Melanotan 2
A synthetic peptide that activates your body's natural tanning pathway — stimulating melanin production in the skin with or without UV exposure. Beyond tanning, it also activates the same brain receptors involved in sexual arousal and desire, making it uniquely versatile in the melanocortin peptide category.
A two-phase protocol: a short daily loading phase to build pigmentation, followed by twice-weekly maintenance to hold your result with minimal ongoing effort.
How Melanotan 2 Works
Your skin produces its tan color through a pigment called melanin. Melanin is made by specialized skin cells that are activated by a natural signal molecule in your body — a hormone called alpha-MSH. When UV light hits your skin, your body produces more of this signal, which triggers melanin production as a protective response.
Melanotan 2 is a synthetic version of that same signal. It binds to the same receptors your body's own tanning hormone uses, activating melanin production more powerfully and for longer than natural UV exposure alone. This means you can develop a meaningful tan with significantly less UV exposure — or, with some UV, develop a darker and more even result than you'd achieve from sun alone.
The same receptors that drive tanning (melanocortin receptors) are also found in the brain's arousal centers — the same pathway that PT-141 uses. This is why Melanotan 2 produces both tanning effects and increased sexual desire as part of the same mechanism. The two effects come from the same action; you cannot have one without some degree of the other.
Does it work without UV? Some melanin stimulation happens without UV exposure, but results are significantly better with some UV — even 10–15 minutes of daily sun or tanning bed use during the loading phase accelerates pigmentation noticeably. UV acts as a cofactor that amplifies the melanin production Melanotan 2 triggers. You don't need long or intense UV sessions — consistency matters more than duration.
What Melanotan 2 Does
Most people notice tanning results within 7–14 days of daily loading. The sexual arousal effects typically appear within the first 1–3 injections.
Melanotan 2 activates melanin production more broadly and consistently than UV alone, producing a deeper, more even tan across the whole body — including areas that receive less sun exposure. Unlike a natural tan that fades quickly when UV exposure stops, a Melanotan 2-assisted tan holds longer and requires less maintenance UV to sustain.
By activating melanocortin receptors in the brain's reward and arousal centers, Melanotan 2 produces a meaningful increase in sexual desire and responsiveness in both men and women. This effect often appears within the first 1–2 injections and is one of the most immediately noticeable effects of the protocol, regardless of tanning goals.
Because Melanotan 2 activates the melanin pathway more powerfully than UV alone, you need significantly less sun or tanning bed time to achieve and maintain results. For people with fair or sensitive skin who struggle to tan naturally or burn easily, this is a meaningful benefit — you get the appearance of a healthy tan with far less UV damage to the skin.
Melanocortin receptors also regulate appetite. Many users on Melanotan 2 protocols notice a reduction in appetite and food cravings as a secondary effect. This is consistent with the mechanism — the same signal that triggers tanning and arousal also interacts with the brain's hunger regulation centers. For users with body composition goals, this can be a useful additional effect.
Once you've completed the loading phase and achieved your target pigmentation, just two injections per week — with minimal or no UV exposure — is typically sufficient to maintain the result. Many users find that a single 8-week loading-and-maintenance cycle produces results that hold for months with very light ongoing maintenance.
Melanotan 2 stimulates melanin production regardless of natural skin tone, but the starting dose and pace of the protocol should be adjusted by skin type. Very fair skin (types I–II) starts lower and loads more slowly. Medium to olive skin (types III–IV) responds faster and can reach the full dose more quickly. Darker skin types (V–VI) may see more modest tanning results but benefit from the other melanocortin effects.
Dosing Protocol
Melanotan 2 follows a two-phase protocol: a loading phase where you inject daily to build up pigmentation, followed by a maintenance phase where you drop to twice weekly to hold the result. Your vial comes as a ready-to-use liquid — draw and inject.
Doses are in micrograms (mcg). At your vial concentration of 10 mg/mL, 1 unit on a U-100 syringe = 100 mcg. The calculator below handles all the conversion.
| Phase | Dose | Units (U-100) | Frequency | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting (fair skin) | 100–250 mcg | 1–2.5 units | Daily | First 3 days |
| Loading | 500 mcg | 5 units | Daily | 7–21 days |
| Maintenance | 500 mcg | 5 units | 2× per week | Ongoing |
| Max single dose | 1,000 mcg | 10 units | Do not exceed — diminishing returns above 500 mcg with increased side effects | |
Inject before bed. This is the most important timing rule. The peak nausea period is 30–90 minutes after injection — sleeping through it makes the first week of loading dramatically more comfortable. Inject on an empty stomach or at least 2 hours after eating. Some people also find that taking an antihistamine (like diphenhydramine) 30 minutes before their injection significantly reduces nausea during the loading phase.
Do not exceed 1,000 mcg (10 units) per injection. Doses above this produce sharply diminishing tanning returns with substantially increased side effects. The therapeutic window for Melanotan 2 is 250–1,000 mcg — more is not better. Most users do well at 500 mcg. Injecting at night and starting low is the most reliable way to avoid unpleasant side effects.
Step-by-step injection guide
Dose Calculator
Pre-loaded with your vial: 30 mg in 3 mL (10 mg/mL). On a U-100 syringe, 1 unit = 0.01 mL = 100 mcg. Slide to your target dose and see your exact draw, plus how long the vial lasts across both protocol phases.
If your vial is ever a different size, update the mg and mL fields and everything recalculates automatically.
= 10.0 mg/mL · 1 unit on a U-100 syringe = 100 mcg
At 500 mcg per day, your 30 mg / 3 mL vial contains 60 doses — enough for a 21-day loading phase plus approximately 19 weeks of twice-weekly maintenance.
Quick Reference — 30 mg / 3 mL Vial
Concentration: 10 mg/mL. On a U-100 syringe: 1 unit = 0.01 mL = 100 mcg.
| Dose | Units (U-100) | Volume (mL) | Shots per vial | Use case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 mcg | 1 unit | 0.01 mL | 300 shots | Very fair skin starting dose |
| 250 mcg | 2.5 units | 0.025 mL | 120 shots | Standard starting dose, days 1–3 |
| 500 mcg | 5 units | 0.05 mL | 60 shots | Standard loading and maintenance dose |
| 750 mcg | 7.5 units | 0.075 mL | 40 shots | Higher end — experienced users only |
| 1,000 mcg | 10 units | 0.10 mL | 30 shots | Maximum dose — do not exceed |
Highlighted row = recommended standard dose. At 5 units (500 mcg) daily during loading, your 30 mg vial lasts 60 days — well beyond the longest typical loading phase. Use a 0.5 mL syringe for improved accuracy at the small volumes used in this protocol.
Common Questions
Side Effects to Watch For
- /Nausea — most common during loading; managed with bedtime injection and light stomach
- /Facial flushing or warmth — typical in the first week; fades as the body adjusts
- /Mole darkening and new freckles — expected effect; monitor all existing moles
- /Spontaneous erections in men during loading — an expected melanocortin effect; settles on maintenance
- /Appetite reduction — common and usually welcome; monitor nutrition intake
- /Mild headache or fatigue — usually in first few days; resolves as body adjusts
- /Stop immediately if any mole changes shape, bleeds, or appears new and unusual — consult a dermatologist
Do not use Melanotan 2 if you have a personal or family history of melanoma or other skin cancers. Melanin stimulation is contraindicated in this context. Have your skin assessed by a dermatologist before starting and at regular intervals during your protocol.
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USA-formulated, lab-verified liquid formula. Ready to use — no mixing required. Includes full dosing guidance from our clinical team.
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