20 Best Tingle Tanning Lotions To Go Darker Faster: Reviews & Buying Guide

Are you ready to push the limits? The best tingle tanning lotions will take you darker faster.

But I’m warning you now: it’s going to hurt.

Tinglers are for experienced tanners only. And it’s better if you wait until you have a base tan to use them.

Experienced tanners know they can break the plateau and deepen their color with a tingle lotion.

Here’s why it works.

How Tingle Tanning Lotions Work

Tanning lotions with tingle speed up blood flow to the surface of your skin. That’s why they make you blush and turn red.

Some of the key ingredients are methyl nicotinate, hexyl nicotinate, and benzyl nicotinate (1).

The result of this extra blood flow is more oxygen, which leads to more melanin for a deeper, more even tan.

How Tinglers Feel

Users say the sensation reminds them of products like sore muscle rubs or VapoRub.

Some describe it as the sting after a slap to the skin.

Then, a few lotions get described as “setting yourself on fire.”

How to Avoid Problems with Tingle Tanning Lotions

You can avoid tingling tanning lotion side effects with a little sense.

Of course, it’s best to bypass putting tingle lotions on your face.

Also, be sure to wash your hands applying one to your body. Wait until after you shower before you hold children or pets.

Finally, start slow. Mix the tingle lotion with regular indoor tanning lotion and see how that feels. Or apply it to a less sensitive area like your arms or legs first.

20 Best Tingle Tanning Lotions (2020 Update)

One last warning before we begin. If you have fair skin and no base tan, start with a high-quality tanning lotion before you jump into using tinglers. Don’t worry; they’ll still be around when you’re ready.

1. Tan Incorporated – Brown Sugar ORIGINAL DARK Advanced 45 Bronzer with Warming Tingle Tanning Lotion

Let’s start small with a warming lotion. It’s a pleasant way to introduce yourself to tinglers.

Brown Sugar from Tan Incorporated is mild but effective. Those with pale skin will feel the heat more than those who are darker.

Most importantly, it gets results. The bronzers will make you look naturally sun-kissed right out of the bottle. And the tanning accelerators will make sure each session in the sunbed counts.

2. Ed Hardy Obnoxious Extreme Bronzer Tingle Tanning Lotion

The Obnoxious tingle lotion rates about a six on a scale of one to ten for experienced tanners. It’s too hot for most newbies.

Besides the hot sensation, it appeals because it has dark bronzers in it. The bronzers are both cosmetic and natural (2), which means that your tan will continue to deepen for hours after your session. You won’t wash it off as soon as you shower.

To protect your skin, the formula has moisturizers like hemp seed oil and antioxidants to prevent aging.

3. Supre Snooki Hot Skinny Sizzling Super Dark Maximizer

This tingler feels moderately hot to avid tanners. It’s not recommended for people with fair skin or beginning tanners.

One of its other benefits is tattoo color shield technology to keep your ink bright.

If you have allergies, you may appreciate that it’s free of gluten, nuts, and parabens.

4. Devoted Creations White 2 Black, Tingle Ultra Fast Darkening Lotion 

Here’s another popular tingle tanning lotion that’s moderately hot. It doesn’t have bronzers, but it should take you three shades darker. It has a variety of tanning accelerators to boost melanin production.

5. Pro Tan Hot Tottie Hot Action Tanning Lotion

If you think you’re ready for the heat, try this one. It’s a beginner tingle lotion with bronzers.

The redness you’ll develop under the lamps should fade in an hour or less after your session.

It has tyrosine to support pigment production, plus plenty of moisturizers like aloe, cocoa butter, and mango butter.

6. Australian Gold Pure Heat Tanning Lotion Hot Citrus Tingle

Like other indoor tanning lotions from Australian Gold, this one is very moisturizing. It has a pleasant tropical fragrance that deceives you into thinking the tingle won’t be so bad. But it’s hot!

7. Designer Skin Body Bronzer, Ruby

The Ruby tingle tanning lotion has a “Dual Action Sizzle” with both hot and cold sensations. It’s an experience you won’t forget anytime soon.

Some of the ingredients include spicy capsaicin (for the heat) and licorice extract (to cool you down).

Powerful bronzers like DHA and erythrulose deepen your skin color while the redness wears off.

8. Jwoww Mad Hot Tingle Bronzer Tanning Lotion

The Jwoww lotion carries a strong warning. But even though it’s hot, it takes care of your skin.

It has black currant oil, pear, and yogurt to smooth and soften your body. There’s also Vitamin E to protect against photodamage.

At the same time, tyrosine and melanin work just below the surface to make you dark.

9. Seriously Hot Bronzing Lotion by ProTan

ProTan says that this lotion has 10x bronzers and a 10x tingle. But it’s hard to know what that means until you see it in action.

I’d recommend this product for experienced tanners only. You’ll definitely want a base tan to deal with the heat.

Use one of the best tanning accelerators for a few sessions before you try it.

10. Designer Skin BombShell, 100XXBronzer

The BombShell is one of the all-time favorite tingle tanning lotions. You’ll find that avid tanners often compare other products to this one. It’s hot, but not a raging fire.

Other features include dark bronzers and ingredients to pamper your skin. It has Coenzyme Q10, soy, and white tea extract to prevent signs of aging.

11. Poison Hot Tingle Bronzer Tanning Lotion By Fixation

Why would you put something called Poison on your skin? Probably because it’s got plenty of bronzer and a moderate amount of heat.

This is a silicone-based tanning lotion with a tyrosine complex plus carrot seed oil and Unipertan. Those are all tried and true pigment boosters.

12. AZURE Extreme Tingle Bronzer, Tanning Bed Lotion by Devoted Creations

Who knew that this deceptively simple brown and blue bottle had so much heat inside? People who used the Azure Extreme Tingle Bronzer say that it’s very hot.

From the moment you apply it, it darkens your skin with cosmetic bronzers. But delayed bronzers also go to work, deepening the color that develops hours later.

13. Insanely Black Hot Tingle Tanning Bed Lotion w/ Bronzer by Millennium Tanning

The fresh blackberry citrus scent helps this tanning lotion appeal to both women and men. It enhances your tan with tinglers like benzyl nicotinate, melanin boosters like tyrosine, and bronzers like DHA. In other words, it covers all the bases to ensure that you get very dark.

14. Tanovations COMING IN HOT Thermal Active Black Bronzer

Tanovations is the new label name for Ed Hardy products. Their Coming in Hot lotion is mild enough for beginners to try once they have some color.

It doesn’t offer much in the way of bronzers, but that can be a good thing if you’re not very dark yet.

Some of its other benefits include detoxification and lots of antioxidants. It pulls impurities out with black tea and charcoal, plus it absorbs excess oil, too.

15. Supre Cherry Bomb Red Hot Dark Accelerator Tanning Lotion

The Cherry Bomb has plenty of tingles and a cherry vanilla fragrance. Interestingly, some people say that the heat reactivates when they step in the shower.

16. Devoted Creations Trinity XS Mega Extreme XXX Sizzling Tingle Tanning Lotion

I’ve seen people compare this lotion to the Designer Skin BombShell, which means it’s pretty hot. But it has advantages beyond the tingle.

The first is that it has a technology called FreshTek that prevents that after tanning burned odor. Yet its citrus scent isn’t super strong.

Next, other proprietary complexes like RevitaFit and Advanced Matrixyl Synthe 6 literally make your skin look younger. They smooth over fine lines and disguise cellulite.

The last feature is DHA, a bronzer that you’ll find in sunless tanners. It doesn’t require UV radiation to deepen your color. But it will darken you over the next two or three hours after your session.

17. Tanovations Ed Hardy Body Shots Double Shot Warning Mega Extreme Hot Tingle

My last pick today is the Double Shot extreme hot tingle lotion. Some experienced tanners prefer this one to all others because they say it gives them the deepest tan.

Unfortunately, that darker color comes at a price. This lotion is hot, hot, hot! You’ll look like you stayed out way too long in the sun. And the stinging will continue for hours after your session.

On the plus side, the suffering pays off from beginning to end. The MelanoBronze and Quad Tyrosine Blend ensure that your tan deepens. At the same time, rejuvenating ingredients tone and firm your skin. And the tattoo fade protector looks after your ink.

Cooling Lotions

If you’ve made it this far, it’s time to cool down. Sometimes it gets pretty hot in the booth. Try one of these cooling lotions for a delicious experience.

18. Devoted Creations MERMAID MAJESTY Cooling Bronzer

Mermaid Majesty will make you feel like you just got out of the water, and there is a gentle breeze blowing across your skin. It’s mild, but the effects last for a while after you tan.

Don’t think that just because it’s a cooling lotion, you won’t get dark. It contains dark instant and delayed bronzers.

There’s also a vitamin-rich blend of exotic ingredients like Hawaiian seaweed, sea buckthorn berry, and starfruit to nourish your body.

19. Swedish Beauty Mint Condition Tanning Lotion Ultra Invigorating Superior Cooling Bronzer with BioBronze Technology

This tingle lotion keeps you smelling great the rest of the day. It has a cooling effect that might give you the chills while you catch rays.

Black Walnut extract and a proprietary complex called BioBronze take the edge off that ghostly pale skin. Then, DHA and melanin enhancers continue to develop your color long after you’ve left the salon.

20. Tanovations ICE ICE BABY Hydra Chill Ultra Invigorating Cooling Triple Black Bronzer Tanning Bed Lotion 

Avoid the air-conditioning after you tan with this cooling lotion. It’s going to give you the shivers. But your skin will look awesome all the same.

It has both cosmetic and natural bronzers that won’t streak or turn you orange. Instead, they boost your natural color to a new level.

At the same time, cranberry and pomegranate extracts block free radicals from aging your skin. Green tea and wheat protein smooth fine lines and tone your body. Plus, almond and macadamia oils make you feel silky soft.

How to Try a Tingle Tanning Lotion for the First Time

Baby steps. There’s no shame in taking it slow.

Test a new tingle tanning lotion on a patch of skin to see how you react.

Blend it 50/50 with another lotion to dilute it and reduce the burn.

Believe me; these two tricks will keep you from hopping out of the sunbed like your skin’s on fire.

What about DIY Tingle Tanning Lotions?

I may be prejudiced against homemade tanning lotions because I’ve worked in the tanning industry for so long. I will tell you that no salon will want you to bring your recipe to use in their sunbeds.

Unless you’re a chemist, you run the risk of giving yourself unpleasant skin reactions if you tan outdoors with a DIY tingle tanning lotion. After all, you want to look good, not like an itchy, oozing mess.

Instead, try one of the best outdoor tanning lotions and build up your tan safely.

Conclusion

Which new tingle tanning lotions are you going to try?

If you’re at a plateau, they can help you go darker faster. They also make tanning more fun!

I’d love to know which ones you’re using and how they work for you. Feel free to leave me a comment below.

Resources:

1. https://ezinearticles.com/?Tanning-Lotions-With-Tingle,-Are-They-Safe?&id=6350509

by Goran Olsson, published June 14, 2011, accessed 21 May 2020

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indoor_tanning_lotion accessed 21 May 2020