Simply, the best hair removal creams that won’t burn your skin off (2024)

Most hair removal creams tend to be runny and lightweight, which is totally fine, unless you've already got dry, scaly skin that could use some extra TLC. Enter: This rich formula from Nad’s, which uses urea, glycerin, sweet almond oil, and shea butter to help lightly moisturise and coddle your skin while the formula does its thing to your hair. Leave it on for four to six minutes and either wash it away in the shower or remove it with a washcloth.

Key ingredients: Potassium thioglycolate (chemical hair remover), urea, glycerin, sweet almond oil, shea butter

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “This literally goes on like butter and leaves skin feeling like it also,” writes one reviewer. “It doesn’t burn or take a long time for hair to be removed. Will purchase again.”

So, this cult-favourite hair removal cream (waddup 7,000 positive reviews) is actually geared toward removing thick facial hair, which is why it’s ideal for anyone looking to remove coarse or curly hair from their body. Just slather on a thick layer of this shea butter-spiked cream wherever you want to get rid of hair, leave it on for 4-7 minutes depending on the thickness of your hair, and wipe the hair away with a damp washcloth.

Key ingredients: Thioglycolic acid (chemical hair remover), shea butter

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: According to one tester, “I get bad razor burn on my bikini area and have been waxing instead to prevent that. However, I used this stuff the other day, and I was pleasantly surprised that it removed most of my unwanted hair and left me with no irritation.”

Need a gentle facial hair remover? Skip the irritating razors and wax and try this gentle hair removal cream instead from Nad’s. It leaves your skin feeling soft and smooth, thanks to moisturising calendula and almond oils, without having to worry about patchy skin or nicks. If you’re prone to sensitivity, definitely layer on a hydrating serum and barrier-repair cream afterwards to limit inflammation and dryness.

Key ingredients: Thioglycolic acid (chemical hair remover), sweet almond oil, calendula oil

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “I was using this to remove both thick and thin dark hairs on my upper lip and my chin,” writes one tester in a review. “It worked like a charm! I ended up leaving it on for a total of eight minutes. Honestly, I didn’t think it would work as well as it did.”

Even though the hair on your face is NBD, you might still want to get rid of yours, and that’s where this gentle hair removal cream comes in. Just smooth it on, wait five minutes, and gently wipe it off with a damp cloth to instantly remove even the finest facial hair like peach fuzz. It also comes with a moisturising face cream that's filled with plumping collagen and moisturizing vitamin E to keep your delicate facial skin looking glowy.

Key ingredients: Calcium thioglycolate (chemical hair remover), vitamin E, aloe vera, bisabolol

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “This is a quick, easy product to remove upper lip hair,” one reviewer writes. “I have sensitive, acne-prone skin and use prescription retinoids. This product does not irritate my skin. I can use it, and my skin won't be red, irritated, break out, or peel unlike a lot of other hair removal methods.”

This in-shower hair removal cream looks like a creamy body wash but works like a depilatory, so you can one-and-done your hair removal before getting in the shower. Smooth the cream on your dry skin, wait just a few minutes (that's about how long it takes for the water to warm up anyway), then hop in and rinse away the cream, your unwanted hair, and you know, the rest of the day’s grime.

Key ingredients: Potassium thioglycolate (chemical hair remover), urea, aloe vera

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “This product is extremely easy to use,” reads one review. “The cream is not thick, and it’s actually like a lotion, so it feels good too. The product is one that I needed in my life for so long, and I am so glad I don’t have to deal with using razors any longer because I will be using this instead.”

If you love how baby-soft your face feels after a clay mask, you’ve gotta try this hair removal version that’s formulated with kaolin clay and charcoal powder. Reviewers swear by it for lightly exfoliating and softening their skin before shaving, which helps them get rid of legit any stubble whatsoever. But this formula is also depilatory, meaning it’ll remove some hair from your legs, bikini line, etc. as you wipe it away too.

Key ingredients: Calcium thioglycolate (chemical hair remover), kaolin clay, charcoal powder (exfoliators)

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: One tester writes, “I can't say how much I love this product enough. It's sensitive enough for my skin (only used once a week and a max of 10 mins to leave the mask on). I've always used this pre-shaving, and it has really helped with any coarseness, diminishing razor burn, saving time shaving, etc. I love this product and will continue to purchase it over and over!”

Hi, meet my holy-grail hair removal cream. Why? Because it gently exfoliates my skin with kaolin clay, which is a godsend for my ingrown-prone legs. I slather a thick layer all over my skin, wait about five minutes, and then wipe it off and hop in the shower to rinse off any residue. It quickly gets rid of any stubble and leaves my skin feeling smoother, especially when I follow it up with a rich moisturiser.

Key ingredients: Calcium thioglycolate (chemical hair remover), kaolin clay (exfoliator), seaweed extract (moisturiser)

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “This is absolutely one of the best purchases I've made,” reads one review. “I use this on my arms because they've always grown lots of hair, and I never liked shaving them because of the razor burns. This product couldn't be easier to use! Just lather a good amount on, wait 10 minutes, and wipe off with a wet rag.”

Yeah, I get it: Most hair removal creams smell like a chemical nightmare. But this one by Epify has a fresh, surprisingly pleasant scent that helps mask the thioglycolic acid (i.e., the ingredient that breaks down your hair). No, it's not going to smell as good as your grapefruit-vanilla-sugar body lotion, but it'll still be easier on your nose than traditional formulas. And you only have to use it for a few minutes, according to testers, before it dissolves your hair.

Key ingredients: Thioglycolate hydroxide (chemical hair remover), urea, sweet almond oil

Fragrance free? No

THE REVIEWS: “I was hoping to avoid that god-awful smell that appears unavoidable with depilatory creams,” writes one tester in a review. “I'll say that this one, while it does still have a bit of that same ‘depilatory cream smell,’ is moderately masked by a more pleasant scent. So it is, indeed, far less pungent and overpowering than every similar product I've tried through the years.”

When you’re ready to apply hair removal cream, follow the directions, especially the length of time recommended to leave the cream on your skin. Every cream has different levels of thioglycolic acid (the chemical that removes your hair), so some creams can be used for ten minutes, while others will start irritating your skin after four minutes.

You should always do a patch test on your upper thigh or arm 24 hours prior to confirm your skin can tolerate the formula before slathering it all over, says board-certified dermatologist Karan Lal, MD.

Once you’ve confirmed the cream is suitable for your skin, smooth a thin layer of cream (or foam or gel) on the hair you want to remove and leave it on for the suggested amount of time, always erring on the side of caution the first time (i.e.; If they suggest 5-10 minutes, wash it off at minute five).

Then, use a warm, wet washcloth (or just water itself, depending on the formula) to remove the cream. Rinse your skin with a moisturising, fragrance-free body wash, and always slather on a gentle moisturiser.

You can use hair removal cream as often as every three days, but you might prefer to wait five to seven to avoid irritation, or based on how quickly your hair grows back. How often you decide to use hair removal cream will fully depend on your hair and skin type.

Some hair types grow back quicker than others, while some might only need to use hair removal cream once a week or so. Luckily, hair removal creams tend to keep you hairless a bit longer than shaving, since your hair is dissolved from the follicle, rather than just trimmed at the surface.

Yes, you can use hair removal cream on your “private area” (AKA, your pubic region). But keep in mind that the skin around your genitals is extremely sensitive, so you might have to take some precautions. Hair removal cream should never go inside your genitals, which can result in burning, itching, and potentially even an infection. I always check the packaging on my hair removal cream to make sure it’s safe for my bikini line.

To make sure your skin can tolerate the cream – whether you’re using it on your bikini line or any other area of your body – start with a tiny patch test 24 hours before you plan to use the cream by dabbing it on your skin, then wiping it off after four minutes to see if you have any irritation.

If you start to experience burning, redness, itching, or discomfort, immediately wipe off the cream with a warm washcloth, wash your skin with gentle soap and water, then dry off and smooth on a soothing, fragrance-free lotion.

Hair removal cream can sting a little bit, like when you use a chemical exfoliant, though it should ideally feel like nothing at all. And if it does, that’s a red flag that the formula isn’t agreeing with your skin and you should remove it immediately. “If your skin feels like it’s on fire, wash the cream off ASAP and liberally layer on a 1 per cent hydrocortisone cream to help calm down some inflammation and itch,” says Dr. Lal.

Again, this is also why it’s so important to not only patch-test 24 hours ahead of time, but to also follow the directions on the cream’s package, as leaving a hair removal cream on too long can cause burning, peeling, dryness, and irritation. And if you have naturally sensitive skin, you should avoid using hair removal creams on even more sensitive areas, like your face and bikini line.

Whether you prefer hair removal cream or shaving depends on your personal preference and skin type. If you get painful, irritated razor burn or ingrown hairs whenever you shave, you might prefer a hair removal cream, which can be gentler.

But hair removal creams can also be too strong and cause burning and stinging for those with very sensitive skin (especially if you have eczema or keratosis pilaris), so you’ll need to experiment a bit before making a decision.

No, your hair won’t grow back thicker or faster after using hair removal cream. Any hair removal technique that dissolves, shaves, or trims your hair without fully pulling it from its root will leave the tip feeling a bit more stubbly as it grows back.

But hair removal cream is not actually causing your hair to grow back thicker, darker, or faster – nothing but your genetics and hormones can alter your hair growth.

No, hair removal cream doesn’t generally leave stubble, because it dissolves the hair from the root rather than slicing it off on a jagged edge at the surface. But depilatory creams sometimes don’t pick up all of the hairs, which won’t necessarily leave behind stubble, but rather sparse patches.

In this case, you can pluck those individual hairs or trim them with a bikini trimmer, or wait three days to go over the area with your hair removal cream again (any sooner than that, and you can potentially experience dryness and irritation). As your hair starts to grow back, however, you might notice a little stubble, depending on how quickly your hair grows.

Determine where you’ll use it

Whether you’re using a hair removal cream on your legs, bikini line, underarms, or arms will depend on what kind of cream you go for. Creams for your face and bikini line (like Nad’s Facial Hair Removal Cream and Sally Hansen Creme Hair-Remover Duo Kit) tend to be a bit gentler and contain oils and ingredients that can help offset irritation on sensitive skin.

Creams for your legs or underarms (hi, Nair Clay & Seaweed Exfoliate & Smooth Leg Mask and Epify Hair Removal Cream), however, are a bit stronger for removing thicker hair, but will likely be too intense for other areas of your body.

Consider your skin type

If you have sensitive, reactive skin, look for formulas without potentially irritating ingredients, like essential oils and heavy fragrance, and instead pick formulas specifically created for sensitive skin, which tend to be filled with protective ingredients like aloe vera, butters, and oils. Those butters and oils (like shea butter and almond oil) will also come in handy if you have dry skin.

On the other hand, if your skin is super "tough," opt for a formula that'll remove your hair in the shortest amount of time – less time spent on your skin = less risk of irritation or having to apply a second layer. Often, these formulas will have labels reading “max strength,” so you know which to choose. Our testers loved the SoftSheen Carson Magic Razorless Cream Shave for their coarse, curly hair.

Decide your ideal formula

You’ve got a few options when it comes to depilatories, like spray-on foams, wash-off creams, and gel-based formulas. If you hate spreading a thick, goopy cream all over your skin (sticky hands aren’t exactly conducive to TikToking), go for a spray-on foam. Or, if you hate doing laundry, try a formula that can be washed off in the shower rather than be removed with a washcloth, such as Veet In-Shower Hair Removal Cream.