Is a £99 LED mask as good as a £2k one? We put them to the test
LED face masks have become a celebrity favourite. Everyone from Victoria Beckham, Madonna, Kim Kardashian, and even Emily in Paris proclaimed their love for their alleged skin-transforming properties. But what exactly do they do? And, crucially, when they can cost from around £100 to £2000, does buying a more expensive mask mean better results?
Here’s everything you need to know.
What exactly does an LED mask do?
Quick physics lesson: light is a form of radiation and different light colours have different wavelengths. The light we can see ranges from violet, which has the shortest wavelength of about 380 nanometers (nm), to red which has the longest at around 700nm.
“The light from the LEDs interacts with specific receptors in the skin to cause biological changes,” explains Dr Abhinay Settipalli, a former dentist who now works in aesthetics and has a special interest in the pseudoscience used in beauty marketing. “In the same way that UV [ultraviolet rays] from the sun interacts with our skin promoting the production of melanin [so we tan], different wavelengths interact with different receptors to cause different effects.”
Who can they help?
Because the different wavelengths produce different effects, almost anyone can benefit from LED masks. In clinic, light therapy is used to treat skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis, and there is also some suggestion that red light can fight demodex mites thought to be, in part, responsible for rosacea.
“A lot of the studies are done by the manufacturers,” says aesthetic doctor Dr Ahmed El Muntasar – this means the results might not be as credible as independent research. “However, from an independent study perspective, in 2013 there was a study on red light that showed increases in collagen and skin elasticity after around eight weeks, while another study in 2018, showed that blue light helps with reducing inflammation [making it good for acne] after about four to six weeks.”
Other studies have shown that using near-infrared alongside red can result in even better anti-ageing outcomes. While there are lots of claims made for green light, orange light and so on, good evidence isn’t yet there for most of them.
How long and how often?
Every mask will have its own suggested protocol and it’s recommended you follow this. However, while technically you can overdo it, Dr El Muntasar points out that at-home masks tend not to be powerful enough to cause much harm beyond “a bit of dryness and irritation.”
That said, there is some data suggesting blue light can exacerbate melasma, so this is one to avoid if you suffer from hyperpigmentation, while Settipalli counsels his acne patients against using red light as this can increase inflammation.
As with any form of skincare, sticking to a routine is essential. If you’re not using it regularly, don’t expect to see results. Give it four to six weeks to see a difference with acne and around eight weeks for anti-ageing, but you could see changes earlier.
On the topic of skincare, while some manufacturers advise avoiding skincare that can make skin more sensitive to light five days prior to using the mask — think ingredients such as retinol and AHAs (alpha-hydroxy acids, which are often used in skincare products) — most people don’t have an issue. And although some brands also recommend serums for use with a mask, Settipalli believes otherwise.
“The whole point of the treatment is to maximise the amount of light hitting the photoreceptor so if you put something in to reduce that then you may as well not do the treatment in the first place. Ideally, the skin should be clean and dry prior to starting.”
What should you be looking for?
This is the million dollar question and annoyingly, there’s no easy answer. It’s not as simple as, say, the more lights the better, because not all LEDs are created equal, and sometimes it can be as much about the positioning of them as the lights themselves. “Essentially, the more power [which is a function of something called the irradiance, or radiation, and the time] the better as far as the skin is concerned,” says Settipalli. “But depending on the engineering, more power might mean too much heat for that device and it then destroys its own output. So unfortunately, it’s not as simple as a single metric.”
You could start by whittling it down to masks that only use proven wavelengths — red light at 633nm, blue light at 415nm and near infrared at 830nm. And I have a lot more faith in brands that openly declare their technical specs including irradiance, which gives an idea of power.
But cheaper doesn’t necessarily mean worse.
Tom Pellereau is the founder of StylPro which aims to democratise beauty. They recently launched a £99 red light mask which he says was only possible by “looking at every part of the mask to get the best performance at the lowest price. We ensured we spent money on critical parts and compromised on things like the size of the battery (it only lasts five uses) and using food-grade, rather than medical-grade, silicone.”
StylPro asked an independent company to test their mask alongside five competitor masks, ranging in price from £75 to £465 and they say the results prove not only that theirs is superior, but that it offers twice the power at half the price.
That doesn’t mean that every budget mask is going to rival the mask that’s ten times the price — or vice versa. We had a look at some of the masks on the market today…
Seven LED face masks
StylPro Wavelength LED Face Mask
£99.99, Look Fantastic
Wavelengths: red (633nm), near-infrared (830nm), blue (415nm)
Irradiance: 94mW/cm2
Recommended treatment time: 10 mins, daily
For the price there’s very little to complain about. It’s ready to go out the box with four preset programmes; the eye protectors do a better job than most of protecting from glare; the straps are far better than many, although as with most of the flat masks, it sits closer at the top of my face than the bottom, and there was a bit of pressure on the temples after 10 minutes. But that seems a small price to pay, given it’s under £100 and so powerful.
Silk’n Facial LED Mask
£128, Boots
Wavelengths: red (633nm), blue (463nm), yellow (592 nm), purple (463 - 633nm)
Irradiance: 13.5 – 74.9mW/cm2
Treatment time: 10 minutes, up to seven times a week
The fact that they have less proven yellow and purple light marks them down and the irradiance wasn’t readily available — although the company supplied it on request. It was a relatively comfortable mask to wear and didn’t glare as much as others, although I think that’s because the light it gives out isn’t as bright.
Lustre ClearSkin Revive LED Mask
£250, Lustre Clear Skin
Wavelengths: blue (415nm), red (630nm), near-infrared (830nm)
Irradiance: 30mW/cm2
Recommended treatment time: 10 mins, three times a week
Not sure why they’ve gone for different (and less clinically proven) wavelengths and although, via the app, you can personalise the treatment to a certain extent, weirdly, you can only use the blue with the red so it’s not as good for acne as some others. A firmer, moulded mask than others. It took a bit of fiddling with the strap to get right but eventually felt like it sat nice and close against all parts of my face, although after 10 minutes there was quite a lot of pressure on my forehead.
Omnilux Contour Face
£350.90, Omnilux
Wavelengths: red (633nm), near-infrared light (830nm)
Irradiance: 30mW/cm2
Recommended treatment time: 10 mins, three to five times a week
One of the market leaders (they’ve been doing this for 20 years) with lots of peer-reviewed studies to their credit, this simple — just red and near-infrared — mask fits the best of all the flat masks, thanks to two well-placed straps, although after 10 minutes it was pressing on the bridge of my nose and the lights seemed quite bright on my eyes. Personally, I’d probably buy their “Men” version that costs the same and also includes deep near-infrared.
Boost LED Face Mask
£395.00, The Light Salon
Wavelengths: red (633nm), near-infrared (830nm)
Irradiance: 30mW/cm2
Recommended treatment time: 10 mins, three to five times a week
This company arguably popularised light therapy in the UK via its salon. Their home mask is designed exclusively for rejuvenation (no blue light). There’s no faffy app or multiple programmes, just press and go. It hurt a bit over the bridge of the nose, and didn’t seem to fit that close to the lower part of my face, but apparently that’s normal. It was more comfortable — and they say still safe — without the eye protectors but seeing red in my peripheral vision was a bit disconcerting. Bonus points for environmentally-friendly packaging.
Current Body Series 2 LED Light Therapy Mask
£399, Current Body
Wavelengths: red (633nm), near-infrared (830nm), deep near-infrared (1072nm)
Irradiance: 30mW/cm2
Treatment time: 10 mins, three to five times a week
This is the second version of this mask and according to the manufacturers boasts improved fit and the addition of deep near-infrared which penetrates even deeper into the skin and might have additional skin-boosting benefits. No blue light or app, just a 10-minute press-and-go programme. Each mask comes with a code that lets you track the testing of the LEDs on it – a nice touch. This seemed to fit better than many of the others, although even with the eye protectors, I was seeing red. I liked that, unlike most of the others, it goes under the chin so you’re treating jowls too.
Foreo FAQ 202 LED Face Mask
£719, Foreo
Wavelengths: red (650nm), near-infrared (850nm), blue (420 nm), green (519nm), orange (590nm), purple (450nm), cyan (463 nm), yellow (570 nm)
Irradiance: Not disclosed
Recommended treatment time: 5-15 mins, three to five times a week
This looks good and is comfortable to wear (although the design means the area under the eyes isn’t treated) but that’s about all it’s got going for it. It requires you to download an app to use, and has eight different wavelengths, but not all have good evidence so you’re paying a lot for unproven technology. It’s hard to find the exact wavelengths used and the other tech specs so this feels like style over substance.
