Find your
skin type
The scale every clinic should be using on you, explained
Before any light-based treatment, a clinic should record your Fitzpatrick skin type. If nobody has ever asked you these questions, that is worth noticing.
This article is written in two parts. Part one is the plain-English version. Part two goes into the detail, for anyone who wants it.
Start here
What it is
The Fitzpatrick scale is a six-point classification of how your skin responds to sun. It is not about ethnicity and it is not a judgement about your coloring. It is a practical measure of how much pigment your skin holds and how it reacts, and it determines the settings used on you.
The six types
I — Very fair. Always burns, never tans. Often red or blonde hair, freckles.
II — Fair. Burns easily, tans minimally.
III — Light to medium. Sometimes burns, tans gradually.
IV — Olive or light brown. Rarely burns, tans easily.
V — Brown. Very rarely burns, tans readily and deeply.
VI — Deeply pigmented brown to black. Never burns.
How to place yourself
Think about an unprotected hour in strong summer sun with no sunscreen. Do you go red and sore, go pink then brown, or simply go browner? Then consider your natural, untanned skin, on the inside of your upper arm rather than your face. Between those two answers you will land close to your type. We confirm it properly at your consultation.
Why we ask anyway
Because it changes what we do. Types I and II often need less energy than people expect, because fair skin with dark hair gives the laser an easy target. Types V and VI need a longer pulse and a more conservative build-up. Getting this wrong is how people are hurt, and getting it right is most of the job.
The technical detail
What the scale does and does not capture
Fitzpatrick was developed in 1975 to predict response to UV phototherapy, not to classify people, and it has known limitations: it was designed around lighter skin and compresses a great deal of diversity into types V and VI. It also captures constitutive pigment poorly in someone who is currently tanned. It remains the working standard because it is simple and it correlates usefully with risk, but a careful practitioner treats it as a starting point and then looks at the actual skin in front of them.
Constitutive versus facultative pigment
Constitutive pigment is the color your skin is genetically, assessed on sun-protected areas like the inner upper arm. Facultative pigment is what UV has added on top. The second changes with the seasons and it is why a client who was treated comfortably in February may need different settings in August. We reassess every visit rather than reusing the settings on file.
Other factors we record
History of keloid or hypertrophic scarring. Any previous pigmentary change after a procedure or an injury. Melasma. Current medication, particularly photosensitising drugs and isotretinoin within six months. Recent sun exposure and self-tanner. Pregnancy. Each of these changes either the settings, the timing or whether we treat at all today.
What a good consultation actually covers
Skin type, hair color and coarseness, the area, your medical and medication history, what you have tried before and how your skin responded, realistic session counts, the total cost of the course rather than one session, and what happens if it does not go to plan. If a consultation skips most of that and goes straight to a package price, that tells you something.
Good to know
Nobody has ever asked me this. Is that bad?
It is not a good sign. Recording skin type before light-based treatment is basic practice, and it is the foundation for every setting used on you.
My face and body are different shades. Which counts?
We assess each area we treat. The face is usually more sun-exposed than the body, so settings often differ between them on the same person.
Does my type change?
Your constitutive type does not. What UV adds on top does, seasonally, which is why we check at every visit.
Thirty minutes, no pressure
We look at your skin properly
Your history, your concerns, what you have already tried and what your routine looks like now.
We tell you the truth
What will help, what will not, and what you may not need at all. If something else suits you better, we will say so.
You leave with a plan
Written, with clear pricing and no pressure. Whether you book is entirely up to you.
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How laser hair removal actually works
Why it takes six sessions, and what is really happening under the skin
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Everything to do in the two weeks either side, in one place