How to Treat Sunburn: What to Do Right Now

What to do right now (the first 24 hours)

A sunburn keeps developing for several hours after you leave the sun, so act early. These steps — backed by dermatology guidance from the AAD, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic and NHS — ease the pain and help your skin recover.

1. Get out of the sun immediately. Move indoors or into full shade. Once skin is burnt, any extra UV makes it worse — even on a cloudy day. Don’t go back out uncovered.
2. Cool the skin — cool, not iced. Take a cool (not freezing) bath or shower, or lay a cool, damp cloth on the area for 10–15 minutes a few times a day. Avoid harsh soap. Never put ice or an ice pack directly on burnt skin — extreme cold can injure already-damaged tissue. Pat dry, don’t rub.
3. Moisturise while skin is still damp. Right after cooling, apply pure aloe vera gel or a gentle, fragrance-free moisturiser to trap water in the skin. Keep it refrigerated for extra relief and reapply often. Skip anything with alcohol, fragrance or “-caine” numbing agents.
4. Take an anti-inflammatory as soon as possible. An over-the-counter NSAID — ibuprofen or aspirin — taken early helps with pain, redness and swelling. Take it as soon as you realise you’re burnt and continue per the label. If you can’t take NSAIDs (stomach issues, certain medications, pregnancy), acetaminophen (paracetamol) eases pain but does less for inflammation. Don’t give aspirin to children or teens.
5. Drink extra water. A bad burn pulls fluid toward the skin’s surface and away from the rest of the body, so you can become dehydrated. Drink more water than usual for a day or two and watch for thirst, dizziness or dark urine.
6. For mild burns, consider 1% hydrocortisone cream. A thin layer of over-the-counter 1% hydrocortisone can calm redness and itch on small, mild areas. Don’t use it on broken skin, blisters or large areas, on a baby, or for more than a few days without advice.
7. Protect and leave it alone. Wear loose, soft clothing over the area, and if blisters form, don’t pop them. Keep the burnt skin out of the sun completely until it has healed.

What NOT to do

Plenty of popular “remedies” actually slow healing or raise the risk of infection. Skip these:

• Ice or ice packs directly on the skin — cold burn on top of a heat burn.
• Butter, mayonnaise, olive oil or other greasy foods on a fresh burn — they trap heat and offer no benefit. This is an old myth.
• Petroleum jelly (Vaseline) on a new burn — it seals heat in. (It can help later, once skin is dry or peeling.)
• Hot baths or showers, or harsh/scented soaps — heat and fragrance both irritate.
• Tight clothing or rough fabrics over the area — choose loose cotton.
• Makeup, self-tanner or scrubs on the burn until it has fully healed.
• Exfoliating or scrubbing — let dead skin shed on its own.
• Popping blisters or peeling skin — both protect the raw layer underneath and reduce infection risk.
• Benzocaine or lidocaine sprays/creams (“-caine” products) — they can irritate skin and, rarely, trigger allergic reactions; dermatologists generally advise against them for sunburn.
• Going back out in the sun — burnt skin needs full protection until it recovers.

Home remedies that actually work

A few low-cost remedies have real soothing value:

• Aloe vera — the standout. Pure gel cools, hydrates and calms inflammation. Refrigerate it and reapply through the day.
• Cool oatmeal or baking-soda bath — a lukewarm-to-cool bath with colloidal (finely ground) oatmeal, or a small amount of baking soda stirred in, can relieve itch and irritation over larger areas. Soak briefly, then pat dry and moisturise.
• Cool compresses — a damp cloth on small areas for a quick reset.
• Coconut oil — only after the burn has settled. Don’t apply oils to a fresh, hot burn. After about 24–48 hours, once the heat has gone and skin is starting to dry, a thin layer can help with flaking and moisture.

How long does a sunburn last?

A mild sunburn typically fades within 3–5 days; a more severe, blistering burn can take a week or longer and usually peels as it heals. For a full breakdown of what to expect each day, see how long a sunburn lasts: a day-by-day healing timeline.

Peeling & blisters

Peeling is your body shedding the damaged outer layer — it usually starts a few days in. Don’t pick or pull at it; moisturise and let it come off naturally. Full details in the sunburn peeling guide.

Blisters mean a deeper, second-degree burn. Leave them intact to protect the skin beneath and lower infection risk. Our sunburn blisters guide covers safe treatment and when blistering needs a doctor.

Sunburn vs sun poisoning: how to tell

“Sun poisoning” isn’t a clinical diagnosis — it’s a common term for a severe sunburn that comes with whole-body symptoms. The difference is local vs. systemic:

• Ordinary sunburn — red, hot, tender, sometimes swollen skin in the exposed areas. You feel sore, but otherwise well.
• “Sun poisoning” — the burn plus fever or chills, nausea, headache, dizziness, fatigue, or a spreading rash or hives. This points to a more serious reaction (severe burn, heat illness, or a sun-sensitivity rash) that may need medical attention.

If you have systemic symptoms alongside the burn, treat it as serious and read the next section.

When to see a doctor — or go to the ER

Most sunburns heal at home, but get medical care promptly if you notice any of the following:

• A fever above 102°F (39°C), or chills.
• Severe or widespread blistering, especially over a large area of the body.
• Swelling of the face or significant facial blistering.
• Signs of infection — increasing pain, warmth, pus, or red streaks spreading from a blister.
• Signs of dehydration or heat illness — intense thirst, dizziness, rapid pulse, fainting, confusion, nausea, or very little urine.
• A severe headache, extreme weakness, or you feel very unwell.
• Any significant sunburn in a baby under 1 year old — always call a doctor.

If someone is confused, faints, or seems severely dehydrated, treat it as an emergency.

Special cases

Babies and young children

Babies under 6 months should be kept out of direct sun entirely; any sunburn in a baby under 1 year needs a doctor. For older babies and children, use cool compresses, plenty of fluids and a gentle moisturiser, and avoid aspirin and “-caine” products. Children burn faster and dehydrate faster, so watch them closely.

Pregnancy

Cooling, aloe, hydration and rest are all safe. Avoid NSAIDs (ibuprofen, aspirin), particularly in the third trimester — acetaminophen (paracetamol) is generally the preferred option for pain, but confirm with your doctor or midwife.

The face

Facial skin is thin and sensitive. Use cool compresses and a light, fragrance-free moisturiser or aloe; avoid hydrocortisone near the eyes and avoid makeup until healed. Marked facial swelling or blistering deserves a doctor’s look.

Does a sunburn turn into a tan?

Honestly: it depends on your skin type, and even when it does, that colour isn’t a win. A peeling burn sometimes leaves a faint tan behind, but a tan and a burn are both your skin’s response to UV-induced DNA damage. There’s no way to safely convert a burn into a lasting tan, and trying to “push through” a burn only increases your long-term risk. Lighter skin types (see the Fitzpatrick scale) tend to burn and peel without much colour at all. The takeaway: aim never to burn — learn how to tan safely instead.

How to prevent the next one

The only sunburn you can fully treat is the one you avoid. Before your next time outdoors:

• Know your skin type. Take the skin type quiz — it sets how quickly you burn.
• Check the UV. Look up the live UV index before you go out; the higher it is, the faster you burn.
• Plan your safe time. Use the tanning time calculator to see how long you can stay out, and treat it as a hard ceiling.
• Choose and apply SPF properly. Use SPF 30+, apply enough (the SPF calculator shows how much), and reapply every 2 hours and after swimming. See how to choose and use SPF.
• Favour shade and gentler hours, wear a hat and UV-blocking clothing, and stop at the first sign of pink.