Have you ever tried to tan (on vacation or at home) and it just takes forever? Sometimes you don’t have much time to develop your tan, and it just doesn’t develop in time for your special occasion, and you’re really let down. It happened to me at my wedding abroad.
Or, which is worse, you could try using a fake tan, which often ends up looking really patchy, making you look dirty than tanned. But neither scenario has to happen to you. The solution is a tan accelerator. With a tan accelerator, you can get a nice natural tan.
The good news is that there are plenty of tan accelerators out there to choose from. And the better news is that we’ve been checking them out, and after much deliberation, we came up with a shortlist of our favorite ones, which we can’t wait to show you.
Following on from that we’ve also got a handy buying guide for you that will walk you through everything you might want to think about before you buy.
Then, we’re going to top that off with a section where we answer some of your most frequently asked questions.
In a hurry? Let’s get straight to it:
Best Tan Accelerators: Our Top 5 Picks
1. Best Overall: Pro Tan Beautifully Dark Quadruple Action Bronzing Accelerator
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Pro Tan is also a top brand in this market, world-renowned in fact, with their product range entirely revolving around tanning products alone. And this particular bottle is their number one product.
We were sold on this product when we learned it’s generally a favored tanning product of bodybuilders and models. Want to look like a model?
This tanning accelerator will help you achieve your tan up to 4 times more quickly than if you weren’t to use a tan accelerator at all. Not bad hey? All thanks to the Pro Tan’s own Unipertan Accelerating Complex.
If you love the scent of Ameretto, you will love this product. It has a gorgeous fragrance of Amaretto Vanilla and Tangerine. So not only will you be looking divine, but you’ll be smelling divine too.
It contains skin-loving ingredients, including aloe vera, sunflower oil, and vitamins A and E.
The aloe vera is very soothing, and has moisturizing properties that will leave your skin feeling both nourished and hydrated.
Vitamin A helps to prevent breakouts, helps support the skin’s immune system, and promotes natural moisturizing of the skin. It helps promote healthy cells in the top 2 layers of your skin.
And the inclusion of vitamin E is great too, because, as with the included tea tree oil, it’s a powerful antioxidant, and reduces UV ray damage in your skin, which is exactly what you need if you intend to be spending a lot of time in the sun.
This is our favorite tan accelerator. Here’s a wrap up of the pros and cons:
Pros
- Acts 4 times faster than compared to without a tan accelerator
- Contains several skin-loving ingredients to leave your skin feeling great
- Number one product of a top global brand dedicated to tanning products
Cons
- Please only buy the product if you like the scent of Amaretto, otherwise, you will be put off from using it
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2. Australian Gold Dark Tanning Accelerator
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Now, this tanning accelerator comes from a top global leading brand – Australian Gold. A brand with over 25 years of experience in the industry.
And this particular bottle is a huge best seller with online retailers. And so it should be, it has a lot going for it.
We love that it’s available as a spray rather than as a lotion, because this means you can get a much more even coverage, for a better look once your desired tan has been achieved.
What’s great about this spray is that it contains several bronzers, namely melanin, carrot oil, caramel, and walnut shell. And the result is that you can get an immediate natural glow before you even step out into the sun.
It’s also very good for your skin, thanks to the inclusion of ingredients like tea tree oil, which is a powerful antioxidant that can really cleanse the skin and prevent breakouts.
Then there’s the aloe vera, which is very soothing, and has moisturizing properties that will leave your skin feeling both nourished and hydrated.
The scent is pretty dreamy too. It’s called Cocoa Dreams, and is a stunning combination of Coconut, Orange, and Vanilla scents.
There are several different variations of this product – these include a tanning continuous spray, a tanning lotion with bronzer, a tanning spray gel, and a tanning spray gel with bronzer.
This review has been about the tanning continuous spray.
Pros
- Bestselling product from a top global brand
- Get a nice glow before you even step into the sun
- Leaves your skin looking and smelling great
Cons
- Customers only rated it at 4 stars out of 5 for its moisturizing effect
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3. Pro Tan Radically Hemp Ultra Powerful 10X Dark Tanning Gelee Accelerator
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Pro Tan, as we mentioned previously, a top brand in this market, world-renowned in fact, with their product range entirely revolving around tanning products alone. Their product range is well-loved by bodybuilders and models alike.
This particular tanning accelerator will help you achieve your tan super quickly, thanks to Pro Tan’s own Unipertan Accelerating Complex. But please note this lotion features a ten times more effective tan acceleration than the other Pro Tan formula we showed you earlier. So, it’s best not to use it unless you want to go really dark.
Its creamy cosmetic gel is quickly absorbed into the skin, where it can get working straight away to stimulate melanin production in your skin, and get your tan accelerating.
It features exotic botanicals such as aloe Vera. And it contains vitamins A&E for healthy skin. The aloe vera is very soothing, and has moisturizing properties that will leave your skin feeling both nourished and hydrated.
Vitamin A helps to prevent breakouts, helps support the skin’s immune system, and promotes natural moisturizing of the skin. It helps promote healthy cells in the top 2 layers of your skin.
And the inclusion on vitamin E is great too, because, as with the included tea tree oil, it’s a powerful antioxidant, and reduces UV ray damage in your skin, which is exactly what you need if you intend to be spending a lot of time in the sun.
And although it’s not Pro Tan’s most popular tanning product, it has become, and remains, a bestselling product with online retailers.
It has a very faint fragrance, reminiscent of sweet almond. We think you’ll like it as much as we do.
Pros
- Comes from a top bestselling global brand
- Light pleasant sweet almond fragrance
- Very powerful tan acceleration, will make your skin really dark
Cons
- Might make you too dark
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4. Ed Hardy Coconut Kisses Golden Tanning Lotion
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Here’s another one that’s been flying off the shelves and is a huge best seller with online retailers.
The Ed Hardy brand is part of the well-established Tanovations company, which you may have wondered about when you saw the product photo and the logo.
With this lotion in your arsenal, you’ll have a gorgeous glowing tan in no time. It’s ultra-darkening.
We love just how hydrating this lotion is. All thanks to its luxurious ingredients, such as coconut milk, coconut oil, and cocoa butter.
But where this lotion really outperforms its counterparts is how it helps to prevent your tattoos from fading. It will help prolong the appearance of your tattoos, keeping them as vibrant and radiant as the day you had them done.
This lotion features a specially blended formula, designed to increase melanin formation, in order to accelerate the tanning process on your skin. All without the use of bronzers.
It comes in a very large bottle that will last you all season. It’s suitable for a range of different skin tones from fair all the way through to very dark.
It has a gentle fragrance of coconut, together with a hint of vanilla. It’s very pleasant and not at all overpowering. Reminiscent of some gorgeous far away beach.
Pros
- Gorgeous coconut scent with a hint of vanilla
- Comes in a very large bottle that will last you all season
- Protects against the fading of your tattoos
Cons
- Some people feel it’s a little pricey
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5. Australian Gold Dark Tanning Accelerator Lotion
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As we mentioned earlier, Australian Gold is one of the top brands in the field of tan accelerators. And, as with the other Australian Gold product we showed you earlier, this tan accelerator has been flying off the shelves.
And we can see why – it really has a lot going for it. Not only does it do a great job of accelerating your tanning process to give you a gorgeous natural tan, but it also features important natural oils and nutrients for your skin that have Vitamins A and E.
Vitamin A helps to prevent breakouts, helps support the skin’s immune system, and promotes natural moisturizing of the skin. It helps promote healthy cells in the top 2 layers of your skin.
And the inclusion of vitamin E is great too, because, as with the included tea tree oil, it’s a powerful antioxidant, and reduces UV ray damage in your skin, which is exactly what you need if you intend to be spending a lot of time in the sun.
The lotion will leave your skin feeling soft and smooth, and the scent is pretty dreamy too. It’s called Cocoa Dreams, and is a stunning combination of Coconut, Orange, and Vanilla scents.
Pros
- Popular product from a top global brand
- Smells absolutely delicious
- Accelerates your tan while leaving skin hydrated
Cons
- Some people feel it’s a little pricey
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Tan Accelerator: Buyer’s Guide
As promised, here’s your buying guide!
What is a tan accelerator and how does it work?
Tan accelerator is basically a product you can use to accelerate how quickly you can form a natural tan through exposure to the sun.
Tan accelerators work by stimulating melanin production in your skin, so that when your skin is exposed to the sun, more melanin is produced, resulting in more pigmentation in your skin – a tan.
Important heads-up
It’s important to note at this point (or any point) that although some bronzers do sometimes offer sunscreen properties, tan accelerators do not.
This means that they will not protect you from sunburn, or any other adverse effects from harmful UV rays.
Do you want an immediate glow?
Most tan accelerators only get to work once you step out into the sun. But you can get tan accelerators that are also bronzers. And these will give you an immediate glow, without having to subject yourself to any UV rays.
We included one of these in our shortlist of top 5 picks, it’s our number pick, the Pro Tan Beautifully Dark Quadruple Action Bronzing Accelerator.
How quickly it works
The whole point of a tan accelerator is to speed up the process of getting a tan. So, the faster it works, the better, right?
If for you, speed is of the essence, then we can recommend our number pick, the Pro Tan Beautifully Dark Quadruple Action Bronzing Accelerator. It will give you a tan a whopping 4 times quicker than going without a tan accelerator.
Ingredients
It is the individual ingredients of the product that give it its desired effects, both in terms of tan accelerating properties, and in terms of skin-loving properties.
These days, tan accelerators can do way more for your skin than merely speeding up the tanning process. They can hydrate, nourish and moisturize your skin, leaving it feeling soft and silky smooth.
The top skin-loving ingredients to look out for in your tan accelerator include vitamin A, vitamin E, aloe vera, tea tree. We mentioned some of their properties in our product reviews, but it bears repeating here.
Aloe vera is very soothing and has moisturizing properties that will leave your skin feeling both nourished and hydrated.
Vitamin A helps to prevent breakouts, helps support the skin’s immune system, and promotes natural moisturizing of the skin. It helps promote healthy cells in the top 2 layers of your skin.
Vitamin E, much like tea tree oil, is a powerful antioxidant, and reduces UV ray damage in your skin, which is exactly what you need if you intend to be spending a lot of time in the sun.
For more information on how different nutrients and vitamins can help your skin, please check out the following articles: The 4 Best Vitamins for Your Skin and Nutrients for Healthy Skin.
Scent
When you’re applying anything to your skin, it’s not just how it leaves your skin looking and feeling. You also need to consider the scent. If you don’t enjoy the scent of your spray or lotion, then you’re not going to enjoy having it on your skin.
If you like the smell, then you’ll be more than happy to lather it all over, but if you also like to wear perfume or body spray, then you’re not going to want the tan accelerator to be too overpowering.
We would argue that the scent of the lotion or spray is one of the more prominent factors in deciding which tan accelerator to go for. We just love it when a lotion gets you reminiscing about your favorite beach vacations!
Cost
Tan accelerators can vary in price, but we would argue that all of the tan accelerators that made our top 5 picks are all very affordable, even the high-end brands.
Brand
There are some great brands in the tanning product industry. We are particular fans of Australian Gold and Pro Tan, who each have a global reach in the market.
But they don’t dominate the market, and there’s no shortage of other good quality brands to choose from.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do tanning accelerators really work?
Tanning accelerators do work, but you will still need to be out in the sun for a considerable amount of time in order to achieve a dark tan.
Frequent or at least regular use of the tan accelerator is recommended for best results.
What is the best tan accelerator?
We would argue that the best tan accelerator is our number one pick, the Pro Tan Beautifully Dark Quadruple Action Bronzing Accelerator.
It’s THE top-selling product from one of the best global brands in tanning lotions, and will give you a great tan 4 times as quickly as mere sunbathing alone.
Plus, it has a gorgeous scent that you won’t be able to get enough of!
What is the best tan accelerator for tanning outdoors?
Any of the tan accelerators that you see in sunbed salons will also work for those who like to do their sunbathing the traditional way, out in the glorious sunshine.
Our favorite tan accelerator (for indoors or outdoors) is our number one pick the Pro Tan Beautifully Dark Quadruple Action Bronzing Accelerator.
Related: What is the best outdoor tanning lotion?
Is tan accelerator fake tan?
No. A tan accelerator does not give you a fake tan. Instead, it helps you to develop a natural tan.