How long before I burn in the sun?

It depends on exactly two things: your skin type and the UV index. At UV 8, a normal Australian late-spring midday, very fair skin starts to burn in about 17 minutes, fair skin in 21, olive skin in about 38 and deeply pigmented skin in over an hour. The chart above covers every combination.

How are these burn times calculated?

Minutes to burn ≈ your skin type's minimal erythema dose (the UV dose where skin visibly reddens) divided by 1.5 × the UV index, which is the erythemal dose full sun delivers per minute. They're estimates for standard conditions, not personal guarantees.

Do these times account for reflection off sand or water?

No. reflection adds to the ambient reading. Sand adds roughly 15–25%, water glare more, and snow can nearly double the dose. On the beach or the water, treat the chart's times as optimistic and the live UV reading as a floor.

Does sunscreen change the chart?

Dramatically. Properly applied SPF 50 slows your dose to roughly a fiftieth, but real-world application underperforms the label, which is why the two-hour reapplication rule exists regardless of what the multiplication suggests.

How long before you burn in the sun?

Two numbers decide it: your skin type and the UV index. Nothing else, not temperature, not cloud, not how it feels. The chart below estimates unprotected time to first redness for all six Fitzpatrick skin types at every UV level, using the same model as the Sunwise burn-time check.

The burn-time chart

Estimated minutes of unprotected sun before skin begins to redden. Click a UV level for the full picture at that strength.

UV index	IVery fair	IIFair	IIILight to medium	IVOlive to tan	VBrown	VIDeep brown to black
UV 1	2 h 13 min	2 h 47 min	3 h 53 min	5 h	6 h 40 min	11 h 7 min
UV 2	1 h 7 min	1 h 23 min	1 h 57 min	2 h 30 min	3 h 20 min	5 h 33 min
UV 3	44 min	56 min	1 h 18 min	1 h 40 min	2 h 13 min	3 h 42 min
UV 4	33 min	42 min	58 min	1 h 15 min	1 h 40 min	2 h 47 min
UV 5	27 min	33 min	47 min	1 h	1 h 20 min	2 h 13 min
UV 6	22 min	28 min	39 min	50 min	1 h 7 min	1 h 51 min
UV 7	19 min	24 min	33 min	43 min	57 min	1 h 35 min
UV 8	17 min	21 min	29 min	38 min	50 min	1 h 23 min
UV 9	15 min	19 min	26 min	33 min	44 min	1 h 14 min
UV 10	13 min	17 min	23 min	30 min	40 min	1 h 7 min
UV 11	12 min	15 min	21 min	27 min	36 min	1 h 1 min
UV 12+	11 min	14 min	19 min	25 min	33 min	56 min

Estimates from typical minimal erythemal doses per skin type; individual tolerance varies. Reflection from sand, water or snow shortens all times. Educational only, not medical advice.

How to read it

Each column is a Fitzpatrick skin type, from type I (very fair, always burns) to type VI (deeply pigmented, almost never burns). Each row is a UV index level. Burn time scales in both directions: doubling the UV halves your time, and a type V threshold is roughly triple a type I. The biggest surprise for most people is the vertical spread, the difference between a UV 3 morning and a UV 11 midday is a factor of four on the same day, at the same beach.

Two caveats worth taking seriously. First, redness is a late signal, DNA damage starts well below the burn threshold, so these times are ceilings to stay under, not targets to hit (the science here). Second, the chart assumes constant UV, but real days ramp toward a midday peak. The live check integrates today's actual forecast curve for your location, which is why its numbers beat any static table.

Burn time at every UV level

Go deeper

Frequently asked questions

How long before I burn in the sun?: It depends on exactly two things: your skin type and the UV index. At UV 8, a normal Australian late-spring midday, very fair skin starts to burn in about 17 minutes, fair skin in 21, olive skin in about 38 and deeply pigmented skin in over an hour. The chart above covers every combination.
How are these burn times calculated?: Minutes to burn ≈ your skin type's minimal erythema dose (the UV dose where skin visibly reddens) divided by 1.5 × the UV index, which is the erythemal dose full sun delivers per minute. They're estimates for standard conditions, not personal guarantees.
Do these times account for reflection off sand or water?: No. reflection adds to the ambient reading. Sand adds roughly 15–25%, water glare more, and snow can nearly double the dose. On the beach or the water, treat the chart's times as optimistic and the live UV reading as a floor.
Does sunscreen change the chart?: Dramatically. Properly applied SPF 50 slows your dose to roughly a fiftieth, but real-world application underperforms the label, which is why the two-hour reapplication rule exists regardless of what the multiplication suggests.

Keep reading

Your skin, today's sun, one number.

A photo estimates your skin type; the live UV where you stand turns it into your burn time, free and private.

Check my burn time