How Can I Determine My Fitzpatrick Skin Type?

When you go for laser hair removal, you will hear the term "Fitzpatrick Skin Type". Most likely you have never heard that term before but it is very important to know your Fitzpatrick Skin Type when you are having laser hair removal treatment done. The reason is that laser hair removal works better with certain types of skin and hair, and the better it works, the quicker it works and the less money you have to pay. If you find that your Fitzpatrick Skin Type is not suited for laser hair removal, then you may have to look for alternatives.

The Fitzpatrick Scale was created in 1975 by T.B. Fitzpatrick at Harvard University in order to classify different skin types for the purpose of knowing how the skin will be affected by UV light. In total, there are six types:

Type I is white skin that has very fair hair. Your hair color will be red or blond; you will have blue eyes and freckles. With this type of skin type, you always burn and you never tan. Generally if you are in this range you will not be a good candidate for laser hair removal because you will burn easily and your hair will be hard to target.
Type II is white skin with red or blonde hair. You will have blue, hazel, or green eyes and you will sometimes burn, and you have difficulty tanning. Again, you will not be a good candidate for laser hair removal.
Type III is creamy white skin with any color of eyes and hair. This is very common and most will get a mild burn and tan gradually. You are an excellent candidate for laser hair removal if you fall in this type.
Type IV is dark brown skin (Mediterranean and Latin American people) with dark hair. You rarely burn and you tan easily. This makes you a good candidate for laser hair removal.
Type V is dark brown skin (East Indian and Middle Eastern people). You rarely burn and you tan very easily. You may be a good candidate for laser hair removal depending on how dark and course your hair is.
Type VI is black skin. You tan very easily and you never burn. You are a decent candidate for laser hair removal in this regard but you may need a special laser to target dark hair on the dark skin.

Determining your skin color is very easily, and if you have white skin you will fall in the range of Type I to III. If you have darker skin, you will be Type IV to V and if you have black skin you will be type IV. The best candidates are those who are Type III with dark and course hair. Types IV to VI can have laser hair removal done but it is more difficult to target dark hair on dark skin. The worst types are Type I and II because it is very hard to target the light hair on the light skin. If you have white hair, you cannot have laser hair removal done.

Read more answers to your questions at our laser hair removal FAQ page.