Can you remove a tattoo with a cream?

Whilst a tattoo fading cream may lighten and fade the appearance of your tattoo, it’s very unlikely that a cream will completely remove it. The most effective tattoo lightening creams use trichloroacetic acid (TCA) and hydroquinone, which work to remove the top layer of skin (the epidermis). They bleach and lighten your skin by reducing the melatonin and fading the colour pigments.

Your tattoo ink, however, is found in the deeper layers of your skin (the dermis) beneath your outer skin. That means that a topical tattoo removal cream will not be able to reach the deep ink particles and fully remove the tattoo.