Published: 23.10.2026 Updated: 28.10.2026

How often to use red light therapy?

By Aimee Jansen10 min read

You use red light therapy 3 to 5 times a week, in sessions of 15 minutes, and you build up to that from 2 to 3 sessions in the first weeks. How often red light therapy suits you depends on the phase you are in, the zone you treat and how your skin reacts. In this article, you can read why more often is not better, how long a session lasts and how you build up to a routine you can keep up.

[banner-cta-1]

How often can you do red light therapy per week?

You can do red light therapy 3 to 5 times a week. That is the frequency we use as a fixed guideline, and it is also the one that comes back in most research on red light and the skin. A red light therapy mask for home use works with the wavelengths examined in those studies, red light around 630 nm and near-infrared around 850 nm, and therefore follows the same rhythm.

How often you use red light is, at its core, a question of dosage. The dose your skin receives per week consists of three parts:

1. Frequency: the number of sessions per week.
2. Session length: the number of minutes per session.
3. Intensity: the amount of light that reaches the skin per session, depending on the device and the distance.

If you change one, the rest shifts with it. That is why "how often" can never be seen separately from "how long". We start with the frequency and then move on to the session length.

[product-cta-1]

Why is more frequent red light therapy not better?

More frequent red light therapy is not better, because red and near-infrared light follow a biphasic dose response: a dose that is too low does little, a suitable dose gives the desired effect and a higher dose makes that effect smaller again (Huang et al., 2009). Researchers see that curve in cell studies and animal research on photobiomodulation, the scientific name for applying light to tissue.

For your routine, this means that an extra session above the optimum brings no extra gain, just as a seventh training day does not make an athlete stronger than three good workouts with rest in between. How little is sometimes needed is shown by a controlled study of red and near-infrared light on facial skin: two sessions a week, thirty in total over fifteen weeks, gave a smoother skin texture and less visible fine lines than in the control group (Wunsch & Matuschka, 2014).

How long does red light therapy last per session?

Red light therapy lasts 15 minutes per session. That is the session length we keep to; in the literature and with most devices for home use, sessions of 10 to 20 minutes are common. Exposing the skin for longer increases the dose per session, and because of the biphasic dose response, that brings no extra result above the optimum.

The right session length is linked to the light intensity of your device, expressed in milliwatts per square centimeter, and to the dose received in joules per square centimeter; according to researchers, the optimal dose per application has not yet been established (Salamon, 2025). So stick to the session length in the manual of your own device and use the timer. With a panel or a red lamp, the distance to the skin also counts, because the further away, the lower the intensity; with a mask, the distance is fixed, which makes the dosage per session predictable.

Can you do red light therapy every day?

You can do red light therapy every day, but it is not necessary for a skincare routine: with 3 to 5 sessions a week, you are at the frequency that is common in research, with room for rest days. Red light contains no UV radiation, and unlike sunlight or a sunbed, no link with a higher risk of skin cancer has been shown (Salamon, 2025).

Mild and temporary reactions, such as a warm feeling on the skin, do occur and have been described in the literature (Salamon, 2025). They are no reason to stop, but they are a reason not to increase the frequency any further.

If you still choose daily use, keep to two rules:

• One session per day per zone: you expose the same skin zone to the light at most once a day, because a second session increases the dose without adding value.
• Plan rest days: even with daily use, keep one or two rest days a week, so your skin gets time to react and you can see how it does.

In the first weeks, we advise against daily use. Start with 2 to 3 sessions a week and see how your skin reacts. If you start daily right away, you can overtax your skin, and you notice that from a tight feeling or extra dryness.

How often should you use red light therapy when you are just starting?

When you are just starting, you use red light therapy 2 to 3 times a week and build up in three phases to a routine you can keep up for months. Each phase has its own frequency and its own goal: getting used to it, building up and maintaining.

The schedule below is about the frequency of red light in general; you can read which light color and frequency suit a specific skin goal, such as an anti-aging routine or blemish-prone skin, in our article on how often to use an LED mask.

1. Start phase: 2 to 3 sessions of red light per week

In the start phase, during the first two weeks, you do 2 to 3 sessions of red light per week of 15 minutes each. Your skin gets to know the light stimulus and you find out which moment in your day works. A lower intensity on your device suits this phase.

Pay attention to how your skin feels after a session: slightly warm is normal, tight or dry is a sign to rest a day longer.

2. Build-up phase: moving to 3 to 5 sessions of red light per week

In the build-up phase, from week three you move to 3 to 5 sessions of red light per week and keep up that pace for six to ten weeks. This is the phase in which the sessions add up.

In the controlled study of red light on facial skin, the difference from the control group was measured after a series of thirty sessions over fifteen weeks (Wunsch & Matuschka, 2014). Increase the frequency first and only then the intensity, never both in the same week.

[banner-cta-2]

3. Maintenance phase: 1 to 2 sessions of red light per week

In the maintenance phase, 1 to 2 sessions of red light per week are enough to hold on to what you achieved in the build-up phase. You start this phase when your skin looks stable after the build-up phase, usually after eight to twelve weeks.

Results from red light require regular use (Salamon, 2025), so the maintenance phase is a low but fixed frequency, not a stop.

Does the frequency of red light therapy differ per zone?

The frequency of red light therapy does not differ per zone, but the dosage does: you expose each skin zone 3 to 5 times a week, but the session length and the distance differ per device and per body part. So count the frequency per zone and not per day. Two zones on one day are two sessions of 15 minutes, not one session of 30.

This is how you apply the guideline to the three zones that are treated most:

• Face: 3 to 5 times a week, 15 minutes per session, with eye protection on, because the light is bright and your eyes are sensitive to it.
• Neck and décolleté: the same frequency as the face, but the skin here is thinner than on the face, so here too keep to the start phase of 2 to 3 sessions a week before you build up.
• Body with a panel or red lamp: 3 to 5 times a week per zone, 10 to 20 minutes depending on the intensity and the distance, spreading large areas over several sessions.

A mask with a separate attachment for the neck and décolleté treats both zones in the same 15 minutes. That counts as one session per zone, so you do not need to plan anything extra afterwards.

What happens if you skip a red light therapy session?

If you skip a red light therapy session, you set your build-up back a step, but you do not undo anything. The result of red light builds up over weeks and requires regularity (Salamon, 2025), so one missed session changes little in the total. Pick up the next planned session and do not make up for the missed one with a double session, because that increases the dose without adding value.

If you skip a whole week, for example because of a vacation, you then restart at the frequency of the phase you were in; after two or more weeks without sessions, we advise starting again at the start phase of 2 to 3 sessions a week. Consistency weighs more heavily than intensity, so link your session to a fixed moment, such as your evening routine, so that skipping does not become a habit.

How do you notice that you use red light therapy too often?

Your skin shows you when you use red light therapy too often: a persistent warm or tight feeling after the session, extra dryness, slight redness that does not fade quickly or skin that looks duller instead of fresher after a few weeks. Mild and temporary reactions do occur and have been described in the literature (Salamon, 2025). If they persist, you are above your optimum.

If you recognize these signals, you adjust two things, in this order:

1. Frequency: go back one session per week and keep that up for two weeks.
2. Intensity: choose a lower setting on your device if the signals persist.

Leave the session length of 15 minutes as it is; the frequency and the intensity are the dials to turn. If the complaints persist even after two weeks at a lower frequency, stop temporarily and discuss your situation with a skin therapist or dermatologist.

[product-cta-2]

Your red light therapy routine guided by Maxi Meilleur

Keeping up a red light therapy routine is easier with someone who keeps an eye on it with you. At Maxi Meilleur, you get an e-book and a build-up schedule in phases with every LED mask, and our skin coaches think along with you 1-on-1 before and after your purchase about frequency, session length and the moment that suits your day.

Our Pro Series has an adjustable timer and intensity, so you go through the start phase, the build-up phase and the maintenance phase with the same mask. Curious which mask suits your routine? View our LED masks for home use or ask one of our skin coaches your question.

Sources

The sources below are about red and near-infrared light in general and do not relate to a specific product.

Huang, Y.-Y., Chen, A. C.-H., Carroll, J. D., & Hamblin, M. R. (2009). Biphasic dose response in low level light therapy. Dose-Response, 7(4), 358–383. https://doi.org/10.2203/dose-response.09-027.Hamblin

Salamon, M. (2025). Red light therapy for skin care. Harvard Health Publishing. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/red-light-therapy-for-skin-care

Wunsch, A., & Matuschka, K. (2014). A controlled trial to determine the efficacy of red and near-infrared light treatment in patient satisfaction, reduction of fine lines, wrinkles, skin roughness, and intradermal collagen density increase. Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, 32(2), 93–100. https://doi.org/10.1089/pho.2013.3616

Aimee Jansen

Content expert at Maxi Meilleur

As Content & Social Media Marketing specialist at Maxi Meilleur, I'm responsible for everything to do with our online articles, such as the skincare and infrared blogs. I develop content strategies and write articles for both the shop and our social media channels. With over 15 years of experience as a skincare user expert and already 7 years of experience in digital marketing, I know better than anyone how to create valuable, reliable content that actually helps you!

Read more about Aimee