- Sunburns are classified as first-degree or second-degree burns. UV exposure alone doesn't realistically produce a true third-degree burn, though the term gets used loosely.
- First-degree looks like red, warm, tender skin with no blisters. It usually settles in three to five days.
- Second-degree brings swelling and blisters and takes one to two weeks, with peeling and lingering sensitivity.
- Cool the skin, moisturize while it's damp, drink extra water, and leave blisters alone. Never put sunscreen on a raw or blistered burn.
- Widespread blistering, fever, chills, or nausea means call a doctor. Those are signs the burn is affecting more than your skin.
You come in from a long afternoon outside, look in the mirror, and the question is immediate: how bad is this? A sunburn that's only pink and warm needs something different than one that's tight, swollen, and starting to blister, and the difference shapes both the care and the timeline.
All burns are graded by how deep the damage goes, and sunburn fits that same system. Here's how to read yours.
What Are the Degrees of Sunburn?
Medically, sunburn is a first-degree or second-degree burn. First-degree affects the epidermis, the outer layer of skin. Second-degree reaches the dermis underneath, which is why blisters form. Third-degree burns destroy the full thickness of the skin, and UV on its own doesn't deliver that kind of injury. What people usually mean by a 'third-degree sunburn' is a severe second-degree burn with whole-body symptoms, and that still needs medical care.
First-Degree Sunburn: The Most Common Type
- What it looks like: pink to red skin that's warm, tender, and sometimes itchy, with no blistering
- What's happening: UV has damaged cells in the outer layer of skin, and the redness is the inflammatory response bringing blood to the area to start repairs
- How to treat it: get out of the sun, then take a cool (but not cold) shower or use a cool compress. Moisturize while the skin is still damp with aloe or a fragrance-free moisturizer, drink extra water, and take ibuprofen if you want the swelling and soreness eased
- Healing time: usually three to five days, sometimes with light peeling at the end
Mild doesn't mean harmless. Every burn adds to a lifetime total of DNA damage, which is why what you do after a sunburn is worth getting right even for the everyday version.
Second-Degree Sunburn: More Severe and Painful
- What it looks like: deep red, swollen skin with blisters filled with clear fluid, painful to touch, sometimes with chills or headache
- What's happening: UV has reached the dermis. Blisters are the body walling off the damaged area with fluid while new skin forms underneath
- How to treat it: the same order of care, cool the skin, moisturize while damp, hydrate, and use an anti-inflammatory, with two additions. Leave blisters intact, since unbroken skin is your best defense against infection, and cover broken areas loosely with a clean non-stick dressing
- Healing time: one to two weeks, usually with peeling and skin that stays sensitive for a while afterward
The rule people most often break here is sunscreen. Don't apply it to raw or blistered skin. Keep the area covered with a soft, loose layer of clothing or in the shade until it heals; UPF clothing protects the spot without anything rubbed onto healing skin. Resume sunscreen there once the skin is whole again. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends the same steps for treating sunburn, and knowing how long a sunburn lasts helps you gauge what to expect day by day.
Third-Degree Sunburn: Rare and Extremely Severe
Third-degree burns go through every layer of skin, leaving tissue that looks white, leathery, or charred, often with little pain because the nerve endings are gone. That's the territory of fire, scalding liquids, chemicals, and electricity, not an afternoon at the beach.
Severe sunburn can still become a medical emergency. A large second-degree burn can bring on sun poisoning, with fever, chills, nausea, and dehydration, and those symptoms need a doctor rather than a home remedy.
How to Prevent Sunburn at Any Degree
Every burn on this page is avoidable, and avoiding it is much less effort than treating it.
- Cover the big areas with UPF fabric. A UPF 50+ layer blocks at least 98% of UVA and UVB the whole time you wear it, with nothing to reapply and nothing to sweat off.
- Use broad-spectrum sunscreen on the rest. Choose at least SPF 30, which filters 96.7% of UVB. Apply enough, and reapply every two hours outdoors or after swimming and toweling off.
- Check the UV Index first. Protection is necessary at Moderate (3) or higher, and burns happen fastest during the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. peak UV hours.
- Take shade seriously. The standard seek-shade window runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and a UV-rated umbrella cuts a real share of what reaches you.
- Add a UPF hat and UV400 sunglasses. Ears, scalp, and eyelids burn easily and get skipped most.
When to See a Doctor
Most sunburns heal at home. Get medical care if you notice:
- Blistering over a large area of the body, or blisters on the face
- Fever, chills, nausea, dizziness, or confusion
- Signs of infection, such as spreading redness, pus, or increasing pain after a few days
- A burn on an infant or young child
- Pain that doesn't respond to over-the-counter medication
Frequently Asked Questions About Sunburn Degrees
Here are answers to some of the most common questions about sunburn severity and care.
Should you pop sunburn blisters?
No. A blister is a sterile cover over healing skin, and opening it invites infection and slows recovery. If one breaks on its own, rinse gently, apply a thin layer of petroleum jelly, and cover it loosely with a non-stick bandage.
Is cold water or ice good for a sunburn?
Cool, not cold. A cool shower, bath, or compress draws heat out without shocking already-injured skin, while ice applied directly can cause further damage. Moisturizing right afterward, while the skin is still damp, helps hold in the water the burn is losing.
Why does sunburn peel, and should you help it along?
Peeling is your body shedding cells too damaged to repair. Let it happen on its own. Pulling or scrubbing at loose skin exposes raw tissue underneath, which is more painful and more prone to infection, so keep it moisturized and be patient.
Does a sunburn increase your risk of skin cancer?
Yes, and the risk accumulates. Blistering sunburns, especially in childhood and adolescence, are strongly associated with a higher lifetime risk of melanoma. The damage doesn't reverse, which is the strongest argument for preventing the next one.
The Essential Takeaway: Care for This Burn, Prevent the Next One
Grading a sunburn comes down to one question: blisters or no blisters. No blisters means a first-degree burn and a few days of cool relief, moisturizer, and water. Blisters mean a second-degree burn, a longer recovery, and one rule: leave them alone, and no sunscreen until the skin has healed.
Aftercare matters, but prevention matters more. The best sun protection is the kind you can live in: the kind that saves you from the burn you'd otherwise be treating next week.
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