Even out tone, off the top layers

A HydraFacial is a maintenance facial with a very mild peel step and no visible flaking, so you leave with a refreshed look and no downtime. A chemical peel is resurfacing: acid lifts the top layers, you flake for 3 to 7 days, and the tone underneath changes. For a quick refresh before an event, a HydraFacial is the better choice. To fade sun spots and acne marks, a peel series is more effective.

Avoid picking or pulling the flaking skin, hold off on retinoids, acids, or scrubs until you’re fully healed, and wear sunscreen every day. After a medium peel, also skip sweaty workouts for 24 to 48 hours and waxing for a week. Use a mild cleanser and a bland moisturizer, and avoid introducing new products.

Light peels can be repeated every 2 to 5 weeks, and a series of 3 to 5 is typical, per the American Academy of Dermatology. A medium peel is a single treatment, repeated no sooner than every 3 to 6 months. After a series, one or two maintenance peels a year help maintain your result.

A light peel stings and feels hot for a minute or two, then settles into tightness. Most people describe it as uncomfortable rather than painful, and a fan helps. A medium TCA peel stings more, and the skin can frost white while the acid works, which is normal. We don’t use numbing for either, but cold air and a fan are available.

Light peels are used widely in skin of color and are often safer than light-based devices like IPL. Medium and deep peels carry a higher risk of darkening or lightening, and the AAD advises people with skin of color to see a provider with real expertise. We use lighter agents, more sessions, and a test spot first.

We recommend waiting, and we won’t peel tanned skin. Freshly peeled skin burns and pigments easily, and summer brings the most sun exposure. We schedule most peels from October to March. The one exception is a very light peel for someone who truly stays out of the sun.

For sun spots, uneven tone, or acne marks, plan on 3 to 5 light peels, 2 to 5 weeks apart. For fine lines or stubborn pigment, one medium peel may do more than a series of light ones. A single light peel gives you a week or two of brightness, which can help before an event but won’t change your tone long term. We’ll recommend a plan based on your goals.

It removes damaged outer layers of skin in a controlled way. An acid solution loosens the dead surface cells, the skin flakes off over several days, and what grows back is more even in color and smoother. Light peels refresh the surface, while medium peels reach the upper dermis and build collagen, which helps fine lines. Peels don’t tighten or lift.

For a few distinct dark spots on lighter skin, we’d usually suggest IPL. It cleared solar lentigines in roughly 75 to 90 percent of cases across trials, against 12 to 46 percent for TCA peels, per a 2025 systematic review. For overall blotchiness, for melasma, or for darker skin where IPL carries burn and pigment risk, a peel series is the safer tool.

After a light peel, flaking starts around day 3 and finishes by about day 7, like a mild sunburn peeling. After a medium peel, the skin swells for two days, then darkens and peels in larger sheets over 7 to 14 days. The flaking means the treatment is working, so let it come off on its own.

A peel is temporary by design. Your skin turns over and settles within one to two weeks. On a first visit, we start with the lowest strength that will make a difference, and go deeper only once we’ve seen how your skin responds.