Red Light Therapy for Hair Loss: Does It Work?

If you’ve noticed thinning hair, you may have spent time looking into options for preventing further hair loss and stimulating hair growth.

One remedy that’s attracted a lot of headlines recently is red light therapy for hair loss. 

This non-medication treatment involves exposing your scalp and hair follicles to red light to increase your hair count and promote thicker, healthier hair.

Light therapy definitely shows some degree of promise, and there’s real science to support some of its benefits. But it’s not yet clear if the red light devices you’ve seen on Instagram and TikTok are effective for treating female hair loss.

Ahead, we explain what red light therapy for hair growth is, how it works, and more evidence-based options for treating hair loss that you could use alongside, or instead of, red light therapy.

Red light therapy is a term used to refer to low-level light therapy or low-level laser therapy (LLLT). You might have seen it used in skincare, but it can be useful for your hair, too.

The therapy involves exposing your scalp to bright light, typically from red and infrared laser light. Wavelengths of light are usually in the range of 650 to 1200 nanometers (nm). 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved red light therapy devices as a treatment for male and female pattern hair loss. 

Devices include:

• Helmets 

• Hats 

• Combs

• Headbands 

Treatments vary, but you might do a red light therapy treatment for 15 to 20 minutes, three times a week, for six months. 

It’s not entirely clear how red light therapy works — kinda spooky, we know.

That said, there are some hypotheses. It’s thought that it promotes hair growth by: 

• Encouraging hair follicles in the telogen phase (the resting phase) of the hair cycle to re-enter the anagen phase (the growing phase)

• Increasing how long hair follicles stay in the anagen phase 

• Increasing the rate of proliferation in active anagen hair follicles (or how much your hair grows while in the anagen phase) 

• Preventing hair follicles from entering the catagen phase (the transition phase) prematurely 

Red light therapy for hair growth may also happen due a process called photobiomodulation, which might stimulate tissue regeneration and repair at the cellular level.

Red light therapy hair loss devices come with all kinds of claims, but can you trust them?

Right now, when it comes to light therapy as a medical treatment for hair loss, the answer is: it depends.

Here’s what we mean.

Several forms of hair loss can affect women. One of the most common is pattern hair loss, or androgenic alopecia, a type of hair loss that occurs when your hair follicles slowly miniaturize and stop producing new hairs due to exposure to androgen hormones.

In men, this form of hair loss causes the classic receding hairline and horseshoe-like pattern of hair loss that many guys first notice in their 20s, 30s, or 40s.

In women, it can cause a different pattern of hair loss, with diffuse thinning around your part line being a common symptom.

Several studies have looked into the effectiveness of light therapy treatment for this type of hair loss, with studies involving both men and women who display patterns of hair loss.

The Science Behind Red Light Therapy for Hair Loss 

In one study published in the journal Medicine in 2020, researchers looked at the effects of light treatment on men and women with hair loss due to androgenic alopecia. 

Sixty people with hair thinning were divided into two groups. One group used a 655nm red light helmet-type device and the other used a sham (placebo) device.

After 16 weeks of treatment, the participants who used the 655-nm red light hair growth treatment saw: 

• An increase in hair density. Hair density increased by 41.9 hairs per square centimeter, compared to just 0.72 hairs per square centimeter in the control group.

• An increase in hair thickness. Hair thickness increased by 7.5 micrometers (μm), compared to the control group that saw a decrease in hair thickness of 15.03μm.

In other words, the 655-nm red light device was significantly more effective at producing an increase in hair growth than the placebo treatment.

More good news? Participants didn’t report any side effects from using the red light therapy device.

Research Is Mixed — And We Need More of It  

Other research has produced similar findings, but experts have noted that the quality of the scientific evidence for light therapy for hair growth is a bit unsatisfactory.

For example, a scientific review published in the Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery in 2021 looked into 15 studies on red light therapy for hair loss. 

It noted that numerous studies have shown that light therapy “stimulated hair growth in both men and women” and that randomized trials produced statistically significant results.

Put simply, studies that compared light therapy with no treatment or a sham treatment showed a real increase in hair growth, suggesting that the technology does work.

The experts noted that LLLT represents a “non-invasive, safe, and potentially effective treatment option” for people with hair loss due to androgenic alopecia, especially those who may not respond to other forms of therapy for hair regrowth. 

However, they also noted that the overall quality of evidence for red light therapy is still low and that more controlled, large-scale studies are needed to understand how effective it could be as a treatment for improving human hair growth.

The Final Verdict 

The TL;DR? The research is promising, and there are real signs that red light therapy devices can work. However, we don’t yet have the highest-quality evidence, nor do we know exactly how these devices compare to existing treatments for hair loss.

All of this is important, considering many laser devices and treatment sessions can cost several hundred dollars. 

While they might work, there’s no guarantee they’ll stop your hair loss or produce hair growth comparable to what you might be able to achieve with medication. 

There are a few benefits of using red light for hair growth, including:  

• It may be effective for you if other hair loss treatments haven’t worked or you can’t tolerate other treatments 

• It may be even more effective when combined with minoxidil compared to either treatment alone 

• It doesn’t seem to come with serious side effects 

• It’s a relatively non-invasive treatment, especially compared to a hair transplant 

• Devices are easy to use at home

• It could help reduce healing time after a hair transplant and increase graft survival 

There are also a few drawbacks of red light therapy, including: 

• Devices can be expensive, with some costing several thousand dollars

• It’s not guaranteed to work — research is promising, but further studies are needed 

• Mild side effects are sometimes reported like dry skin, itchiness, redness, irritation, or headaches

Currently, the most widely used option for the treatment of hair loss in women is the medication minoxidil.

Available over the counter, minoxidil is a topical liquid, foam, or spray you can apply directly to the areas of your scalp affected by hair loss. 

Experts believe it promotes growth by moving your hair follicles into an active growth state. It may also stimulate blood flow to your scalp, providing your hair follicles with a stronger supply of nutrients for healthy growth. 

Clinical studies show real improvements from minoxidil. 

In one study, almost 400 women with female pattern hair loss used 2% topical minoxidil, 5% topical minoxidil, or a placebo for 48 weeks. 

Both minoxidil solutions were more effective than the placebo at increasing hair count and growth, and they didn’t come with any evidence of systemic side effects. Those who used the 5% minoxidil saw more benefits by the end of the experiment.  

We offer minoxidil solution and minoxidil foam for women online, allowing you to easily add this hair loss medication to your hair care routine.

Beyond minoxidil, you have other options to treat hair loss and promote hair growth.

These treatments include:

• Spironolactone. This medication works by reducing the effects of androgen hormones that can damage human scalp hair follicles. It’s used off-label as a hair loss treatment for women who’ve yet to go through menopause. Your healthcare provider may prescribe spironolactone if you have hormonal hair loss that doesn’t improve with minoxidil.

• Topical finasteride. This medication works by blocking DHT (dihydrotestosterone), the hormone that harms your hair follicles and causes pattern hair loss. It’s primarily used by men but might be prescribed off-label to slow the rate of hair loss and promote hair growth in women. 

FYI: Finasteride isn’t safe for use before menopause and shouldn’t be used if you plan to become pregnant or breastfeed. Read more in our finasteride for women safety guide. 

We offer a topical finasteride and minoxidil hair growth spray for postmenopausal women affected by female pattern hair loss.

In addition to medication, hair loss can be treated through surgery. If you have severe hair loss, hair transplant surgery can add volume to your hair by moving follicles from the back and sides of your scalp to the thinning area around your part line.

Our full guide to hair transplants for women goes into more detail about this type of procedure, from its potential benefits to its costs, risks, and more.

You can also try a volumizing shampoo and conditioner and hair care supplements to give your hair health a boost.

So, red light therapy for hair loss — yay or nay? It seems best to put it in the “maybe” category right now. It’s supported by actual science and might help to bring back lost hairs, but we can’t be 100 percent sure yet.

Here’s what to keep in mind before you rush out to buy a device: 

• Red light therapy looks promising. Studies show red light therapy may increase hair growth and hair thickness. It could be an effective treatment for female pattern hair loss that doesn’t come with many side effects. 

• More research is needed. Red light therapy isn’t as well researched as other hair loss treatments, though, and there aren’t any real standards for red light devices, meaning what you see on Instagram might not match reality. 

• Other treatment options are available. Alongside, or instead of, red light therapy, you could look into minoxidil, spironolactone, or finasteride — all of which are backed by research as hair loss treatments.

If you’re starting to notice hair thinning, extra shedding, or just changes in your hair that concern you, the best thing to do is to talk to a healthcare provider.

You can do this by scheduling an appointment with your primary care provider or taking part in a hair loss consultation online using our telehealth platform. 

If appropriate, you may receive a prescription for medication to help you maintain your hair and promote fresh hair growth.

Interested in learning more before you get started? Our guide to the best treatments for female hair loss goes into greater detail about your treatment options, including treatments for specific types of hair loss in women to lifestyle changes and healthy habits to explore.