How we score LED face masks

We review LED face masks from the brands' published product, safety, warranty and returns pages and their US prices, read on the date shown on each page (last on November 12, 2026). Every mask gets one score out of 10, and that score is the same on every page of the site.

The eight criteria

How each criterion is scored

Each criterion is turned into a score out of 10 by straight-line interpolation between the anchor points below, capped at both ends.

• Price: the dated US price compared with the median price of our list ($395). Ratio to the median: 0.6× → 10, 0.8× → 9, 1× → 7.5, 1.4× → 5, 2.2× → 3. We also show the cost per session everywhere: the price spread over two years at four sessions a week (416 sessions).
• FDA wording, quoted from the product page: "FDA-cleared" with the use named (for example "for the treatment of full face wrinkles") → 10; "FDA-cleared" alone → 8.5; "FDA-registered" or "listed" → 4. We don't judge the evidence behind a clearance; we score how precisely the brand states it.
• Kinds of light (red, near-infrared, blue, amber or yellow, green): 1 → 4, 2 → 7, 3 → 8.5, 4 → 9.5, 5 → 10. A mask without red light loses 2 points.
• Output disclosure: wavelengths in nanometers (4 points), an LED count (3) and an irradiance figure in mW/cm² (3). We don't score the size of the output number, which no one can check at home; we score how much the brand tells you.
• Session length (minutes per standard session): 3 min → 10, 6 min → 9, 10 min → 8, 12 min → 7.5, 20 min → 6, 30 min → 4.5. Shorter sessions are easier to keep up, and results depend on keeping them up.
• Fit and freedom: flexible silicone → 5, rigid shell → 3; battery in the mask → 5, battery controller on a cable → 4, mains cable → 1. The two are added (out of 10).
• Warranty (years): 1 → 4, 2 → 7.5, 3 → 9, 5 → 10.
• Return window (days): 0 → 1, 14 → 3, 30 → 6, 60 → 8.5, 100 → 10. Halved when only unopened devices can go back, because results take weeks and an unopened mask is no trial.

When a figure isn't published

A criterion the brand doesn't publish scores 2/10. We can't credit what isn't stated, and a mask should not win on silence. A mask with no published price, or fewer than 6 published criteria, gets no score at all.

From raw score to displayed score

The raw score is the weighted average of the eight criteria. Every mask we list is a serious, current option, so we show it on an editorial scale: displayed score = 7.5 + 0.85 × (raw score − 5.9), kept between 7.5 and 9.6. The order of the raw scores never changes. Labels: Excellent from 9.0, Very good from 8.5, Good from 8.0, Fair below 8.0.

Tie-break: two masks never share a score

Scores are shown with one decimal, so two masks can round to the same number. When that happens, the order comes from the formula first and then from a published tie-break:

1. the higher raw score (before rounding);
2. then the lower cost per session (price over 416 sessions);
3. then the longer warranty;
4. then alphabetical order.

The mask placed second then shows 0.1 less than the one above it, and so on down the list, so every displayed score is different and the order is still the formula's. Scores stay between 7.5 and 9.6. Right now this applies to the Omnilux Clear (formula 9.1, shown 9.0), the Omnilux Contour Face (formula 9.1, shown 8.9), the Omnilux Men (formula 9.1, shown 8.8), the Shark CryoGlow (formula 9.0, shown 8.7), the DRx SpectraLite FaceWare Pro (formula 8.9, shown 8.6), the TheraFace Mask Glo (formula 8.8, shown 8.5), the TheraFace Mask (formula 8.2, shown 8.1).

Rankings by need

Each ranking puts the same criteria in a different order of importance. The weights change the order of the list, never the score: each mask keeps its one overall score everywhere.

Where the data comes from

• Specs and prices come from the brand's official US product page and its warranty, returns and safety pages. Every review links its sources.
• Prices are the price you could pay on the date shown, in US dollars. When a brand shows a discount, we use the discounted price and say so.
• Irradiance, LED counts, FDA wording and study results are quoted from the brand, word for word where it matters. We make no medical claims of our own: for your skin, talk to your doctor or a dermatologist.
• We don't use user ratings or star averages from stores.

Current scores

Questions about the method? Write to [email protected].