7 best fake tan removers for fixing fiascos and priming skin

Best: Overall

Rating: 9/10

Out of all the tan removers we tried, Skinny Tan’s miracle eraser was the best multi-purpose product that not only helped remove tan but also worked to prime our skin for a fresh layer. While the scrub texture feels just like other body scrubs at first, the formula contains a combination of manual and chemical exfoliants (pumice and salicylic acid) that help buff away tan, as well as moisturising ingredients (glycerin and urea) that work to soften and smoothe skin.

Simply rub the jelly-like product onto dry skin and leave for five-minutes before rinsing off in the shower. The scrub texture of Skinny Tan’s formula has added manual exfoliating benefits that effectively removed a lot of our tan on initial application before the chemical exfoliants even got to work. While we still had to buff away some areas of stubborn tan after rinsing, the time doing so was significantly reduced and our skin was left feeling smooth, clean and soft – ready for a new layer of tan.

Best: Water mist

Rating: 7/10

Scoring top points for ease of application, Isle of Paradise’s magic self-tan eraser comes in water mist form; simply spritz over your body, lather up and leave for five minutes before rinsing off in the shower. The micellar water base is teamed with the star ingredient of glycolic acid that works to exfoliate your skin and remove tan. When we showered off this product, we found that although some of our tan still remained, it was faint enough to be buffed relatively easily with a mitt. Best suited for light layers of product, or for reducing your time spent manually exfoliating, we wouldn’t recommend Isle of Paradise’s eraser for deeper tans. We did, however, love the zingy peppermint and eucalyptus fragrance.

Best: Mousse eraser

Rating: 8/10

With Bondi Sands being a firm favourite in our tanning arsenal, we were keen to try the brand’s eraser mousse – and it didn’t disappoint. Boasting the same foam consistency as its fake tan products, apply the product liberally on your skin and leave for five minutes before showering. We found it yielded the best results when left on for 10 minutes and while stubborn areas like knees, elbows and inner thighs required more attention, most of our tan was lifted away when rubbing off the product with an exfoliating mitt in the shower. The added nourishing ingredient of aloe also worked to help soften skin, leaving a smooth base for fresh tan. For under £15, we think the foam offers great value-for-money too, as a little goes a long way.

Best: For quick fixes

Rating: 8/10

Best suited to quickly rectifying fake tan fiascos, Tan-Luxe’s water-based remover is designed for both body and face – perfect for when you’ve got a bit carried away with the gradual face tanner (we’ve all been there). The liquid eraser is applied by spritzing directly on the target area, before rubbing in circular motions, leaving on for five minutes and wiping or rinsing clean. Compared to full-body removal, we found this was most effective for removing streaky or patchy areas of tan – particularly on our hands – after initial application, without any need to jump in the shower; we simply spritzed on the problem area and wiped clean with a damp cotton pad. A great product to have on hand to erase tanning mistakes quickly and efficiently.

Best: For sensitive skin

Rating: 7/10

Containing cotton extract and probiotics, this tanning heavyweight has concocted a remover that’s especially good for sensitive skin and we found that our skin wasn’t left as red as it was with other eraser products. Working similarly to the Bondi Sands bottle, St Tropez’s remover comes in foam form; simply lather it up on dry skin, buff any stubborn areas with an exfoliator mitt and leave for five minutes before showering off. While skin was left soft and smooth, it didn’t however have the removal effectiveness we’d hoped for from such a big-name in the tanning world and we found a lot of manual exfoliating was still needed to get the desired results.

Best: Priming remover

Rating: 8/10

Made with added nourishing ingredients, Bali Body’s fake tan remover doubles up as a great primer for skin before applying fresh layer. Containing the all-important glycolic acid for exfoliating skin, the product is also packed with enriching components in the form of aloe vera and rose extract. The foam is applied by rubbing it onto dry skin and leaving for up to 10 minutes before rinsing off. While it didn’t instantly remove all our tan, we found it soon lifted away after some manual buffing, resulting in our skin feeling soft and smooth. This fresh base for our new layer of tan helped to prevent patchiness and dryness, effectively priming and cleansing our skin.

Best: Budget buy

Rating: 7/10

Great for removing full-body layers of light tan or as a primer for a fresh layer, SoSu’s eraser product is a no-nonsense mousse. Application is simple; apply and leave on dry skin for around 10 minutes before using your exfoliating mitt to buff the product further on your skin, then rinse the excess off in the shower. Though the product had little effect by itself when attempting to remove darker stubborn tan, when we tried it on a much lighter week-old layer, most of the product slipped off after the initial cleansing and buffing.