How to Get Rid of Acne Scars: Types, Treatments and Who to See

An acne scar is the mark left after a deep pimple or breakout clears.

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) describes acne scars as forming after a deep pimple or breakout clears, and notes that not every breakout scars.

Collagen decides the scar's shape.

When skin makes too little collagen while a breakout heals, the scar sinks below the surface; when skin makes too much, the scar rises above it.

That split gives acne scars two families, depressed and raised — and different types need different treatments.

Some people scar more easily than others.

AAD names three things that raise the risk of scarring: deep, painful acne such as cysts and nodules, having a close blood relative with acne scars, and picking, popping, squeezing or scratching at breakouts.

AAD also notes that treating acne early reduces the risk of scars forming in the first place — which is why dermatologists usually get the acne itself under control before treating scars.

Most acne scars are depressed (atrophic) scars, which form when skin makes too little collagen while healing.

AAD splits them into three types:

• Ice pick scars — small at the surface but deep into the skin; AAD calls this the most common type of acne scar.
• Rolling scars — wide and shallow, giving the skin a wavy look.
• Boxcar scars — round or oval depressions, wider than ice pick scars but narrower than rolling scars.

The second family is raised scars — hypertrophic, keloid and papular scars — which form when skin makes too much collagen.

AAD says raised scars are more common in people with darker skin tones.

Keloids, the kind that grow larger than the original breakout, usually start 3 to 12 months after the acne clears; AAD says they grow beyond the original wound, do not fade on their own, and reports that between 33% and 50% of people who develop a keloid have at least one blood relative who gets keloids.

One flat mark is not a scar at all.

Flat red, pink, brown or bluish-gray spots that show up after acne clears are usually post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) — a pigment change, not a scar — and PIH usually fades over time.

Knowing which of these you are looking at matters, because the treatments below are AAD's list for depressed scars.

We could not confirm specific treatments for raised scars, so ask a dermatologist about those; the flat pigment marks are a separate problem.

Real scars sometimes fade, but AAD says they rarely go away completely on their own.

Keloids are the clearest case — AAD says they do not fade on their own.

The flat dark marks are the exception, because they are pigment rather than scar tissue: PIH usually fades over time.

AAD's timeline is 6 to 12 months for a spot a few shades darker than your natural skin color, once whatever caused it has stopped; pigment that sits deep in the skin — slate-blue to gray — can take years to fade.

So the practical test is touch.

A depression or a bump you can feel is the kind of mark that rarely goes away completely on its own, while a flat dark spot may fade by itself.

There is no single acne scar treatment — the plan is a match between the scar type and the tool.

AAD states it plainly: ice pick scars require different treatment than rolling scars.

A plan is built from the scar type, the number of scars, age, skin tone and budget, and it often combines more than one treatment.

For depressed scars, AAD lists chemical peels, fillers, laser resurfacing, microneedling, PRP as an add-on, radiofrequency and RF microneedling, scar surgery (including surgically lifting a scar), dermabrasion and, for mild scarring, a topical retinoid or salicylic acid.

Here is how the main in-office families work.

Chemical peels. AAD lists chemical peels for depressed acne scars, and a mild peel is often a series of visits rather than one — the session counts are in the next section.

Our chemical peel guide covers types, cost and recovery.

Laser resurfacing. Lasers are also on AAD's list, but set expectations honestly: AAD says laser treatment cannot get rid of a scar — you are replacing one scar with another, less noticeable one.

Non-ablative lasers have little downtime but usually need a series of treatments, and results can take months.

Our CO2 laser and Fraxel guides cover resurfacing in depth.

Microneedling and radiofrequency. AAD lists microneedling, PRP as an add-on, radiofrequency and RF microneedling for depressed scars, and describes microneedling, RF and RF microneedling as safe for all skin tones.

On RF microneedling specifically, AAD says it may give laser-like results with less downtime — while noting those studies were conducted on a small number of people with darker skin tones.

Our microneedling guide covers the procedure and its limits, and our Morpheus8 guide covers one RF microneedling device.

Fillers. One filler is approved specifically for acne scars: Bellafill, PMMA microspheres suspended in bovine collagen, FDA-approved under PMA P020012/S009 on December 23, 2014, for moderate to severe, atrophic, distensible facial acne scars on the cheek in patients over 21 — and it is permanent (non-absorbable).

Hyaluronic acid (HA) fillers are a different case: using them on acne scars is off-label, meaning that use is not on any current US label for those products.

Our dermal fillers guide covers the filler family as a whole.

Two fine-print items before you book.

AAD says microdermabrasion does not treat acne scars itself, though dermatologists use it to even out skin tone.

And device clearances are product-specific: Sofwave's 510(k) clearance (K250146, April 2025) lists acne scars among its cleared uses, which is why it is worth asking which clearance a specific device actually holds.

How strong is the evidence behind all of this?

Limited.

A 2016 Cochrane review of 24 trials with 789 adults found a lack of high-quality evidence on which acne scar treatments are most effective and safe.

A 2025 network meta-analysis of 68 randomized trials with 4,480 patients ranked laser combined with PRP or filler best for reducing acne scar severity, and laser plus chemical peel best for satisfaction; microneedling was the most tolerable for pain, and no treatment clearly lowered the risk of redness or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation versus the others.

Those are rankings across groups of patients in studies, not a promise for any one person's skin.

Think in series rather than one-off visits.

AAD's published examples: a mild chemical peel often takes 3 to 5 treatments given every 2 to 4 weeks, usually after 2 to 4 weeks of at-home pre-peel priming. Microneedling with PRP typically takes the same shape — 3 to 5 treatments, every 2 to 4 weeks — and AAD says studies have found that plan can fade acne scars by 50% to 70%.

Non-ablative lasers usually need a series of treatments too, and results can take months.

What recovery looks like depends on the treatment.

After microneedling, AAD says redness (or darkening on darker skin), a sunburn-like feeling and swelling usually clear in a few days to a week, most people return to work immediately, and makeup should wait 24 hours.

For lasers, AAD says a laser cannot be used on tanned or sunburned skin, and dermatologists advise stopping smoking for at least 2 weeks before treatment and stopping retinoid or glycolic acid products for 2 to 4 weeks.

On price, start here: AAD says medical insurance generally does not cover acne scar treatment or laser scar treatment, because insurers treat them as cosmetic.

We could not confirm a reliable national price for acne scar procedures, so we will not quote one — the number of sessions a plan takes, and whether it combines treatments, is what moves the total.

Get the per-session price, the expected number of sessions and the combined total in writing before you start.

Usually the sequence is acne first, scars second.

AAD says treatment for scars typically begins after your acne is under control and you are applying acne medication to prevent new breakouts.

The consultation digs into history for the same reason: AAD says the dermatologist will want to know every acne treatment you have used in the last two years, because some scar treatments used during or soon after certain acne medicines cause side effects.

Whatever the sign on the door, AAD's advice treats acne scar treatment as medical care.

Its sharpest line is about lasers: if someone promises to treat your scar before providing a medical consultation, walk away.

When you compare providers, AAD suggests asking each one: Are you board-certified?

How many times have you done this exact procedure?

How often do you treat patients with my skin tone and type?

What results can I realistically expect, with before-and-after photos of patients with similar skin tones?

And what are the risks, recovery time, number of treatments and cost?

The skin-tone questions carry real weight here, because raised scars are more common in darker skin tones.

For this concern, "vetted" means the provider treats the first visit as a medical consultation: your acne history, the scar type, your skin tone, and a plan built from those — not a price quote over the phone.

AAD's walk-away rule for laser scar treatment and its question list in the section above are the vetting script; a provider who answers them specifically, with before-and-afters of skin like yours, has passed a reasonable first screen.

MedSpaStandard's med spa directory and its treatment-by-city listings are not live yet, so we cannot point you to one here.

What we can point you to is the rest of the research: our guides to more skin and body concerns, and the treatment guides this page routes to, each of which covers what the treatment is, what it is approved or cleared to do, and what it costs.