Health News Share Email Print How to remove a tick Reviewed 7/3/2023 Remove a tick in 4 easy steps There are more than 90 different types of ticks in the U.S. Ticks can carry disease, so it's a good idea to avoid them entirely. But if one bites you, make sure you remove it correctly. To remove a tick, grab a pair of fine-tipped tweezers, and follow these four steps. STEP 1 Grasp the tick right next to your skin—as close to its mouth as you can get. STEP 2 Pull the tick straight out with a slow, steady motion. Don't twist or crush it. STEP 3 Save the tick in a jar for identification in case of infection. STEP 4 Use soap and water to clean your hands and the skin around the bite. DON'T USE THESE! These tools aren't effective for removing a tick: Alcohol. Petroleum jelly. Heat. Fingers. Nail polish. CALL YOUR DOCTOR IF: Part of the tick's head or mouth remains embedded in your skin. You notice any signs of infection, such as: A rash. Fever, headache or other flu-like symptoms. Joint pain or redness. Swollen lymph nodes. Sources Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Preventing Tick Bites." https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/avoid/on_people.html. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Tick Removal." https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/removing_a_tick.html. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Ticks." https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/index.html. MedlinePlus. "Tick Removal." https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/007211.htm. Purdue University. "Ticks." https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publichealth/insects/tick.html. Related stories Health information main Health tools go Select a health topic ADHD Aging Alcohol use disorder Allergies Alternative medicine Alzheimer's disease Arthritis Asthma Babies Backs Bladder Bones Brain Breast cancer Cancer Cancer prevention Caregiving Cervical cancer Children and parenting Cholesterol Colds Colorectal cancer Coronavirus Dental care Depression Diabetes Disaster preparedness Down syndrome Ears Eating disorders Emergencies End of life/Palliative care Environmental health Epilepsy Eyes Fall prevention Family and relationships Feet Fitness and exercise Flu Food safety Hair Headache Health assessments Health calculators Healthcare Heart attack Heart health Hepatitis Hernia High blood pressure Hips HIV/AIDS Holiday health Hormones Imaging Incontinence Joints Kidneys Knees Leukemia Liver Lung cancer Lungs Medications Men's health Menopause Mental health Multiple sclerosis Nails Nose Nutrition Obesity Oral cancer Ovaries Pain Parkinson's disease Pets Pneumonia Pregnancy Prostate cancer Rehabilitation Reproductive health Safety School health Sexuality Sexually transmitted infections Skin Skin cancer Sleep Smoking Sports injuries Stomach pain Stress and anxiety Stroke Substance use disorder Summer safety Surgery Teen health Throat Thyroid Travel Vaccines Vascular health Violence Vitamins and supplements Weight management Winter health Women's health Workplace health Wound care i Providers Family Medicine Infectious Diseases Internal Medicine RSS If you have questions or comments, please contact Randolph Health. Problems reading or opening a page? Legal restrictions and terms of use applicable to this site.