How Long Will My Nails Grow in at Home?

If you’re a nail technician or certified manicurist, you can probably tell you how long your clippers take to get through most of the nails you’re used to on the professional floor — and even how long your minis take to fade — but what most DIY nail salon gurus don’t know is how much quality they need for your nails to recover from time spent in the tools. Acrylic nail polish, in particular, is particularly heavy on a nail, and the damage they cause can take anywhere from a week to a month before you’re back to normal — and the salon will only charge you for the work they did to your nails.

So, how do you grow your nails in less than a week? When we recently reached out to nail tech Jones Valk, he told us that, not only can you achieve five days of manicure-quality nails at home with little work, you can “definitely” keep a salon chair at home ready. To make your beautification more hands-on, he shared a few tips to see you there in no time.

Get the Dryer

As Jones points out, “If the skin in your nail bed is dry, your acrylic is not too wet, and the volume of the nail is healthy, nails will grow in the same time frame.” The reason your nails may take longer to grow is simply due to how the nail bed is affected when painted. “If the nail grows and the nail bed is too wet, you can expect it to take longer to develop new nail growth. If you remove the acrylic, it will dry much faster,” Jones says.

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Less nail pressure means less chipage

Silicone-based nail polishes can be especially tough on your nails, which means that removing the polish before it has time to fade may be key to giving your nails a boost. Jones tells us that the warmer it is, the shorter your nails can grow in. As soon as it gets too cool for your mouth or breath, your nails will start to shrivel — especially on the back, or Malvasia, side of your nails — meaning that you’ll need to keep the polish away from them, which can be a lot easier than you’d think. And while this tip will work on the lower and upper edge of your nails, the best place to do it is on the malvasia.

Show Some Love to your Parachute Mitten

Nail polish remover (like Bite Nail Remover) can be painful to remove, especially when removed from the palm of your hand. But if you want to avoid the worst effects of removing your polish and prep your nails for faster growing, Jones says to “have a clean mitten and grab your cuticle, cupping the pin against the nail bed with your palm.” This will allow the cuticle to begin healing, and it will be able to absorb some of the excess polish that was removed. In fact, if you need a second toothpick to go along with the cuticle sample, you can always just chuck the entire mitten in the trash.

Be a Modern Day Nail Enthusiast

For those who can only wash their nails twice a week (like myself), but want to grow out their color (like me!), Jones suggests heading straight to a “cuticle spa” to clean up your nails. “It is magical! A layering parlor, a place to slow down and absorb cleaning, and a quiet place to get nails done,” he says. $20 at Visit Cuticles Cuticle Spa.

Try All Your Options

In order to fast-track growth, Jones says you should “try the best you can. Any type of polish will grow faster than your traditional nude or white polish. Using only the best nail polish you can afford, being patient, and checking for nail health, nails should grow back in 5-8 days.” If you find yourself going back to your regular salon, Jones suggests trying a different polish altogether. “It only takes a few days to get your nails ready to wear you new natural base coat colors,” he says.