The best thing to put on a stye is a clean, warm compress, applied for about five minutes several times a day. Most styes heal on their own within one to two weeks with this simple treatment alone. While there are a few over-the-counter products that can help with comfort, warmth is the primary tool that draws the stye to a head and helps it drain naturally.
Warm Compresses: The Most Effective Treatment
A warm compress works by increasing blood flow to the area and softening the blocked oil or debris inside the stye, which encourages it to drain on its own. To make one, soak a clean washcloth in warm water, wring it out, and hold it gently against your closed eyelid. Keep it there for five minutes, and repeat this several times throughout the day.
The washcloth cools down quickly, so you’ll likely need to re-soak it once or twice during each five-minute session to keep the warmth consistent. Some people prefer using a microwavable eye mask designed for this purpose, which holds heat longer. Whatever you use, make sure it’s clean each time to avoid introducing new bacteria.
OTC Eye Ointments for Comfort
You’ll find stye ointments at most pharmacies, but they’re not antibiotics. The most common over-the-counter stye products are lubricant ointments made from mineral oil and white petrolatum. These work as emollients, meaning they coat and soothe the surface of the eye. They temporarily relieve the burning and irritation that comes with a stye and help prevent further irritation from dryness or friction.
These ointments won’t speed up healing or fight infection. Think of them as a comfort layer. If your stye is making your eye feel gritty, dry, or irritated every time you blink, a lubricant ointment can make the one-to-two-week healing window more tolerable. Apply a small amount along the inner edge of the lower eyelid, and expect your vision to blur temporarily since the ointment is thick.
What Not to Put on a Stye
Don’t try to pop or squeeze a stye. The veins around your eyelids and eye socket drain toward the brain, and these veins lack the valves that normally prevent blood from flowing backward. This means an infection near the eye can spread into deeper tissue surprisingly easily. Squeezing a stye can push bacteria into surrounding areas, potentially causing a serious skin infection around the eye called preseptal cellulitis, or in rare cases, even more dangerous complications.
Avoid putting makeup, contact lenses, or any non-sterile product on or near the affected eye while the stye is active. Rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, and other household antiseptics should never go near your eye. Similarly, skip antibiotic ointments meant for skin cuts, as these aren’t formulated for use around the eyes and can cause significant irritation.
Do Tea Bags Work?
Warm tea bags are a popular home remedy, and the logic isn’t entirely off. Holding a warm, damp tea bag against your eyelid for 10 to 15 minutes delivers the same kind of moist heat as a washcloth. But there’s no evidence that tea bags work any better than a plain warm compress. The tannins and antioxidants in tea haven’t been shown to provide extra benefit for styes specifically. A clean washcloth is just as effective and less likely to leave residue near your eye.
When a Stye Needs More Than Home Care
Most styes resolve without any medical treatment. But if the pain and swelling aren’t improving after 48 hours of consistent warm compresses, or if they’re getting worse after two to three days, it’s time to see an eye doctor. A stye that doesn’t respond to home care may need a prescription oral antibiotic to clear the infection, or in some cases, a doctor may need to drain it in a sterile setting.
It’s also worth knowing the difference between a stye and a chalazion, since the two look similar but behave differently. A stye is painful, tends to appear right at the edge of the eyelid near the lash line, and is caused by a bacterial infection. A chalazion is usually painless, sits farther back on the eyelid, and results from a blocked oil gland rather than an active infection. A chalazion can develop after a stye heals if the gland remains clogged. Warm compresses help both, but a persistent chalazion sometimes requires different treatment from your eye doctor.
Keeping a Stye From Coming Back
Styes tend to recur in people who are prone to them. Washing your eyelids regularly with diluted baby shampoo or a pre-made eyelid cleanser helps keep the oil glands along your lash line clear. If you wear eye makeup, remove it completely every night and replace mascara and eyeliner every few months, since bacteria accumulate in the tubes. Avoid touching or rubbing your eyes with unwashed hands, especially during cold and flu season when bacteria transfer easily from surfaces to fingers to face.