Laser Hair Removal in London, with a special interest in Skin of Colour

Yes, on the 1064 nm Nd:YAG wavelength, chosen at the £10 patch test from your Fitzpatrick assessment. Everything specific to brown and black skin, from how a reaction shows days later to what the patch test checks, is on our laser hair removal for dark skin page. No laser is entirely without risk on any skin tone, and if the patch test says no, that is the answer you get.

We treat upper lip, chin, sideburns, cheeks, jawline and front of neck, and full face. Facial hair on deeper skin tones needs carefully chosen settings, which is why the Fitzpatrick assessment and patch test always come first. Facial areas are usually shorter sessions than body areas and are often combined into a bundle.

Hair grows in cycles and laser is only effective on actively growing follicles. This is why a course of multiple sessions is needed rather than one treatment. Our standard course is 7 sessions spaced 4 to 6 weeks apart, one more than the usual course of 6, and reduction builds session by session; some people need a further session or two, and hormone-driven areas can need occasional maintenance. Individual results vary depending on skin type, hair type, hormonal factors, and the area treated.

Yes. A patch test is required before your first session. It takes about 30 minutes, depending on your concerns and questions, and includes a full skin assessment, device test patch, and treatment plan discussion. The £10 patch test fee is deducted from your course cost. Book online. Read what to expect from your patch test, including what a normal reaction looks like on light skin and on brown and black skin.

Pricing is per area and per course. As a course of 7: Underarms £206, Brazilian £466, Hollywood £539, Full Face & Neck £515 and Full Legs £931; for men, Beard Line & Neckline £466 and Full Back £1,054. Smaller areas such as the Upper Lip or Nose are £28 a session on a course of 7. Full pricing for every area is listed on this page and on our laser hair removal prices page. The price is the same for every skin tone. Every course begins with a £10 patch test, which is deducted from your course cost.

Catia Zaki, our Laser Lead, delivers all laser hair removal at Melatone. She holds VTCT Level 4 in laser and light therapies and works under the clinical supervision of Arman Zaki, our founder and a GMC-registered Physician Associate.

Most clients experience mild redness and warmth in the treated area for a few hours after treatment. This typically settles by the next day. More sensitive skin types may experience more noticeable temporary redness. Sunscreen on treated areas is essential after each session.

Often, yes. Laser reduces the hair that drives ingrown hairs and razor bumps (pseudofolliculitis barbae), which is why it is widely used for them; suitability is assessed at your patch test. Read more on our ingrown hairs and razor bumps page. On the legs, the same shaving problem is one cause of what people call strawberry legs, a description that covers several causes, only some of which laser can help. Laser hair reduction has also been studied as an adjunct in acne keloidalis nuchae, the firm bumps at the nape of the neck, and in hidradenitis suppurativa, which is a medical condition led by your GP and dermatology. Each has its own page setting out who it is and is not suitable for. Individual results vary.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding: we do not treat during either. Medicines that make skin light-sensitive, including certain antibiotics and acne treatments such as isotretinoin, so check with your prescriber. A fresh tan, fake tan, or waxing or plucking in the last few weeks delay the start rather than rule you out. Grey, white, blonde and red hair carry too little melanin for laser to target, and we say so at the patch test. Broken skin or infection in the area, a history of keloid scarring and certain skin conditions are assessed case by case. Tell us what you are taking and we plan around it.

Yes, at the same Battersea clinic, on the same SmartDiode MD platform, with the same £10 patch test first. Beard and neck, then back and shoulders, are the most requested areas. A beard line and neckline course of 7 is £466 (£67 a session) and a full back course of 7 is £1,054 (£151 a session); every area, and how a course works for men, is on our laser hair removal for men in London page.

Light at a chosen wavelength passes through the skin and is absorbed by the melanin in the hair follicle, heating it enough to damage its ability to grow hair. Only hair in its active growth phase responds, which is why a course of sessions 4 to 6 weeks apart is needed rather than one visit. On the SmartDiode MD platform the wavelength (755 nm, 808 nm or 1064 nm) is chosen for your skin type and confirmed at your £10 patch test.

It works best on dark, coarse hair, and it works on every skin tone when the right wavelength and settings are used. Fair, grey, red or very fine hair carries little melanin and responds poorly, and we tell you that at the patch test rather than selling you a course. Whether it is worth it depends on what shaving, waxing and ingrown hairs already cost you in time and skin: a course of 7 for the underarms is £206, and most people then need only an occasional maintenance session.

It gives long-term hair reduction rather than guaranteed permanent removal. Over a course, treated hair grows back finer, lighter and sparser, and many people need only an occasional maintenance session afterwards, often once or twice a year. Hormone-driven areas such as the chin, jawline, back and chest can need more upkeep. Electrolysis is the only method described as permanent removal; laser treats many hairs at once, which is why it is the usual choice for larger areas.

Not as a cosmetic treatment. In a small number of medical situations, for example severe hirsutism, hidradenitis suppurativa or gender-affirming care, some integrated care boards fund a course through an individual funding request, and the criteria differ by area; your GP can tell you whether you qualify. Everything at Melatone is private, starting with the £10 patch test, and the full price list is on this page.

No laser is entirely without risk on any skin tone. The common, short-lived effects are redness, warmth and slight swelling around the follicles for a few hours. Less common are temporary darkening or lightening of the treated skin, blistering or a burn, almost always from the wrong wavelength or settings for the skin, or from recent sun exposure. That is why every course starts with a Fitzpatrick assessment and a £10 patch test at the settings we intend to use, and why darker skin is treated on 1064nm. The treatment uses light, not ionising radiation, and does not cause cancer.

Most people describe a hot flick against the skin. It is sharper on coarse hair and on the first session, and easier as the hair thins. Contact cooling runs throughout the session, and the patch test shows you exactly how it feels at your settings before you commit to a course.

Face: upper lip, chin, nose, forehead, sideburns, cheeks, jawline and front of neck, or the full face. Body: underarms, hands, feet, arms, chest, decolletage, stomach, back, shoulders and legs. Bikini: bikini line, Brazilian and Hollywood for women, front and bikini area only. Perianal is not treated for any patient, male buttocks and male intimate areas are not on the menu, and we do not treat the scalp or the eyelid area. Every area and its price is on the price list further up this page.

Yes, but not over the tattoo itself. Tattoo ink absorbs laser energy, which can burn the skin and change the ink, so the tattoo is covered or given a margin and the hair on it is left untreated. Everywhere else in the area is treated as normal. Tell us at the patch test so the tattoo is mapped before your first session.

Not on freshly tanned skin. Sun, sunbeds and fake tan add melanin to the surface, which competes with the follicle for laser energy and raises the risk of burns and pigment change. Avoid sun, sunbeds and tanning on the area for 4 weeks before and 4 weeks after each session, use SPF 50 on treated areas, and tell us if you have caught the sun. We would rather move the session than treat tanned skin.

For 24 to 48 hours keep the area cool and avoid hot baths, saunas, heavy exercise and tight clothing over it. For 4 weeks after each session, use SPF 50 every day on treated skin that is exposed, and avoid sun, sunbeds and fake tan. Do not wax, pluck or thread between sessions, because the follicle has to stay in place for the next session; shaving is fine. Treated hairs shed over one to three weeks. Contact us if redness lasts beyond 48 hours or you see any blistering.

The usual reasons: the hair is fair, grey, red or very fine and carries too little melanin; sessions were too few or too far apart, so the growth cycle was missed; the settings were too conservative for the skin, which is common when darker skin is treated on the wrong wavelength; or a hormonal driver such as PCOS keeps recruiting new hair. If a course elsewhere did not work, bring what you know about the device and settings to your patch test and we will tell you honestly whether laser is the right tool for you.

IPL is a broad band of light, not a laser; it is less selective and less suited to darker skin. Laser uses one wavelength chosen for your skin type. Electrolysis treats one hair at a time with a fine probe, works on any hair colour including grey, and is the only method described as permanent removal; it is slower and suits small areas or the hairs laser cannot target. Waxing and shaving remove hair temporarily and, on curly or coarse hair, cause ingrown hairs and razor bumps, which laser reduces because there is less hair left to curl back.

There is no single best machine; the wavelength has to match the skin. Alexandrite 755nm suits the lightest skin, diode 808nm suits medium tones, and Nd:YAG 1064nm is the established wavelength for darker skin. Our SmartDiode MD carries all three, so the choice is made at your patch test from your Fitzpatrick assessment, not from whatever a clinic happens to own. Ask any clinic which wavelength they will use on you.

Home devices are IPL or low-power diode units with far lower energy than a clinic laser, no skin assessment and, on most models, a sensor that will not fire on darker skin. They can slow regrowth on light skin with dark hair; they are not designed for Fitzpatrick V or VI and cannot patch test you. If you use one, follow the manufacturer's skin-tone guidance exactly and stop at any burn or pigment change.