Red Light Therapy Dosage Calculator and Guidelines

Panel Coverage & Dosing

These values are estimates based on measured data and calculations, and should be treated as such — actual results vary by device, distance, skin, and conditions. For illustration only; not medical or treatment guidance.

Irradiance values are calibrated to independent laboratory measurements (LightLab International) of the Pro G5 at 12 in — averages over the panel centre, not peak readings — with each model's falloff at 6, 12, 18, 24, and 36 in taken from factory spectrometer data; intermediate distances are interpolated. Handheld or solar meters held against a panel typically read higher because they catch individual hotspots. Tabletop, Max and Ultimate values are estimates scaled from the Pro. Very close to the panel, irradiance is difficult to measure reliably — a sensor reads either a single LED's hotspot or the gap between diodes, neither of which reflects what a body spanning the whole face receives — so contact values are shown as a realistic estimate capped at 120 mW/cm² rather than the inflated on-axis peak. Beam spread reflects each panel's measured light footprint. Red-only and NIR-only modes use the Pro G5's measured red/NIR split (about 25% red, 75% NIR at the face). Figures represent surface dose at the skin, not energy absorbed into tissue. Fluence — the technical term for energy per unit area (J/cm²) — = irradiance × session time. The "at ~10 mm tissue" figure estimates how much reaches deeper tissue after depth attenuation, which is far less than the surface dose and varies by wavelength (near-infrared penetrates deeper than red). Turning on "Account for skin reflection" also removes ~35% at the surface, which the skin reflects before any light enters. It is a literature-based estimate, not a measurement — actual penetration varies with skin tone, body site, and tissue; use it only to compare against research or app targets, which are typically stated as tissue-depth dose. Session energy (treatment zone) applies the on-axis irradiance to the panel-face area — the central column where useful light is concentrated — rather than the wider, low-intensity edge footprint. NIR light is invisible to the eye; the indigo tint in NIR-only mode is only a visual stand-in. Distances beyond 36 in are projected from the measured falloff. Per-wavelength values are modeled from the G5 LED mix (including 108 × 850 nm and 36 × 1060 nm) and are approximate.