Ingrown hairs in the intimate area: what helps and how to prevent them

Ingrown hairs curl back into the skin after shaving or stay trapped beneath it. This often happens in the intimate area because the hairs are thick and curly. Give the area a shaving break, warm compresses and gentle care. Don't squeeze or prick anything. Exfoliating before shaving, shaving in the direction of hair growth and aftercare prevent them.

A small red bump on your bikini line with a dark dot in the middle is often what an ingrown hair looks like. The area itches or feels sore when you sit. Usually it is harmless and clears up on its own if you leave the skin alone.

What are ingrown hairs?

Normally a hair grows out of the hair follicle and up through the skin. With an ingrown hair, the tip stays trapped under the top layer of skin. Or the hair curls back once it has come out and grows sideways into the skin. The skin reacts as it would to a foreign body and becomes inflamed. The medical term for this is pseudofolliculitis.

Typical signs are:

• a small red pimple or bump, often with a dark dot in the middle
• a hair you can see as a loop or line under the skin
• itching or pain when you press on the area
• sometimes a yellowish head of pus

Razor bumps and ingrown hairs often appear together. Razor bumps are irritated hair roots and usually develop one to two days after shaving. An ingrown hair keeps growing under the skin. You can read what helps with razor bumps in our guide Razor bumps in the intimate area.

Why do hairs become ingrown in the intimate area?

In the intimate area, several reasons come together:

• Pubic hair is thicker and curlier than the hair on your legs. Curly hairs bend back towards the skin more easily.
• If you shave against the grain, the blade cuts the hair below skin level. The sharply cut end then grows into the skin more easily.
• A blunt blade pulls at the hair and irritates the hair follicle.
• Dead skin flakes block the opening of the hair follicle. The regrowing hair cannot find its way out.
• Tight knickers and trousers rub against freshly shaved skin and push the little hairs back.
• Hairs also become ingrown after waxing, epilating and plucking. The new hair first has to find its way back through the skin.

You will find a scrub, shaving gel and care oil for intimate shaving in our Glow Below routine.

What helps with ingrown hairs in the bikini area?

Above all, an ingrown hair needs rest and warmth. These steps help:

1. Shaving break: Don't shave the area until the redness and the bump have gone down. Every new shave irritates the skin again.
2. Warm compress: Place a warm, clean flannel on the area for a few minutes several times a day. The warmth softens the skin. This makes it easier for the hair to reach the surface.
3. No squeezing: Don't squeeze the bump and don't prick it open with a needle. Squeezing and pricking push bacteria deeper into the skin. Scars or dark marks are then more likely to remain.
4. Gentle cleansing: Wash the area with lukewarm water and a mild wash gel for the intimate area. Soap dries out the skin.
5. Care: An alcohol-free care oil keeps the skin supple. The Glow Below Oil gives your external intimate area intensive moisture and softens regrowing hairs.
6. Loose clothing: Wear cotton underwear and loose trousers until the area has calmed down.

You can read how to wash your intimate area gently in our guide Washing your intimate area.

Only exfoliate again once the redness has gone. Undiluted tea tree oil, products containing alcohol and spot creams for the face irritate the sensitive skin in the intimate area even more.

Removing an ingrown hair: what can you safely do yourself?

The safest option is to leave the hair alone. With a shaving break and warmth, it usually reaches the surface on its own and grows out. Don't pluck it out, even if you can already see it. Otherwise the next hair is more likely to grow in at the same spot.

You shouldn't do these things yourself:

• dig for the hair in your skin with a needle, tweezers or your fingernails
• squeeze the bump
• open the skin with a blade or scissors

If the hair lies deep, pus collects or the hair hasn't come out after two weeks, see a dermatologist. The dermatologist frees the hair with sterile instruments and treats the inflammation if needed.

What is the lump from an ingrown hair in the pubic area?

Sometimes a firm lump forms under the skin. This is inflamed tissue around the hair. The lump feels hard and is sore when you sit or walk. If you leave the area alone, it usually gets smaller bit by bit. This sometimes takes a few weeks.

Once it has healed, a dark mark often remains. It fades over time, sometimes only after a few months.

Not every lump in the intimate area is an ingrown hair. A boil is a pus-filled infection of the hair follicle. It sits deeper and hurts a lot more. If painful lumps in the groin and intimate area keep coming back, acne inversa is sometimes the cause. This is a chronic inflammation of the hair roots. Both need medical treatment.

How do you prevent ingrown hairs?

With these three steps, the skin in your intimate area stays calmer:

1. Exfoliate before shaving

Gentle exfoliation once or twice a week before shaving removes dead skin flakes. This keeps the opening of the hair follicle clear, so the regrowing hair finds its way out. The Intimate Pre-Shave Peeling is adapted to the pH value of your external intimate zone. It cleanses deep into the pores and prevents ingrown hairs and small razor bumps. Apply it to the bikini zone up to the outer labia, in other words where hair grows. Leave the mucous membrane untouched.

2. Shave with gel and a sharp blade

Take a warm shower for a few minutes so the hairs soften. Then apply a shaving gel for the intimate zone, for example the 2in1 Intimate Wash & Shave Gel. Shave with light pressure in the direction of hair growth and try to go over each area only once. Change the blade as soon as it pulls. Our guide to intimate shaving explains every step in detail.

3. Care for your skin after shaving

Rinse off the gel with warm water, finish with a short cool rinse and pat your skin dry. Then massage in 2 to 3 drops of Glow Below Oil. 75% of test participants confirm the reduction of razor bumps and razor burn.¹

If your skin burns straight after shaving and is red all over, it is usually razor burn. Our guide to razor burn explains what helps then.

You get all three steps together in the Glow Below Trio. You can find daily care for shaving and your intimate area in our Everyday care collection.

Leave one to two days between shaves. If you often get ingrown hairs, trim the hair short instead of shaving it smooth. Hairs that end above the skin are less likely to grow in. If you want to reduce hair growth permanently, talk to your dermatologist about laser treatment.

What helps with ingrown hairs on your legs, underarms and bottom?

On your legs and underarms, hairs become ingrown for the same reasons as in the intimate area: after shaving against the grain, epilating or plucking. The same rules apply here too. Take a shaving break, use warmth and don't squeeze. To prevent ingrown hairs, exfoliate before shaving and shave with an oil that lets the blade glide. The Body Crush Duo contains the 2in1 AHA Body Scrub and the Body Shaving Oil. It prepares your skin for shaving and cares for it while you shave.

On your bottom, hairs become ingrown after shaving and waxing in the same way. A shaving break, warmth and loose clothing help there too. Small red spots on the bottom without shaving, on the other hand, often come from friction and sweat. Our guide to pimples on the bottom explains what helps then.

When should you see a dermatologist or gynaecologist?

Have a doctor look at the area if:

• a lump becomes large and hard and hurts a lot
• pus collects or the redness spreads
• you develop a fever or feel unwell
• the bump doesn't get smaller after two weeks without shaving
• painful lumps in the groin or intimate area keep coming back
• blisters, warts, open sores or swelling at the vaginal opening appear

In that case something else may be behind it, for example a boil, acne inversa, herpes or an inflamed Bartholin's gland. A dermatologist looks after skin and hair roots. For problems at the vaginal opening, your gynaecologist can help.

You will find razors with replaceable blades and everything for a gentle shave in our Shaving category.

¹ Clinical-dermatological application study under gynaecological supervision with 20 participants, applying the intimate area oil once daily over a period of 4 weeks.

Sources: MSD Manual, Consumer Version, as of September 2026, Ingrown beard hairs. German Federal Ministry of Health, gesund.bund.de: Boils and carbuncles (in German). S2k guideline "Treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa / acne inversa" of the German Dermatological Society, 2024 version, AWMF register 013-012 (in German).