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The amount of hair on your body is nobody’s business, but if you’re looking for hair-free days on your legs and anywhere else, IPL hair removal treatments are the solution you need.

They don’t hurt like (or as much as) waxing or epilating and don’t cause inflamed skin or nasty ingrown hairs from shaving.

Read on for everything you need to know about it and the best IPL treatments in Singapore!

What is IPL Hair Removal?

ipl hair removal, ipl singapore

Credit: Japan IPL Express

Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) is a type of cosmetic treatment that uses strong pulses of light to stimulate or treat various issues within the skin.

Typically, it’s used to help reduce signs of ageing, lighten darker patches of skin, improve the appearance of scars and spider veins, and remove unwanted hair.

As for IPL hair removal, light energy is used to accurately target and remove pigmented skin, damaged skin cells, or hair follicles.

The best part? It’s entirely safe and can even be used to treat your face, underarms, and bikini areas. This technology works so well that you’ll easily find a beauty salon that offers IPL services.

Companies have even developed groundbreaking inventions of at-home devices devices too!

How Does IPL Hair Removal Work?

ipl hair removal, ipl singapore

Credits: @faithjoanchua/Lemon8, @men.taiko/Lemon8

During the treatment, multiple wavelengths of light are directed onto the skin. Here, the melanin in your hair absorbs the light and each hair strand is stimulated to go into its resting phase.

At the same time, the build-up of energy from the light turns into heat, travelling down the hair to disable or destroy the cells that produce new hair.

Then, your hair enters its resting face and falls out while your body naturally removes the damaged tissues. This leaves you with smooth, hairless skin and your body will gradually grow less hair in the treated areas.

Related read: How do celebrities get smooth, even-toned underarms? We spill the secrets

What to Expect From an IPL Hair Removal Treatment

ipl hair removal, ipl singapore

Credits: @yuqingleme/Lemon8, @jiaxianlee/Lemon8

Of course, one of the age-old questions asked is whether this treatment hurts. Well, you’ve likely heard different responses because it ultimately depends on your pain threshold.

The sensation you get during an IPL treatment is likened to that of an elastic band flick or a splatter of hot oil. However, IPL devices nowadays are so advanced and work really quickly that you’ll barely have time to register the “pain”.

Plus, most treatments don’t have a downtime period and won’t take more than half an hour, making it easy to slot into your schedules even as a lunchtime treatment.

As far as results go, most are able to see results in as little as three weeks, but this differs from person to person. It also depends on whether your hairs are in the same phase of the cycle (growth phase, rest phase, and shedding phase).

To get rid of your hair permanently, you’ll almost have to “chase the cycles”, which explains why there are multiple sessions or why you’d have to go back for a yearly visit for maintenance treatments (or every three to five years based on your hair follicles).

Related read: Thinking of Getting Super Hair Removal (SHR) in Singapore? Here’s Everything You Need to Know!

Best IPL Hair Removal Services in Singapore





















Best IPL Hair Removal Alternatives in Singapore



























Frequently Asked Questions

Laser vs IPL Hair Removal: Which is Better?

ipl hair removal, ipl singapore

Credits: @modeaestheticssg/TikTok, @jiaxianlee/Lemon8

IPL hair removal can be confused with laser treatments since permanent results can be expected from both, but they use different light sources and are not the same.

Although they work similarly, laser therapy delivers a single wavelength of light energy while IPL delivers multiple wavelengths. So, compared to laser, IPL can treat a larger area of skin within a shorter period of time.

New laser hair removal treatments are known to be more effective than IPL, have a higher percentage of hair removed in one session, have more lasting efficacy, and are usually fitted with integrated cooling systems for comfort.

However, they usually take longer than IPL treatments and are more expensive too.

Whether you’re picking to commit to IPL or a laser hair removal treatment, it all boils down to your personal preference, ability to take pain, and your skin type.

Related read: 100% of our readers said their hair grew back slower after just one session of this hair removal treatment!

Am I Suitable for IPL Hair Removal Treatments?

ipl hair removal, ipl singapore

Credit: Wellaholic

First and foremost, not every skin tone is suitable for it since the technology works by targeting pigment in the hair. So, there needs to be a notable difference between your skin tone and hair colour.

If you’ve got red or light blonde hair, you’d be advised to sit this treatment out. Most experts would also advise against IPL hair removal on Black skin, due to the risk of damage and discolouration.

For those with underlying skin or medical issues like PCOS or thyroid issues, you might notice that the treatment will take longer to show results.

Alternatives for those with darker skin tones:

  • Check with the hair removal service provider if the type of laser machine used is safe for your skin.
  • Pick up at-home devices that have wavelength filters, a special configuration of the IPL flashes, and low-energy IPL settings (around three J/cm2 or lower).
  • Go for laser hair removal options instead.

Related read: 10 Best At-home IPL Devices That Actually Work

Feature image credit: @modeaestheticssg/TikTok, @men.taiko/Lemon8, @japaniplexpress/TikTok