The best fake tan for pale skin should tick all the key boxes on the list of what makes a good formula generally (natural looking, easy to apply, lasts well, et cetera). But a good formula for pale skin also has to work well on a very light canvas, as any hint of orange will show very easily.
Because the key to a great bottle tan is not looking like it came from a bottle. The best self tan should look natural – as if you’ve just stepped off a yacht in the Balearic islands. According to leading tanning expert James Harknett, the best way to tan pale skin is to start slowly. “I would always advise starting with the best gradual tan if you have very pale skin,” he explains. “Gradual tans contain less DHA, which is the ingredient in your product that provides a sunless glow.”
It’s also important to be realistic: Harknett also notes that a shade your skin would never naturally achieve can look outdated, as well as not compliment your hair and eye colouring. To that end, we've tested several formulas to find those that truly work well on pale skin, sharing our reviews in this guide. From softly-softly gradual formulas to the best instant tans that require minimal commitment, these convincing formulas will leave even the palest complexions with a natural-looking healthy glow.
James Harknett is a tanning expert with over two decades of experience and has a spray tanning residency at the W London hotel.
The best fake tan for pale skin, reviewed by our beauty team
RRP: £37 | Type: Mousse
Tan Luxe is built on the ethos that tanning doesn’t need to be a messy, sheet-staining, sticky experience as the formula is clear and has a slightly sweet scent. A little goes a long way, and it doesn’t dry too quickly, which means there's plenty of time to make sure you have covered every little patch of skin. As there's no guide colour, however, you'll need to over-compensate with extra buffing (as with any guide-free formula).
This is an express mousse and we used it for between 30 minutes and one hour, finding 45 minutes to be the sweet spot for a noticeable, but not unnatural-looking tan on pale skin – and it genuinely lasts for a full week. A great option if you're nervous about tanning.
Reasons to buy: Easy to use, develops fast, won't stain sheets
Reasons to avoid: No guide colour
RRP: £19 | Type: Body serum
Our collagen starts to deplete from the age of 25, but this formula is enriched with a collagen-enhancing complex that aims to restore some of this lost firmness. There's also hyaluronic acid to help instantly plump and hydrate the skin. All this not only means your skin will look better, but your tan will stick around for longer, too.
In true St Tropez style this formula feels very luxe, with a serum-like texture that glides onto skin like silk. It doesn’t have a guide colour, but it does have a golden sheen that not only makes you feel like an extra in a gorgeous perfume advert, it also means you can easily see any areas you might have missed. Also worth nothing is that you do need to sleep in this tan and it’s not super deep, though you can re-apply it after 24 hours should you wish to deepen the colour.
Reasons to buy: Nourishes the skin, fades evenly
Reasons to avoid: No guide colour
RRP: £33 | Type: Instant fake tan
This dense, mousse-like cream is a bit like a physical filter for skin, blurring the look of things like thread veins, dry skin on legs, bruises and mottled skin. There are five shades to choose from, with Lighter-Light and Light probably the best options for paler complexions.
We have used this product for years and find the formula always applies smoothly and evenly with a mitt. It delivers a subtle hint of colour that's more about creating a flawless, perfected finish rather than a noticeable bronzed look. We love its smooth and uniform finish, which glosses over any faint bruises and freckles across the shins. What's more, for an instant formula it has almost shockingly good staying power. It never rubs off on our clothes – a real win – and doesn't streak (not even after our beauty editor got drenched on the school run).
Reasons to buy: Washes off easily
Reasons to avoid: Expensive for a wash-off formula, you might be after a longer-lasting tan
RRP: £20 | Type: Mousse
We talk a lot about skin tones when it comes to fake tan, but not very much about undertones – until now. Bondi Sands has developed a first-of-its-kind (and still affordable) tanning range centered around undertones as well as skin tone. There are four shades – Sapphire for a natural, cool tone, Emerald for a deep olive tone, Caramel for a warm, golden tone and Magenta for a rich, deep tone.
The guide colour takes a little getting used to as it has a blue, almost grey tinge that initially made our skin look quite pallid. There’s science at play here, though, as these tones are there to counteract the orange hues that those with pale complexions really want to avoid. We applied it with a mitt, which was a doddle, and showered it off after one hour. There is the option to leave it on for up to three hours for a deeper tan, but we didn't test this out. The formula takes around eight hours to fully develop into a healthy-looking glow and we are pleased to report there were no streaks or patches.
Reasons to buy: Natural finish, great for cool-toned skin
Reasons to avoid: Slightly sticky
RRP: £38 | Type: Lotion
This formula is silky, nourishing and, to us, much more like a moisturiser than fake tan. It’s so softening (there’s the shea butter and jojoba oil to thank for that) that it left our skin with a nice sheen and helped reduce itchiness, too. Our only gripe is that the pump only releases a teeny amount of product at a time, so it took quite a while to dispense enough to coat our entire bodies. It has a lovely, fresh apricot scent and dries quickly, so you don’t have to worry about feeling tacky post-application before getting into bed or going about your day.
This is the kind of product we like to call a "take-the-edge-off" tan. Pale skin is lovely, but it sometimes feels like our legs take on an almost luminous quality (especially post-winter) that doesn’t fill us with confidence for shorts season. This tan gives the skin a super subtle glow that replicates the look of spending an afternoon in the sunshine – taking the edge off the starkness.
Reasons to buy: Feels lovely on the skin, sustainable ingredients
Reasons to avoid: Pump isn't great
RRP: £8 | Type: Lotion
If you find traditional fake tans to be too high maintenance, a tanning moisturiser is for you. This tanner hydrates your skin whilst providing a golden glow and it only takes a matter of seconds to rub in. (Just don't forget to wash your hands after applying.)
Whilst other types of self-tanners tend to cling to dry spots and accentuate them, this light lotion-like tanner helps to nourish and hydrate whilst also providing a wash of bronze. The apricot oil-infused formula sinks into the skin quickly, so it's ideal for application at any time of day. Having said that, we typically apply this after showering or before going to bed so that, by the time we wake up, we're perfectly bronzed. As it's a white cream with no guide colour, it also won't stain your bed sheets once absorbed – and the affordable price tag is nothing to be sniffed at, either.
Reasons to buy: Lovely scent, non-streaky
Reasons to avoid: Not ideal for sensitive skin
RRP: £26 | Type: Foam
When testing we loved this fake tan's soft vanilla scent, which is quite sweet. The mousse comes out a little dirty-looking with a green tinge, but it blends to a subtle bronze as you slather it across your limbs. This green-grey pigment is what cancels out any orange tones so your tan looks more natural, which we can certainly attest to.
Medium is the lightest shade here, but it is suitable for pale complexions and we found it easy to customise simply by rinsing off the guide colour a little earlier (two hours for the faintest hint of colour, or overnight for a deeper glow). The effect was smooth, streak-free and even – it helped to gloss over some dodgy tan lines of summers past! Want to know more? Our full Coco & Eve tan review has all the details.
Reasons to buy: Fades easily, contains firming ingredients
Reasons to avoid: Sweet scent won't be for everyone.
RRP: £9.99 | Type: Mousse
Like some of the other pricier formulas on our list, this budget tan uses special pigments to neutralise orange, red, and sallow tones for a realistic-looking tan. The mousse has peach undertones to inject natural-looking warmth into pale skin.
We usually prefer a tan with a guide colour, which this has, so we can spot tell-tale gaps, stripes and patches. The initial smell reminded us of talc, which was fresh and pleasant. It did sour slightly as the tan developed into that classic biscuity aroma, but this faded after rinsing. The colour was refreshingly natural and not at all orange. It lasted well, too, probably owing to the moisturising additions – namely hyaluronic acid and vitamin B5.
Reasons to buy: Affordable, natural finish
Reasons to avoid: Fairly strong tan scent
RRP: £39 | Type: Cream
Wondering how to self tan your face for a natural-looking result? This is the world’s first barrier-repairing, gradual tanning facial moisturiser, packed with amino acids and lipids. The cream itself smells a bit like sun cream and its texture is rich, so it's probably best applied before bed. Our skin felt instantly plump and smooth to the touch and we saw a healthy glow creep in after about three hours.
As with all gradual tans, the depth of colour is in your hands. They say that the level of DHA in the cream (4.5% to be exact) is just the right amount to be used daily. However, we made the mistake of using our regular glycolic acid exfoliant between applications, which did remove the tan and make it look a little patchy – but this was easily fixed with another evening top-up of crème to even things out again. Overall, we appreciated the healthy, radiant glow this cream delivered.
Reasons to buy: Customisable, barrier repairing
Reasons to avoid: Can streak when used with certain actives
RRP: £19.95 | Type: Oil mist
This is a shake-to-mix tanning body oil. Hyaluronic acid, glycerin, squalane and a combination of seven nourishing oils lock moisture into the skin. In general, our tester's skin (legs in particular) can feel dry and itchy, but there was no sense of tightness with this mist. Our skin felt smooth and sated, and the tan lasted a good few days.
There are three shade levels in the range and, as it's a clear liquid mist with no guide colour, the application process can be a little messy. It's therefore best to do so in the shower or bath. After saturating the skin, you'll need to blend thoroughly with a mitt to ensure a streak-free finish. However, after showering, the result was pleasingly natural and made our skin tone look a lot more even.
Reasons to buy: Hydrating, long-lasting
Reasons to avoid: A little messy
RRP: £7.99 | Type: Mousse
This bronze whip has a beautiful coconut scent that does go a little way to disguise the slight fake tan-y background aroma. The mousse is tinted so you can see exactly where to buff and it melts into the skin so you get impressive coverage across your limbs.
Another major plus is that it dries quickly so you don't have to wait around for half an hour feeling sticky and tacky. If it's a subtle hint of colour you're after, hop in the shower after an hour. Otherwise, leave on for six hours and rinse for sunkissed skin. The only downside is after a few days we found that it started to fade in patches, but if you're familiar with how to remove fake tan then you'll know that it's nothing a good scrub or tan eraser won't fix, ready to start all over again.
Reasons to buy: Long lasting, smells like coconut
Reasons to avoid: Fades slightly unevenly
RRP: £4.19 | Type: Moisturiser
This facial tanner by Dove is by far the most affordable product we tried for this guide, plus it's perfect for pale skin due to its subtle results. Apply it at the end of your usual skincare routine instead of your usual moisturiser (before sunscreen during the day) to add a natural-looking glow to the face. It does take slightly longer to sink in than a traditional face moisturiser, but as you'll use it as the last or penultimate step of your regime this shouldn't be too much of an issue.
If you like a deep tan, this moisturiser probably won't be the best choice for you; it yields a subtler glow rather than a two-weeks-in-Mexico kind of look, but we like it for the every day. Streak-free and also hydrating, you won't feel the need for foundation after seeing the results.
Reasons to buy: Easy to use, good for acne-prone skin
Reasons to avoid: Quite subtle result
How we tested the best fake tan for pale skin
To refine a list of the very best fake tan for pale skin buys, we tried over 20 different formulas and drew on our experience of old favourites we have relied on for years. We applied each one to both our face and body and observed them for several days that followed to see how they faded over time. When deciding which tans were the best for fair complexions, we judged them based on the following factors.
- Ease of application: Whether you’re a tanning expert or a novice, you want your formula to be intuitive and simple to apply.
- Finish: There’s little more frustrating than waking up to a patchy, streaky tan. All the best fake tan for pale skin on this list delivered an even, convincing finish.
- How evenly they faded: We want our tan to deliver past day one, so we monitored how well the finish lasted over the course of a week.
- How long they lasted: Here today, gone tomorrow? The results of some tans are more short-lived than others.
- Scent: Good news – applying fake tan no longer has to involve a heavy, "Eau de Biscuit" fragrance. The latest formulas utilise innovative methods to reduce and mask the tell-take fake tan smell.
Once we were happy we’d put the current tan through its paces, we ran a bath, slathered on one of the best body exfoliators and moved on to the next with a nice clear canvas.
How to choose the best fake tan for pale skin
If you want to learn how to fake tan like a pro, particularly when you’re working with very pale skin, follow these expert tips to master the art of believable bronzing.
- Choose your formula carefully: "For paler skin tones, I recommend using a light, hydrating formula which you can build up over time," advises Jules Von Hep, professional tanner and the founder of Isle of Paradise. "Tanning waters and oil mists are the most hydrating tan possible. The trick is to apply liberally; your skin should be drenched after application, then blended with a mitt swept gently over the skin." This will also prevent the patchiness that may leave you asking, is fake tan bad for your skin?
- Go gradual: "If you are pale and looking for a natural, sun-kissed glow, avoid darker shades of tan with higher levels of DHA as this will add too much red pigment to the skin," says St.Tropez's Tanning & Skincare Expert Michaella Bolder. "I love using gradual tan for a really subtle glow on paler skin. If you apply tan every 3-4 days, by the time you get to the richest tone you’ve already begun to wash it off during showering. I like to then reapply around day three or four to help maintain a hydrated and consistent, gorgeous-looking tan."
- Consider your undertone: This can also inform your choice of fake tan. "The undertone of your skin is what you would see as your natural skin tone when you haven’t been in the sun for around six months," explains Bolder. "Paler skin types can often have a cool blue and sometimes a hint of red undertone. Olive skin tones may see more of a yellow or grey undertone that will take lightly to the sun. Darker skin tones can be a mix of blue, red, and yellow undertones." This goes for picking the best bronzer for fair skin and foundation, too.
- Put in the prep: "Paler skins can really catch the tan in dry areas," says Harrington. "Scrub and moisturise pre-tanning application. I always apply a balm or moisturiser on hands, elbows, knees, and feet to avoid the tan catching, even if I am using a gradual tan." (If the worst happens and you forget your barrier cream, read our beauty editor's guide to how to get fake tan off hands.)
Jules Von Hep is an experienced tanning expert and the founder of self tan brand Isle of Paradise. With more than 15 years of experience in the industry, he's tanned many a celebrity in his time.
Amanda Harrington is a makeup and body artist and the founder of at-home salon service InParlour. As well as her eponymous tanning brand, she is also known for creating The Bespoke Body Contouring Technique by Amanda Harrington®.
Michaella Bolder is a master facialist, as well as a tanning expert and brand ambassador for St Tropez.
How to apply fake tan: Tips for beginners
Once you've found a formula that both suits pale skin and works with your lifestyle in terms of ease of application and maintenance, it's time to apply. Follow these golden rules and tanning pale skin will be a breeze.
- Exfoliate beforehand: Fake tan can cling to dry skin, giving an uneven and patchy finish. By exfoliating beforehand, you're smoothing out the canvas for your fake tan – and doing so afterwards will scrub it off.
- Protect light hair: Lighter hair colours, like blonde, can easily be stained by fake tan, so it's important to protect these areas. "Keep your hair away from your face with a decent-sized towelling headband," says Harknett. "Protect your eyebrows, too, with a hint of Vaseline or barrier cream."
- Start slow: On this kind of complexion, it’s a good idea to start with a gradual, or controllable express tan, first to avoid going overboard. “Tanning is about logic,” says Von Hep. “The more tan you add to the skin, the deeper the end result will be. If you’re a first-time tanner, apply just one light layer to the skin and get used to the colour change you see after the tan has developed. If you want to go deeper next time, just add more during application."
- Use a clean mitt: Not only is a clean mitt is more hygienic, but you won't be sweeping any residual tan across your skin as well as fresh product when you apply it. And sweeping motions are key: keep smoothing away to ensure an even, streak-free finish.
- Don't try a new formula on a special day: When tanning ahead of a big event or special occasion, make sure your tan of choice is a tried-and-true formula. "Once you have found a product that you really like, and that suits both your skin type and your skin tone, then you can tan with more confidence," says Harknett.
Does fake tan work on very pale skin?
Fake tan absolutely works on very pale skin, but you'll probably want to be careful not to go overboard with the shade if your end goal is natural-looking results. “If you have pale skin and opt for a dark tan then it’s likely that your result will look unnatural," confirms Bolder. "Gradual tanning solutions are a good option as they enable you to tailor your tan result by applying one layer over a few consecutive days until you achieve your desired glow.”
The other issue when tanning very pale skin is that there’s less margin for error, as streaks and patches are more noticeable on a lighter skin tone. Therefore, “It’s really important to make sure you exfoliate thoroughly beforehand and sweep some oil-free moisturiser over drier areas like elbows, knees and ankles," says Harknett.
What fake tan is best for pale skin with pink undertones?
Your skin undertone is the overall hue of your skin and will fall into one of three categories – warm (golden or yellow) cool (pink, red, or blue), or neutral (a blend of both). Often, skin that’s very pale and that also has pink undertones probably wouldn’t naturally tan a deep, golden colour in the sun, which is worth keeping in mind when you’re choosing a faux glow formula. Colour-correcting formulas work to neutralise these tones for a more natural-looking result – brands like Isle of Paradise and Bondi Sands offer such formulas in green and blue.
-
32 dining room ideas for a stylish, welcoming spaceLooking for fresh and exciting ways to liven up your dining room interiors? We've got you covered
-
5 award-winning products and brands given special recognition by our panel of beauty expertsThese beauty brands and products have gone above and beyond, winning our special seal of approval
