What You Should Know About At-Home Foot Peel Masks and Which to Try

If you hate professional pedicures- or are still nervous about being back in your favorite nail salon– but can’t stand your split heels and dry skin (plus they’re probably ruining your socks and tights), it’s time to treat yourself to a foot peel. These leave-on treatments come with single-use plastic booties that help adhere to your feet while you lay back with a magazine and wait for the magic to happen.

Much too harsh for delicate skin like your face, foot peels have to be concentrated to penetrate deep beneath the dense dead skin layers on the bottom of your feet. Follow the directions about how long to leave them on very carefully; you don’t want to leave them on longer than directed. Then, follow up with regular soaks in warm water, again as directed.

Best Overall Foot Peeling Mask: Baby Foot – Original Exfoliant Foot Peel

After a few days, the skin will start sloughing off in sheets; do not pull it off. Everyone has had that experience with chapped lips, right? It’s just as bad if you try and peel the skin off your feet. Wait for it to happen naturally, and you’ll avoid discomfort.

Editor’s tip: Using a new pair of manicure scissors, you may carefully trim off any particularly long sheets of dead and peeling skin. Do so with caution and be careful not to trim too much. 

Chemical peels come in a wide range of formulations. From lactic acid-based peels like this one by K-Beauty brand TONYMOLY (they also make amazing face masks) to cult-favorite brand Babyfoot. Babyfoot leans on the acids found in grapefruit and lemons, plus Salicylic acid, a BHA, to help cut through the layers of dead skin and start your rejuvenation from the inside out.

You may want a more intense treatment, like a peel with Alpha Hydroxy Acid, if you’ve got deeply callused and ridged heels. Still, if you’ve got naturally softer skin and just want to pamper yourself with some deep moisturizing and hydration, coconut oil foot masks are gentle but still effective.

You can shed built-up damage and uneven texture with a single treatment and shouldn’t use most foot peels more than once a month. Some users report that soft, new skin lasts as long as three months without new treatments, and you can extend the time between treatments by using intense moisturizers and sleeping in socks. If you already use chemical peels or Salicylic acid concentrates like these from The Ordinary, you can use these as foot exfoliators too! Since they are designed for face use, they will be a gentler option. They won’t come with those little plastic booties, though, so some DIY skills will have to be put to use.

It’s important to remember that if you’re diabetic or have open wounds on your feet, you shouldn’t use chemical peels.