You’ve finally made the switch from shaving to waxing for a longer-lasting result—but now, it’s time to book your next appointment. And it's the question every new waxer wants to know. To keep your body totally smooth and hair free, how often should you get a Brazilian wax?
There's definitely a sweet spot when it comes to the time you should leave between waxes. You don’t want to go back too soon, but waiting too long can pose its own problems. You might even be thinking about getting rid of any regrowth with a quick shave or at-home laser hair removal—but are touch-ups really a good idea?
In order to answer all your questions, we checked in with professional estheticians, to learn the do’s and don’ts of keeping up with a Brazilian wax.
How often should you get a Brazilian wax?
A Brazilian wax is one of the best options if you want to remove pubic hair without shaving—but to get the best results over time, you’ll need to be patient. Estheticians recommend waiting between 4 to 6 weeks before going back for another Brazilian wax session, after your first.
If you’re new to Brazilians, “waxing every four to five weeks maintains a slow, regulated regrowth,” according to Liz Lugo, licensed esthetician and creator of Nova Wax (opens in new tab). “If you are consistent after six months to a year, you can wax every five to six weeks.” (We’ll get into why later on.)
The ideal timing will differ slightly based on each person’s hair type and growth rate. Factors like hormones and genetics can impact how quickly your hair grows back, for example. After a few sessions, you and your esthetician will get to know what waxing schedule works best for you, but between four-six weeks is a good estimation.
Why should you wait at least a month between waxes?
This four-to-six-week timeline isn’t just a random recommendation to get you booked in once every month or so. In fact, it’s intended to follow the hair’s growth cycle and strike at exactly the right moment.
In general, the trick to getting a long-lasting Brazilian (if you're wondering how long hair removal methods last, a wax is about somewhere in the middle compared to shaving and laser hair removal) is to wax at just the right time to ensure all the strands are completely removed at the root. Here’s why waiting at least four weeks works so well:
1. You’ll wax at the right time in your hair’s growth cycle
As Lugo explains, “We have a total of three hair cycles. You want to target the right cycle in order to create slow, sparse, and fine-textured regrowth.” The three stages are:
- Anagen: Active growth phase
- Catagen: Transitional phase
- Telogen: Resting phase
During the anagen stage, new strands form in each hair follicle and start getting longer. They’ll naturally stop at a certain point, which is why body hair doesn’t grow nearly as long as the hair on your head (thank goodness!).
After that initial growth, during the short-lived catagen phase, the hair is cut off from its supply source and it stops growing. Then, it enters the telogen phase, where it sort of hangs around for a while and eventually falls out. The hairs that come out in your hairbrush in the morning are fresh out of the telogen phase. A new strand will start coming up behind that one, and begin its own anagen phase.
When you get a Brazilian wax, you ideally want to target hairs that are still in the anagen or active growth phase. Your body hasn’t produced another new hair yet, so it’ll have to start all over again, meaning you won’t start seeing pesky stubble for a while.
Of course, some strands will be in one of the later stages. For any hair that’s removed during the telogen phase, a new strand will grow out of the same follicle faster. But if you’re consistent with your waxing schedule, eventually the majority of hairs will end up on the same cycle. This is why, as Liz mentions, you’ll be able to wait a little longer between waxes after keeping up with regular Brazilian wax sessions for at least six months to a year. The same is true with either a bikini vs Brazilian wax too, so if you get less hair off, you're also advised to have the treatment at least every six weeks.
2. You’ll let the hair get long enough to avoid breakage
“After two and a half weeks, your hair will start showing, but it is not yet long enough to be waxed again," according to Andrea Franco, licensed esthetician at Honey Waxing Florida (opens in new tab). As Liz Lugo explains though, you’ll want to wait before getting another Brazilian wax until “the hair is about the length of a grain of rice” or at least one-quarter inch long.
This is because, “coming in too soon for a wax can cause hair breakage. When the hair is not long enough, the wax has a difficult time adhering to short hair and they will break, which means not only are those hairs not being removed from the root but you will see regrowth much much sooner—within one to three days," Lugo revealed.
This is similar to what happens when you shave: each strand of hair is cut off right at the surface of the skin and grows out in just a few days, looking thicker and blunter. When strands break off during a Brazilian wax, this can give you those less-than-ideal results.
So, it’s safest to wait until your waxing professional has enough hair to actually work with.
3. You’ll encourage finer regrowth
“The more times you wax, the thinner your hair will grow back,” Franco says. A lot of women love Brazilian waxing because it leaves them with finer hairs instead of wiry strands—an obvious benefit of this treatment, and a big reason why waxing is absolutely one of the best options if you're wondering how to remove pubic hair without shaving.
But why does this happen? Well, now that you understand how the hair growth cycle works, you know that routine waxing pulls out hair at the roots, instead of cutting strands in half like shaving does.
When you do see regrowth after a Brazilian wax, the pieces that poke out will be just the tips of brand new strands. They’re much softer and finer, and sometimes lighter in color than the middle or bottom of a strand of hair—which is why it's such a good hair removal option for dark skin as darker skin types tend to have thicker, coarser hair. This won’t happen immediately, but once you get into a waxing routine, you’ll definitely notice the change.
After your first Brazilian wax, you’ll probably notice pesky hairs you want to shave off —but don’t do it! Just be patient and keep up with a professional waxing routine (and also be aware of how to remove wax from skin and clothes—just in case). Soon enough, touch-ups won’t be necessary. In the meantime, Liz says, ”The best thing you can do while you wait for your next wax is to exfoliate regularly, never pick or extract ingrown hairs, and don't shave!”
My Imperfect Life thanks Liz Lugo of Nova Wax (opens in new tab) and Andrea Franco of Honey Waxing Florida (opens in new tab) for their time and expertise.