Laser Hair Removal Prices: Why Is It So Expensive?
By Gr0 Core Team
Anyone who has ever worried about their personal appearance is probably familiar with how expensive everything in the beauty market always seems. It doesn’t matter if you’re shopping for makeup, getting your hair cut, styled, or colored, tanning, getting a tattoo, or anything in between. Chances are you’re going to be spending a lot of money. This can be incredibly frustrating, and you feel like you’re stuck navigating a never-ending cycle of marketing tactics designed to do nothing but waste your time and money.
Girl, we feel you, and so this article is dedicated to talking you through why people charge so much for laser hair removal, what your alternatives are, and whether or not hair removal is worth your time and money in the first place. Let’s dive in!
What Is Laser Hair Removal?
It’s completely understandable that before you decide on any new beauty routine, you would want to know exactly what you’re getting yourself into. We get that, and let’s take a few seconds to make sure you’re comfortable with the concept of laser hair removal before you decide to try it for yourself.
The first thing you need to understand about laser hair removal is that it isn’t an instant and one-time treatment. It’s a process that will take several appointments to see lasting progress, so don’t go into it expecting an overnight transformation and complete removal of unwanted body hair. For lasting hair removal, make sure that you schedule recurring appointments.
The science behind laser hair removal is pretty simple: laser hair removal utilizes a laser to target and kill hair follicles. The laser is an intense and focused beam of light that penetrates your skin and is absorbed by the melanin in your hair follicles, generating enough heat to destroy the pigmentation and break down the hair so that it can’t regrow in the future.
That being said, make sure you speak to a professional to determine whether your hair color and skin tone are compatible with the technology.
For laser hair removal to work, you have to have a contrast between your skin tone and your hair follicle so that the laser can differentiate between the melanin in your skin and the melanin in your hair. The best combination of hair color and skin tone is a lighter skin tone with darker hair. Laser hair removal will not be as effective on people with very light hair or very dark skin.
How Many Treatments Do You Need?
As mentioned above, laser hair removal is not a one-time appointment like a haircut or even a waxing. The process will take several visits to a professional in order for the hair follicle and the melanin to be worn down enough to make progress. The number of treatments that you’ll need is determined by a number of factors, including hair thickness, which area of your body is being treated, the length of your hair’s growth cycle, and a couple of other minor factors such as the color of your hair and the contrast with your skin tone.
Is Laser Hair Removal Safe?
Believe it or not, as intense as it sounds, laser hair removal is one of the cosmetic industry’s most trusted and researched procedures. As it is completely non-surgical and non-invasive, it is incredibly safe. The pulse method is low energy and does not leave any long-term side effects, and there is little to no pain other than mild topical discomfort.
Some of the most common side effects of laser hair removal include:
- Mild swelling around your hair follicles that will subside over a short period of time.
- Minor pigmentation changes, especially in people with darker skin tones. Almost always very temporary.
- Slight redness of the skin around the area that was affected by the laser
- Temporary topical irritation resulting in minor blistering, crusting, scarring, or other changes in skin texture.
- There appear to be no long-term health risks associated with the procedure of laser hair removal, so as long as you follow any guidelines given by the professional administering your laser hair removal treatments, you should be just fine! However, they may recommend testing a small patch of skin or talking to a dermatologist beforehand just to be sure.
So Why Is It So Expensive?
And now for the main question: we were talking about how overpriced the beauty industry is. Unfortunately, hair removal treatments tend to be no different. For the average cost of laser hair removal, you’ll have to look at which specific body part you would like treated, but here are some examples:
- Full Face: $250-$650
- Regular Bikini: $150-$500
- Back: $300-$800
- Abdomen: $150-$400
While those prices don’t seem exorbitant in and of themselves, keep in mind that those prices are per individual session, and you’ll probably have to book more than one session to ensure permanent removal. So, in short, you could be looking at thousands of dollars if you want to get your entire body done.
The reason for the steep pricing lies in the fact that most states in America require a pretty extensive licensing process before someone can charge for laser hair removal therapy or treatments. The process for that certification is lengthy and expensive, and the equipment itself is also expensive.
Are There Cost Effective Alternatives?
If you’re like most people and you don’t have a money tree growing in your backyard, chances are that you’re looking for a more affordable option for removing unwanted body hair. Luckily for you, there are alternatives available!
One of the most well-known alternatives to laser hair removal is Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) treatment. Here at KENZZI, we offer an IPL Laser Hair Removal Handset that removes hair with ease, with no razor burn or ingrown hairs from the comfort of your own home, and at a much lower price!
IPL therapy itself is slightly less effective than laser hair removal but has the same result if done over a larger number of treatments. So, for example, the KENZZI IPL device offers results in 8-12 treatments. While this may seem like a long time for the same results, keep in mind how much money you’re going to end up saving if you’re not doing full-body laser hair removal. The IPL treatment can also increase collagen production in the skin, leaving you glowing from the inside out!
In Summary
Now that you’re armed with all this information, you’re more confident in your understanding of what laser hair removal treatment is, why it’s so expensive, and whether or not it’s for you. Hopefully, by exploring alternatives, you feel more comfortable deciding on a beauty routine that really makes you feel as good as you look.
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