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Athlete’s Foot

An itchy, peeling, sometimes burning fungal rash on the feet, often between the toes. It is common and catching, but usually clears with the right cream and a few simple habits — and it can spread to the toenails if it is left alone.

What is athlete’s foot?

Athlete’s foot is a common fungal infection of the skin of the feet. Its medical name is tinea pedis. “Tinea” is the name of a group of fungal skin infections that includes ringworm, which is caused by a fungus and not by a worm (MedlinePlus, CDC). Athlete’s foot most often affects the space between the toes (MedlinePlus), but it can also affect the soles or the sides of the feet (NHS).

It is very common. The CDC says up to 25% of people may have ringworm of some kind at some point in their lives (CDC).

How does it spread?

The fungi that cause it like warmth and moisture. You can catch it from other people through skin-to-skin contact, and from damp surfaces such as shower, swimming pool and locker-room floors, or by walking barefoot where someone else has it (CDC, MedlinePlus, NHS). Shared towels, socks and shoes can pass it on too (CDC, NHS). You are more likely to catch it if your feet are often wet or sweaty, if you wear tight shoes and socks, or if the skin on your feet is damaged (CDC, NHS).

What does it look like?

Who is more likely to get it?

Anyone can. Using public showers or locker rooms without protective footwear, wearing tight shoes and socks, and heavy sweating raise the risk, and people with weakened immune systems may be at higher risk too (CDC).

How is it diagnosed?

A clinician can often tell just by looking at your feet (American Academy of Dermatology). If there is doubt, they may gently scrape off a small sample of skin to look at under a microscope for the fungus, or send it to a laboratory (American Academy of Dermatology, NHS). The CDC encourages clinicians to test suspected ringworm before treating it, because it can look like psoriasis or eczema (CDC).

When it spreads to the toenails

Left untreated, athlete’s foot can spread to the toenails (NHS), and foot infections are common alongside nail infections (CDC). A fungal nail infection (onychomycosis) makes a nail thicker, brittle, crumbly or discolored, often white or yellow (NHS, CDC). The CDC estimates it affects about 14% of people, and it is especially common in older adults (CDC). Nail infections are not serious, but they can take a long time to treat (NHS) — see Conventional medicine below.

See a doctor promptly if:

Side by side

Six approaches compared

For every condition we look at the same six approaches: what each involves, what it typically costs, and what a patient can realistically expect.

ApproachWhat it involves Estimated costWhat to expect
Conventional medicine (AMA) Over-the-counter antifungal creams, sprays or powders (terbinafine, clotrimazole, miconazole, tolnaftate); prescription creams or antifungal pills for stubborn cases and nail infections; a dermatologist or podiatrist if it won’t clear. At one pharmacy: store-brand clotrimazole cream about $10 (1 oz), Lamisil AT terbinafine cream about $21 (1 oz), Tinactin tolnaftate spray about $11. Paying without insurance, many standard urgent care visits ran about $125–$300, with labs, X-rays or stitches adding to the bill (The Pricer, published July 2026). On Medicare you usually pay 20% of the approved amount after the Part B deductible (Medicare.gov). A mild case usually clears in about two weeks; stubborn ones take a few weeks. Keep using it as directed even after the skin looks clear. Nail infections are slower and harder to clear, and can come back.
Chiropractic Being researched — coming soon.
Acupuncture Being researched — coming soon.
Herbal medicine Tea tree oil applied to the skin — the herbal remedy with the most research for athlete’s foot. Cost estimate being researched. A little research suggests it may help, but it may not work as well as standard antifungals. It can irritate the skin, and it must never be swallowed.
Massage therapy Being researched — coming soon.
MBHA Wellness Coach Prevention habits: dry between the toes, breathable socks and shoes, rotating shoes, sandals in locker rooms and pool areas, no shared towels, treating the whole household, and daily foot checks for people with diabetes. Cost estimate being researched. Good habits help stop it from coming back and from spreading to your nails, groin and family — they work alongside treatment, not instead of it.

Approach 1 of 6

Conventional medicine (AMA)

Athlete’s foot is unlikely to get better on its own, so it is worth treating (NHS). The good news is that treatment usually clears the infection, though it can come back (MedlinePlus).

1. Over-the-counter antifungals

Antifungal creams, sprays and powders from the pharmacy are the usual first step (NHS, American Academy of Dermatology). Active ingredients used on athlete’s foot include terbinafine (American Academy of Dermatology), clotrimazole (MedlinePlus), miconazole (MedlinePlus) and tolnaftate (MedlinePlus). Not every product is suitable for everyone, so check the packet or ask a pharmacist, and you may need to try more than one to find what works for you (NHS).

2. Prescription treatment

If it is severe, or hasn’t cleared after about two weeks, see a dermatologist or your doctor (American Academy of Dermatology, NHS). If pharmacy treatments haven’t worked, a doctor may send a small skin scraping to a laboratory, prescribe a steroid cream to use alongside an antifungal cream, prescribe antifungal tablets (which you might take for several weeks), or refer you to a dermatologist (NHS). If a bacterial skin infection such as cellulitis develops, it is treated with antibiotics (MedlinePlus).

3. Fungal nail infection

Nail infections need a different plan. Skin creams such as over-the-counter terbinafine can’t get through the nail, so they don’t treat nail fungus (American Academy of Dermatology). A pharmacist may suggest an antifungal nail medicine that you brush onto the nail, used daily or weekly for 6 to 12 months; the infection is cured when healthy nail grows in from the base (NHS). A dermatologist may confirm the diagnosis by looking at a nail sample under a microscope (American Academy of Dermatology), then suggest:

Expect patience: even when treatment works, a clear new nail can take a year or longer to grow out, and nail fungus can return a year or more after it clears (American Academy of Dermatology).

Who to see

Your primary care provider or a pharmacist is a fine place to start. A board-certified dermatologist is the next step if it isn’t improving or is getting worse (American Academy of Dermatology). A podiatrist (foot doctor) is another good choice: the American Podiatric Medical Association suggests seeing one if an infection doesn’t improve within two weeks of good foot hygiene. A podiatrist can confirm whether a fungus is the cause and prescribe creams or pills (American Podiatric Medical Association).

What it costs

How well it works — what to expect

A mild case usually clears in about two weeks with an over-the-counter product (American Academy of Dermatology); pharmacy treatments usually take a few weeks to work (NHS), and treatment usually clears the infection but it can come back (MedlinePlus). Nail infections take much longer and can return (American Academy of Dermatology).

Find a medical doctor in our directory

Approach 4 of 6

Herbal medicine

Tea tree oil, from the leaves of an Australian plant, is promoted for athlete’s foot and toenail fungus, applied to the skin (NCCIH).

What the research says

  • The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health says a small amount of research suggests tea tree oil may help athlete’s foot, but it may not work as well as standard treatments. For nail infections, there are too few good studies to draw any conclusion (NCCIH).
  • In a 2002 Australian trial of 158 people with athlete’s foot between the toes, a tea tree oil solution cleared the fungus in 64% of people using the stronger solution, compared with 31% on a dummy (placebo) solution. About 4% of people using tea tree oil developed moderate to severe skin inflammation, which settled quickly once they stopped (trial, Australasian Journal of Dermatology).
  • Reviews describe the benefit as modest and the studies as limited or of poor to modest quality; side effects were mostly minor, except with strong solutions (review, PubMed, systematic review, Frontiers in Pharmacology).
  • Garlic-derived ajoene has been studied too, but a 2025 review says it shows promise without strong trial evidence yet (review, PubMed).

In short: tea tree oil is a reasonable thing to ask about for a mild case, but a proven antifungal is the more reliable choice, and neither replaces a doctor’s visit when the warning signs above apply.

Safety. Never swallow tea tree oil — taken by mouth it can cause confusion, unsteadiness, inability to walk and coma (NCCIH). Keep it where children can’t reach it. On the skin it can cause redness, itching, swelling and allergic rashes (contact dermatitis), more likely if the oil is old or has been exposed to heat, light or air; people with sensitive skin should take extra care (NCCIH, Memorial Sloan Kettering). Repeated use of tea tree and lavender oils has been linked to breast enlargement in young boys (Memorial Sloan Kettering). Stop if your skin reacts. We don’t list strengths or doses here.

Approach 6 of 6

MBHA Wellness Coach

Athlete’s foot loves warm, damp feet, so the habits that keep feet clean, dry and aired out do a lot of the work. An MBHA Wellness Coach can help you build them into your routine — especially if it keeps coming back.

Keep feet clean and dry

Socks and shoes

Shared spaces and shared homes

Protect your nails

Treat athlete’s foot as soon as you notice it, because it can spread to your toenails (NHS). Keep nails short, wash and disinfect nail clippers after each use, and watch for nails that thicken, split, change color or lift (American Academy of Dermatology).

If you have diabetes

Daily foot care matters even more. The CDC advises people with diabetes to check their feet every day for cuts, redness, swelling, sores and blisters; to wash them daily in warm (not hot) water and dry them completely; not to put lotion between the toes; to always wear socks with shoes and never go barefoot, even indoors; and not to wait for the next appointment if a problem such as athlete’s foot appears (CDC). A coach can help make the daily check a habit, but a coach is never a substitute for your diabetes care team.

Still being researched: Chiropractic, Acupuncture, Massage therapy. We add each approach once its costs and results are sourced. Are you a practitioner with experience treating Athlete’s Foot? Tell us.

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Sources

This page is for education only and is not medical advice. Costs are typical U.S. ranges and estimates; yours will depend on your provider, location and insurance. Talk with your doctor before starting, stopping or combining any treatment. In an emergency, call 911. See our disclaimer.

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