How Long Does a Spray Tan Last?

A typical Spray tan will last anywhere from 5-14 days depending on a number of factors that you can control to make sure you get the most out of your spray tanning experience. There isn't a simple answer to how long does a spray tan last, because every single person is unique and their skin will hold the tan for very different periods of time. While one person might lose their tan in 7 days no matter how hard they work to keep it another person could stay tan for two weeks without maintaining the spray tan at all. Instead of giving a simple answer I've decided to give some simple advice that anyone can use to increase how long their spray tan lasts. There are 3 main factors that affect how long your spray tan will last such as whether or not you exfoliate your skin before getting the spray tan, how often you shower after you've gotten the tan, and how well you moisturize your skin. If you do everything correctly your spray tan should look good for a couple weeks before you have to get another one.

Exfoliating Before a Spray Tan

Exfoliating your skin before getting a spray tan is one of the most important things you can do to lengthen the life of your tan. Exfoliating removes all the excess dry and dead skin cells so that your skin will absorb the tanning solution properly. When exfoliating you want to pay attention to the areas of your skin that tend to be the driest, like you elbows, knees, and heels. There are also certain products like a baiden mitten that are specifically designed to exfoliate your skin before you get a spray tan to make it last longer. Additionally, you should try to avoid exfoliating your skin after getting the spray tan because you would be removing skin cells that got spray tanned only to have your body replace them with cells that have your natural skin tone.

Showering After a Spray Tan

You should shower before you exfoliate to ensure that you remove the maximum amount of dead skin cells before you go tanning, but afterwards how long should you wait to shower after getting a spray tan? The answer is that you should wait 8 hours to make your tan last longer, but you could shower as early as 5 hours after your spray tanning session. The quicker you shower the less time the spray tan has to work into your skin cells and produce color, so if you're trying to increase how long your spray tan lasts you should shower after 8 hours. To make your spray tan last longer you should try to shower as little as possible, and when showering you will want to scrub your skin gently so that you don't rub off the spray tan.

Moisturizing Your Skin

If you have dry skin, your skin cells are falling off at a much faster rate. Normally it's okay to let this completely natural process continue, but if you are trying to maintain your spray tan for a longer period of time you want to keep your skin cells as long as possible. Proper moisturizing will keep your skin cells from falling off at a faster rate, which will in turn keep your spray tan looking good for a longer period of time. As you can see there is no simple answer to the question how long does a spray tan last, but with a few simple tricks you can make sure to get the most out of your spray tan and keep yourself looking tan for as long as possible.