How to Get Rid of Razor Burn

Shaved this morning and now your neck's red, hot and stinging like you went at it with sandpaper. Yep. That's razor burn.

Short answer? Stop shaving that patch, cool it down, keep your hands off it and put something soothing on. Leave it alone and mild razor burn usually calms down within a few days.

That's the quick fix. Below is why it happened, and how to stop it turning into a weekly thing. Because if you're getting it every time you shave, something in the routine is off, and it's normally fixable.

What Is Razor Burn?

Irritation, basically. A blade's been dragged across your skin with more friction than it can handle and now it's letting you know.

You'll get redness. A hot, stingy feeling. Itching, sometimes. On a bad day a little scatter of red spots as well. And it turns up fast, often before you've even finished getting dressed, which is the easiest way to tell it apart from bumps that show up a day or two later.

It isn't an ingrown hair either. We'll get to the difference.

How to Get Rid of Razor Burn Fast

Nothing undoes it in ten minutes. Anyone selling you that is having you on. What you can do is calm it down and stop making it worse, and honestly that's most of the job.

1. Stop shaving the area. Obvious, we know. Plenty of blokes still go straight back over it next morning out of habit.
2. Cool it down. Cool water, or a clean flannel run under the cold tap and held on for a few minutes.
3. Hands off. No scratching. No picking. No prodding it in the mirror every half hour to see if it's gone yet.
4. Balm, not a splash. Our Aftershave Balm was made for exactly this moment. Witch hazel and chamomile go after the redness and irritation, aloe vera puts moisture back, and it sinks in without leaving you shiny.
5. Give it time. Less red isn't the same as healed. Wait till it actually feels normal before the razor comes back out.

How Long Does Razor Burn Last?

Mild razor burn usually settles in a few days. Sometimes less.

How long yours hangs about comes down to how wound up the skin is, and what you do next. Shave over it every morning and it can drag on for a week or more, because each shave restarts the clock.

If it's getting worse rather than better after a few days, jump to the pharmacist and GP bit further down.

What Should You Avoid If You Have Razor Burn?

Most of what keeps razor burn going is stuff people do to it afterwards. We've all been guilty of at least one of these.

Shaving over it is top of the list. Always will be. Then there's the alcohol-heavy aftershave splash. People think the sting means it's working. It doesn't. That's your skin complaining louder.

Scrubs and exfoliators can wait till things calm down. Really hot water aimed at your face isn't doing you any favours either, so go lukewarm or cool while it's sore. And a tight collar rubbing on it all day? Avoid if you can. More on that below.

Razor Burn vs Razor Bumps vs Ingrown Hairs

Three different problems. People lump them in together all the time.

Bumps rather than burn? Our guide on how to prevent ingrown hairs after shaving covers that side properly.

What Causes Razor Burn?

Friction, mostly. Anything that makes the blade drag when it should glide.

Shaving dry, or with a thin smear of foam that's gone by the second stroke. A blade that should've been binned a fortnight ago. Leaning on the razor. Going over the same patch four times because one hair escaped. Doing the whole thing in ninety seconds because you're late. Any one of those can do it, and most of us manage two or three on a bad morning.

Tough, dense stubble makes it worse, because the blade has more to fight through. That's the problem this brand was started to sort out, so we've got a fair bit of sympathy here. Sensitive skin gets it more easily too. So does anywhere the skin moves and folds. Which brings us to the neck.

Why Do I Get Razor Burn on My Neck?

If razor burn has a favourite spot, it's the neck.

Some of that's down to the shave. Neck hair grows in every direction going, so it's easy to end up shaving against it without realising. The bit people forget is what happens after.

Your shirt collar. Rubbing freshly shaved, already irritated skin for eight hours straight. Throw in a tie, a hi-vis or a winter scarf and that skin never gets a minute off. That's often why your face has settled by lunch and your neck's still angry at teatime.

What helps:

• Balm on the neck straight after shaving. Not just the face.
• Give it a couple of minutes to sink in before the shirt goes on.
• Big day tomorrow? Shave the neck the night before, so it's had time to settle by morning.

What About Razor Burn From an Electric Shaver?

It happens. Fewer people expect it, which is probably why it catches them out.

Pressing the head hard into your skin, going round and round the same spot, or shaving with a worn foil or blades will all rub skin raw, electric or not. Light pressure, fewer goes over each patch, and keep the head clean.

The fix afterwards is the same as for a wet shave. Cool it, leave it alone, balm on. Our balm's fine after electric shaving as well.

How to Stop Razor Burn Coming Back

Treating it is fine. Not getting it in the first place is better, and the answer is less friction.

Get a few drops of our Pre-Shave Oil onto damp skin first. It leaves a slick layer under the lather, so the blade has something to ride on. Then a proper coat of Classic or Deluxe Shaving Cream. Use a shaving brush if you've got one, because it spreads the lather more evenly than your fingers do. Light pressure. Balm after. Every shave, not just the ones that have already gone wrong.

On the days in between, a light moisturiser stops skin going tight and dry. Our Cooling Moisturiser does that without the grease.

Want the full technique, step by step? It's all in our beginner's guide to wet shaving, plus the ingrown hairs guide.

When to Speak to a Pharmacist or GP

Most razor burn is just annoying. Some of it isn't, and it's worth knowing which is which.

Get it looked at if it's spreading, hot and swollen, weeping or filling with pus, properly painful, or not improving after about a week. Same if it keeps coming back no matter how careful you're being. A pharmacist's a good first stop, and they'll tell you if it needs more than that.

Razor Burn FAQs