Laser VS IPL: Which Is Better For Hair Removal?

Have you ever been bothered to choose IPL hair removal or laser hair removal when faced with hair growth problems? Don't worry! After you read this article, you will find the answer-- which is better for hair removal between Laser and IPL.

What is laser hair removal?

Laser hair removal is one of the most commonly-used cosmetic procedures to remove unwanted hair from the face, leg, arm and other areas. The hair follicles destruction process is irreversible and achieves the purpose of total hair removal.

In 1960, it was Theodore Maiman who invented the first laser machine. Then the laser machine has been applied in many fields. In the 1970s, scientists discovered that lasers were effective at removing hair. The beauty industry began to research and created laser hair removal. Around 1990, laser hair removal became popular in the market.

What is IPL hair removal?

IPL stands for intense Pulsed Light. It is composed of many diverse wavelengths. It's not a laser, but it also uses light energy to slow and reduce body and facial hair growth. The IPL uses a xenon flash lamp, which emits diffuse, incoherent light.

It was in 1976 that IPL technology was first used to treat vascular lesions. In 1997, this IPL machine used in clinical trials was available in the market, especially for IPL laser hair removal at home.

How does laser hair removal work?

Professional laser hair removal machine uses concentrated beams of light ( laser) into hair follicles, where pigment absorbs the light and destroys the stem cells. Hair follicles coagulate and necrotic hair naturally falls off.

How does IPL hair removal work?

Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) is deemed to be a cosmetic skin treatment. It can be used by people to reduce signs of aging or remove unwanted hair. Decreasing scars, brightening dark areas of the skin and ameliorating the appearance of spider veins are proven to IPL other important functions. IPL works similarly to laser therapy. The difference is that laser therapy provides light energy with a single wavelength, while IPL provides multiple wavelengths. This means that IPL can treat a larger area of skin in less time than laser therapy.

What are the differences between laser hair removal and IPL?

Both laser and IPL hair removal use melanin in the hair follicle as a target for heat. These approaches both can get rid of your unwanted hair quickly. Also, they are all FDA-approved for permanent hair reduction.

Surely, these two approaches have big differences. We can tell the great differences between Laser and IPL from the following aspects:

Principle

Laser is monochromatic coherent light, which means laser only has one wavelength while IPL is made up of multiple wavelengths.

The crucial difference is that the laser can destroy the structure of the hair follicles to achieve a long-standing hair removal effect. However, IPL can make the hair follicles dormant and fall off to prevent the growth of hair.

Spectral intensity

The spectral intensity is an important indicator to judge the effect of the hair removal machine.

The longer the spectrum, the stronger its ability to penetrate the skin, that is, the easier it is to damage the hair follicles, so as to achieve the effect of hair removal.

Generally speaking, the wavelength of the IPL hair removal machine should be between 600 and 900 nm, while the wavelength of the laser is about 810 nm.

Effect

Laser hair removal has the most significant and long-lasting hair removal effect. Although the speed of IPL hair removal is relatively slow, the feeling is milder and the pain is less obvious, suitable for people who are afraid of pain or have sensitive skin.

The situation in use and cost

Because the laser is monochromatic and powerful, you had better make laser hair removal at a beauty salon for safety and effectiveness. In this way, it usually takes around thousands of dollars, which depends on the clinic you choose. This cost is only part of total price, not including other related fees.

IPL adopts a broad spectrum of polychromatic light, which is less concentrated. Therefore, IPL machine is safer for use at home. IPL hair removal machines can cost around thousands of dollars, which depends on the brand and its functions.

IPL vs laser: which is better for hair removal?

	Laser	IPL
Technology	Single wavelength	Multiple wavelengths
Intensity	High intensity concentrated light	Lower intensity diffused light
Sessions Needed	4-6 sessions	6-12 sessions
Pain Level	More painful	Gentle, less painful
Treatment Areas	Small spots	Large areas
Usage	Professional treatments	At-home devices
Cost	Expensive	More affordable long-term
Skin Tones	Works best on light skin with dark hair	Safe for wider range of skin tones
Results	Permanent hair reduction	Temporary hair reduction

Let us compare 5 aspects to find out which is better for hair removal between Laser and IPL.

Laser hair removal only suits people with dark hair and light skin. While IPL hair removal is suitable for people with dark hair and so on.
You only need 4-6 sessions with laser hair removal to achieve the effect of hair removal and with IPL hair removal, you need 6-12 sessions.
With Laser hair removal, you may feel a little painful but you will feel gentle and painless when using IPL hair removal.
Laser hair removal works on small areas, such as the face and smaller areas while IPL works on large areas and the speed is much faster. With the new IPL hair removal system, you can remove the hair within 10-30 minutes.
Laser hair removal is usually used at the beauty salon and the total price is much more expensive than IPL hair removal devices in the long term. While the IPL machine is usually used at home. Once you buy it, you can use it for many years, which is cost-effective.

What to consider when buying IPL hair removal devices?

After looking at the comparison between laser hair removal and IPL hair removal above, you will find both of them have their own advantages and disadvantages. When choosing to buy which one, you need to take the skin type and hair color into consideration.

If you are sensitive and afraid of pain, IPL hair removal devices at home are your best choice. The gentle beam of light is safe and painless. In addition, with skin rejuvenation, your skin will turn out to look more smooth and delicate.

With this IPL method, JOVS Venus Pro II hair remover is considered as the best IPL hair removal. They have countless advantages as followed:

A female model holds JOVS venus pro ll handset in hand

It uses the sapphire skin-cooling system, made from full-screen ultra-thin sapphire, which can ensure painless treatment.
It has 6 modes for different areas of the body, each mode with 6 levels of intensity.
Furthermore, it can be seen as the combination of professional IPL machines, such as arms IPL hair removal, bikini hair removal and facial IPL hair removal.
The flexibility of the 330°rotating head makes hair removal easy.
To your amazing, you only need 7 minutes for full body hair removal.

After you read this article, I believe you will not be confused to make the best choice between Laser hair removal and IPL hair removal.