On Your Face
Use the CurrentBody face mask for ten minutes per session, 3 to 5 times per week.
What to Treat with the CurrentBody Face Mask
The CurrentBody mask is ideal for reducing:
The CurrentBody face mask is a good (but not ideal) light therapy device for reducing:
Key Benefits of CurrentBody
Caroline’s Take
The CurrentBody red light therapy face mask was the original soft silicone therapy mask.
Before CurrentBody, all the therapy masks were hard plastic.
Some didn’t have holes for the eyes and nose.
Real Darth Vader stuff.
The CurrentBody mask has a lovely feel that’s enjoyable to wear.
It uses the red and infrared wavelengths that are scientifically proven to reduce wrinkles and lines, and to promote even skin tone.
It has a far infrared heat option that warms the face for comfort and detox, too.
CurrentBody Concerns
You should know that the heat option can redden the skin. It’s only temporary but people with rosacea or acne might be better off not using the far infrared heat.
The return policy is a generous 45 days and allows you to test the device so there’s no risk.
Pricing
The CurrentBody mask is $380.
CurrentBody Pros
CurrentBody Cons
How to Use the CurrentBody Mask on Your Face for Wrinkles
- Note the time of day. Some people are affected by light at night. If you’re worried about insomnia, use the light n the morning or afternoon.
- Clean the skin. Use light therapy before adding lotions and makeup.
- Use the light for 10 minutes
- Repeat at least 5 times per week
How Often Should You Use Visum Light on Your Face?
The Visum Light has the fastest face therapy session time of two minutes per area.
Use the Visum Light on your face for two minutes on one side, and then two minutes on the other, for a total of four minutes per session, 3 to 5 times per week.
This device is built for therapy practice, but you can use it in your home. It takes only 30 seconds to get the minimum dose of 4 joules from the Visum Light, and 10 minutes to get a substantial 80 joules.
Overview
The Visum Light is the most powerful red light therapy device I’ve ever documented for this site.
There is a limit to how powerful a red light therapy device can be, and Visum Light is just at the ceiling of that power window.
It’s not that weaker devices are less effective.
It’s only that weaker devices take longer, while powerful devices take less time per session.
Visum Light is at the very top of that window, where the light is strong, fast, and still very effective.
Use Visum for Wrinkles, Lines, and Folds
For wrinkle therapy, use the Visum Light’s red and infrared wavelengths for two minutes on the left, and then two minutes on the right, for a total of four minutes, 3-5x per week.
The Visum Light has the ideal red and infrared wavelengths to reduce wrinkles, lines, and folds.
You can use the light on your face, neck, and wherever you need assistance.
Use Visum For Acne, Psoriasis, and Eczema
For acne, psoriasis, and eczema reduction, use the Visum Light’s red and infrared wavelengths for two minutes on the left, and then two minutes on the right, for a total of four minutes, 3-5x per week.
The Visum Light is an ideal acne, psoriasis, and eczema light. Use it on your face, or wherever you have issues.
These conditions respond to blue, red, and infrared light. You can use those wavelengths together or separately. Green light is a soothing addition to the mix.
Use the Visum for Melasma (Hyperpigmentation) and Scar Reduction
For a more even skin tone and pigmentation reduction, use the Visum Light’s red and infrared wavelengths for two minutes on the left, and then two minutes on the right, for a total of four minutes, 3-5x per week.
Use the light on your face, or anywhere that needs attention.
But, beware of the following.
Red light therapy is usually an excellent therapy for melasma and scar reduction. It reduces the size and intensity of the problem areas.
However, some people have an increase in pigment after using infrared light.
Should this happen to you, turn off the infrared light, and turn on the green light.
This is why you want a device that allows you to run infrared separately, and turn it off if need be.
The fact that the Visum allows you to course correct with green light is one of the reasons I love this light so much.
The Visum Light is the only device I know that has individual settings for red, infrared, green, and blue.
This feature makes it the only light that is ideal if you develop dark areas in response to infrared.
Green light is soothing and therapeutic, and it’s a perfect answer to issues with infrared light.
Accurate Light Doses for Biohackers
Visum Light has programs to easily run any of the skincare concerns we’ve discussed.
But for the biohacker who wants to experiment with copying study protocols, the Visum has a cool feature you should know about.
Tell the Visum how many joules of light you want to be delivered, and the device calculates your light dose for you.
This is something we need every light manufacturer to include in their devices.
I don’t mean to gush, but Visum Light is a badass light therapy device.
The Visum Light is the first light I’ve reviewed that does the dose programming for you.
Most concerns do very well with a light dosage of between 5 and 60 joules. You can dial in 60 joules, and the Visum Light calculates the time per session for you.
Why The Visum Light Requires “Painting” The Light
Back when red light therapy was purely a laser operation, clinicians invented “painting” the light because lasers get hot fast.
By moving the light back and forth, the heat doesn’t build up as much in any given spot.
The Visum Light is the most powerful therapy light I recommend.
That power brings great speed but requires you don’t allow the heat to build up.
The Visum outputs light at the very top of the power range that works in red light therapy.
You don’t want to overload the skin with light, so you swipe it back and forth to put a second or two in between deliveries.
The Visum Light was originally designed for clinicians (at spas and medical offices) and is now available to the public.
Key Benefits
People often ask me about LEDs vs lasers: When the LED device has enough power, it’s better than a laser, and this is a great example of this. The laser light reflects off the skin because it’s delivered in columns; light from these LEDs suck right into the skin on their way to the mitochondria.
I love that it includes blue and green alongside red and infrared. Blue is excellent for killing P acnes and other acne-causing bacteria. Green is soothing, reduces inflammation, and there’s some evidence it helps skin tone.
Downside Considerations
I’m not going to bash the price on the Visum, because it’s a high-end LED therapy device.
This is a case of actually getting what you pay for.
The treatment head is large for a handheld, but it’s still smaller than someone’s face.
Pricing
The return policy is a generous 45 days and allows you to test the device so there’s no risk.
The Visum Light retails for $1,999. You can pay in installments via a financing deal on the VisumLight.com website.
Visum Pros
Visum Cons
How to Use the Visum Light On Your Face for Wrinkles or Acne
- Note the time of day. Some people are affected by light at night. If you’re worried about insomnia, use the light in the morning or afternoon.
- Clean the skin. Use light therapy before adding lotions and makeup.
- Turn on the power
- Set the program to “Skin”
- Hold the light just at the skin. It’s okay if the light touches the skin, but you’re aiming for a painting motion back and forth across the surface.
- “Paint” the target area. Slowly pass the light back and forth over the target area.
- Time the session. Use the light for 2 minutes per area, per day.
CurrentBody Mask Face Time Compared to Visum Light
The CurrentBody is reasonably powerful given its fast treatment time of ten minutes per session (lesser masks take 20 or 30 minutes per session).
However, the CurrentBody Face Mask is not as powerful as Visum Light.
While CurrentBody is excellent for wrinkles, melasma, and scars, Visum Light is excellent for wrinkles, melasma, scars, acne, eczema, and psoriasis. And, the Visum Light is a pain relief light therapy device.
Because the CurrentBody and the Visum Light are such nice devices, I want to break down when you would get one over the other.
Read more about Visum Light for acne in my article Best At-Home Blue Light Therapy for Acne), and for pain relief in my article Best Infrared Light Pain Treatment: Visum Light Review.
The difference between the CurrentBody face mask and the VisumLight handheld wand comes down to time per treatment and device preference.
- The Visum Light has a fast two-minute treatment time, compared to CurrentBody’s ten-minute time.
- But the Visum Light is hands-on for that two minutes, as you need to “paint” the area with the light. The CurrentBody mask is hands-free.
| Feature | CurrentBody Face Mask | Visum Light Wand |
|---|---|---|
| Treatment Time | Ten minutes, 3-5x per week | Yes, it has the correct red and infrared |
| Ideal for Wrinkles | Yes, it has correct red and infrared | Yes, it has the correct red and infrared |
| Ideal for Acne, Eczema, Psoriasis | No. It has the ideal red and infrared, but it is not blue light therapy | Yes, it has the ideal blue, green, red, and infrared light for acne, eczema, and psoriasis therapy |
| Ideal for Melasma (pigmentation) | Yes, for most people. However a few people will see dark spots from infrared, and they want to use red light but not infrared light. These people need a mask that allows separate red and infrared controls. | Yes, the Visum Light allows you to use red by itself, without infrared |
If I were advising my mom which light to get, I would say:
Get the Visum If you want a medical-grade light therapy device for:
Get the CurrentBody Mask if you want an ideal wrinkle therapy at a much lower price point that is excellent for:
How Often Should You Use HigherDose Face Mask On Your Face?
If you use the HigherDose for wrinkles or acne, do red light therapy for ten minutes, 3 to 5 times per week.
Overview
I love the HigherDose face mask, but I’m now recommending it only with a warning.
HigherDose does not accept opened returns.
I understand that people need to run their businesses, and return policies are a loss for any company.
The face mask is effective, soft, and engineered by some pretty smart people.
As long as you know that it is under warranty, but that you can only return unopened boxes, then I do recommend this face mask.
Caroline’s Take
The HigherDose is a comfortable wrinkle therapy face mask that is easy to use, and comfortable to wear.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the red light therapy face masks out there in person, but there’s a huge amount of stiff plastic and uncomfortable design to choose from that I will not recommend.
HigherDose uses medical-grade silicone in their light therapy face mask, and this sealed the deal for me.
I will not wear a stiff mask that cuts and bites into the skin.
I had cheap Halloween masks as a kid. I’m not interested in pretending to be Batman.
If the silicone sealed the deal, then the low price is gravy.
I know of so-called “high-end” face masks that I will not buy but that cost 3x of what this lovely device costs.
The HigherDOSE facial mask outputs good healing red and infrared wavelengths that stimulate the production of collagen and elastin
You need only 10 minutes to get a dose of light from this mask, which translates to this typical review from a HigherDose customer:
“This is a well-powered mask, above average because most masks are too weak to bother using.”
HigherDoseFace Mask Review
More expensive masks take a lot longer, meaning they’re a lot cheaper under the hood.
Key Benefits
Pricing
The HigherDose face mask is $380.
HigherDose Pros
HigherDose Cons
How to Use the HigherDose Mask on the Face for Wrinkles
- Note the time of day. Some people are affected by light at night. If you’re worried about insomnia, use the light in the morning or afternoon.
- Clean the skin. Use light therapy before adding lotions and makeup.
- Use the light for 10 minutes
- Repeat at least 5 times per week
How Often Should You Use MitoPRO 300 on Your Face?
Use the MitoPRO 300 on your face for 2 minutes and 30 seconds, 3-5x. Work up to no more than ten minutes per session over the course of a week or two.
What to Treat Wrinkles with the MitoPRO 300
The MitoPRO 300 is ideal for reducing:
The MitoPRO 300 is a good (but not ideal) light therapy device for reducing:
Key Benefits of the MitoPRO 300
Caroline’s Take
The MitoPRO 300 is a tabletop at-home red light therapy device.
It emits two red and two infrared wavelengths of light (630 nm, 660 nm, 830 nm, and 860 nm).
This ensures you get the entire range of bioavailable light on your face.
The 300 is part of the MitoPRO line of panels from Mito Red Light. You can also get MitoPRO half- and full-body red light therapy panels.
The MitoPRO 300 is probably the most popular tabletop red light therapy device on this website.
It’s fairly priced, is excellent for wrinkles, and is a terrific starter device for starting red light therapy.
This is probably because Mito Red Light is an innovative company that stands behind its products.
They have terrific customer service, a 60-day trial period, and a deep knowledge of the principles of photobiomodulation (as red light therapy is known in science).
The “Mito” in “Mito Red Light” stands for the mitochondria, the organelles inside the cells that absorb the photons (light packets) and then kick off healthy cascades in response.
Pricing
The MitoPRO is $349, but use coupon code RED for 5% off, making the price $331.55.
MitoPRO 300 Pros
MitoPRO 300 Cons
How to Use the MitoPRO 300 on the Face for Wrinkles
- Use once a day
- Use at any time of day but use in the morning if you have issues with insomnia (the bright light can cause circadian rhythm issues; alternatively, use dark eye goggles in the evening and it will help you sleep.
- Use before adding lotions and makeup
- Take a photo in the same lighting every day to measure your results
- Use a ruler to measure 6 inches to your target skin (head, neck, etc.)
- Turn on the power
- Use for 3 minutes for each session, build up to as much as 10 minutes.
Geek Alert – How to Calculate a Facial Red Light Therapy Dose
Using Fluence to Calculate LED Light Therapy Time on the Face
I’d like to show you how to calculate the time to use red light therapy on your face.
This section gets a little geeky. It’s for the biohackers who want to test different doses of light.
To make this as simple as possible, let’s look at a real device and how to use it.
We’ll start with one of my favorite wrinkle-red light therapy devices, the Mito Red Light MitoPRO 300.
This is a tabletop red light therapy device. One of the reasons it’s my favorite is that Mito Red Light figured out how to be truthful about dosing! (See my article Best Wattage for Red Light Therapy)
The MitoPRO is the first therapy device I recommend for multi-purpose therapy. It’s as good at quelling wrinkles as it is reducing joint pain.
You see, most companies sell lights with inflated irradiance values.
Have you noticed that everyone’s light has an irradiance of 100 mW/cm^2 or more?
More often than not, the irradiance value you see is a figment of the imagination.
It’s the result of using a solar meter on a light emitting diode’s light.
The number is inflated by a factor of two or three over what an LED meter would show.
Because the red light companies compete through marketing, they “one-up” each other with higher and higher irradiance values.
The problem is, we don’t want huge irradiance values, as red light therapy is the low-energy delivery of light.
But it’s so ingrained in us to look for the most powerful device, these companies brag about values that really don’t make sense for red light therapy.
So what Mito Red Light did was publish the certified value in joules.
Having fluence (photons delivered in joules) is even better than having irradiance because it’s way easier to figure out your dose using joules than it is using irradiance.
Let’s say you want to use the MitoPRO 300 on your face for wrinkle reduction.
You want to determine how long you should do red light therapy on your face using this specific device.
The first thing you need to know is that the studies showing good results for wrinkle reduction delivered approximately 25 to 50 joules of energy per treatment session.
Next, you need to know the device’s fluence, which is the joules of photon energy it delivers to a square centimeter of your face per minute.
Mito Red Light is one of only two companies that deal in joules instead of irradiance, making our next step super easy (the other company is Visum).
The MitoPRO 300 delivers 2.7 joules of photon energy per minute when you are at a distance of 6 inches from the lights.
To get the minutes per session, divide the target joules (25 to 50) by the joules per minute (2.7).
To get a 25 joules dose, divide 25 joules by the joules per minute (2.7) to get the time per session: 25/2.7 = 9.25 minutes.
To get a 50 joules dose, divide 50 joules by the joules per minute to get the time per session: 50/2.7 = 18.5 minutes.s
Using Irradiance to Calculate LED Light Therapy Time on the Face
You’re much more likely to get “irradiance” than “fluence from a red light therapy device’s specifications.
The hard part here is believing the irradiance value.
That’s going to make this tricky, but I’ll show you how to figure the time per treatment even if you’re not sure about whether that irradiance was measured with a solar (incorrect) or an LED (correct) meter.
If the manufacturer does not offer an irradiance value, then you need to measure the light yourself.
To do that accurately will cost more money than your lamp, at which point the solution is to buy a device from a reputable company. Or maybe buy an Apogee meter.
The irradiance value will look like this: “50 mW/cm^2 at 6 inches.” In this example, the irradiance means that in one second, this delivers 50 milliwatts of energy to one square meter of your face if the device is 6 inches from the target (the face).
First, multiply the milliwatts by 60 to get the milliwatts per minute:
50 mW/cm^2 x 60 seconds = 3,000 mW/cm^2 per minute
Divide by 1,000 to figure joules delivered:
3,000 mW/cm^2 per minute / 1,000 mW = 3 joules
Now divide the target joules by the joules delivery of this device in one minute:
6 joules desired / 3 joules per minute = 2 minutes required to get 6 joules
How Often Should You Use Light Therapy on the Face FAQs
How long should you do red light therapy on the face?
Use the references at the top of this article, but if your device is not on the list, you can contact me (see the top of the article) and I will figure it out for you. The rule of thumb is ten minutes per day.
How many times a week should you do red light therapy on the face?
Use your red light therapy 3 to 5 times per week.
Can you overdo red light therapy on the face?
You can overdo facial red light therapy if you do a session that is too long, and if you do too many sessions a day.
Are three-minute light therapy sessions enough time?
Often three minutes is not enough, but if you have a strong device, it might be a good dose. All devices are different, so you need guides like this article to help you answer this question for your specific device.
What should I put on my face before red light therapy?
Don’t put anything on your face before red light therapy. You want as little interference between the light and your skin as possible.
How long does it take for red light therapy to build collagen?
Technically, red light therapy builds collagen from your first treatment. You will see the effects of new collagen in two to four weeks of 3-5x per day use.
Is it good to do red light therapy every day?
It is good to do red light therapy every day. The science is not settled on this yet, but clinical experience shows that giving the skin a break can speed up healthy progress. Excessive light therapy is counterproductive, but treating skin once a day is fine.
Is it better to use red light therapy in the morning or the night?
The only reason not to use red light therapy at night is if the light is bright and causes insomnia. Similarly, if you are using red light therapy with pulsation, a pulse rate over 15 or 20 Hz might be energizing, and one below 15 Hz might be calming. Otherwise, you can do red light therapy at any time of day or night.
Should you use red light therapy before bed?
Some people find that nighttime red light therapy helps them sleep. Some people find that it keeps them awake. And it has no effect on everyone else.
What is the best time of day for red light therapy?
The best time of day for red light therapy is the one that you know you will commit to because you’ve made space in your day to heal your skin, body, and mind. Commitment to a schedule of consistent use is more important than any given time of day.
How many minutes of red light therapy should you do in a day?
You should use your device for between two and 30 minutes. The range is because each device has its own ability to get light to your skin; plus the distance you are from the light has a significant effect on the treatment time needed to get a dose of light.
Can you do red light therapy on your face every day?
You can do red light therapy on your face every day. Should you find that you’re not seeing acne, wrinkle, scar, or pigment reduction, you can switch to every other day to see if that works better. Less is more with red light therapy.
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