The quickest way to tell a verruca from a corn is to look for tiny black dots and check the skin lines: a verruca usually has black dots and the lines on your sole bend around it; a corn has no dots and the lines run straight across. A verruca hurts more when squeezed from the sides; a corn hurts more when pressed straight down. If you are still unsure, a podiatrist can tell in seconds.
Key facts
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Black dots | Verruca: usually. Corn: never |
| Skin lines | Verruca: bend around it. Corn: run straight across |
| Hurts most when | Verruca: squeezed from the sides. Corn: pressed straight down |
| Cause | Verruca: a virus (HPV). Corn: pressure or friction |
| Who can confirm it | A podiatrist, usually in seconds |
How can you tell a verruca from a corn?
1. Black dots. Look closely, with a magnifying glass if you have one. A verruca usually shows tiny black or dark red dots in its centre, which are small blood vessels that have grown into it. A corn never has them. Early verrucas may not have developed dots yet, so no dots does not rule a verruca out, but dots rule a corn out.
2. Skin lines. The sole has fine lines like a fingerprint. On a corn or patch of hard skin, the lines run straight across the lump. On a verruca, they stop at the edge and detour around it, because the verruca is a separate growth rather than thickened normal skin.
3. The squeeze test. Pinch the lump between finger and thumb from the sides. A verruca hurts. Now press straight down on it. A corn hurts. Verrucas are tender to sideways pressure because the blood vessels inside them are squeezed; corns are tender to direct pressure because their hard core is pushed into the skin beneath.
4. Where it is. Corns form where a bone presses on the skin: on top of the toes where shoes rub, on the tips of the toes, between the toes, and under the ball of the foot beneath the heads of the long bones. A verruca can be anywhere on the sole, including places with no bony pressure point, such as the arch.
5. Whether it spreads. A corn stays where the pressure is and does not multiply. Verrucas can spread: small satellites appear nearby, or several merge into a flat mosaic patch.
| Verruca | Corn | |
|---|---|---|
| Black dots | Usually | Never |
| Skin lines | Bend around it | Run across it |
| Hurts most when | Squeezed from the sides | Pressed straight down |
| Position | Anywhere on the sole | Over a pressure point |
| Spreads | Can | Does not |
| Cause | Virus (HPV) | Pressure or friction |
| Centre | Rough, cauliflower-like | Smooth, hard, often translucent core |
What is a corn?
A corn is a small, dense plug of hard skin that the foot builds over a point of repeated pressure or friction. The body is protecting itself; the problem is that the plug becomes hard enough to press into the softer skin beneath, which hurts. Corns on the top or tips of the toes are usually from shoes; corns under the ball of the foot are from the way you walk or the shape of your foot. A soft corn between the toes is a damp, whitish version of the same thing.
Because a corn is caused by pressure, it comes back after removal unless the pressure is addressed with better-fitting shoes, padding, an insole or, occasionally, treatment of the underlying toe or bone shape.
What is a verruca?
A verruca is a wart on the sole of the foot caused by the human papillomavirus. It is an infection of the top layer of skin, caught from contaminated floors or direct contact, and it goes when the immune system clears the virus or treatment destroys enough of the infected tissue. Our guide to what a verruca is covers the detail, and verruca stages shows how one changes over time.
Why does the difference matter for treatment?
Verrucas and corns are treated differently and the wrong treatment wastes months.
- Treating a corn as a verruca: salicylic acid will soften the hard skin and the corn will seem to improve, then return as soon as you stop, because the pressure is still there. Freezing a corn does nothing useful and hurts.
- Treating a verruca as a corn: a podiatrist can pare away a corn in one visit and it is gone. Paring a verruca removes the hard skin over it but leaves the virus, so it regrows within weeks, and the scalpel can spread it.
- Ignoring a verruca because you think it is a corn: it may spread to other parts of the foot or to other people in the house.
Could it be both, or something else?
A verruca can hide under a corn or callus, because the foot builds hard skin over any painful point on the sole. A podiatrist will pare the hard skin away and look for the black dots and the interrupted skin lines underneath.
Rarely, a lump on the sole is neither. A plantar fibroma is a firm lump in the arch under the skin rather than in it. A foreign body such as a splinter or glass can mimic a verruca. Very rarely, a skin cancer can appear on the sole. See a podiatrist or GP about any lump that bleeds without being knocked, grows quickly, has an irregular edge or uneven colour, or does not behave like either a corn or a verruca.
When to see a podiatrist
If the five checks give a clear answer and you do not have diabetes, poor circulation or a weakened immune system, you can treat a verruca with a pharmacy product (see how to get rid of a verruca) or a corn with a corn plaster and a change of shoes. See a podiatrist if:
- The checks do not give a clear answer.
- The lump is painful enough to affect walking.
- It has been there more than a few months.
- You have diabetes, poor circulation or reduced feeling in your feet. Never use acid plasters in this case.
- It is a child under about ten; children’s skin is more sensitive to home treatments and a podiatrist may advise leaving a verruca alone.
A podiatrist can confirm the diagnosis in seconds, pare a corn in the same appointment, and offer stronger verruca treatments than a pharmacy sells. Use the listings on verrucatreatment.co.uk to find one near you; published starting prices for a general chiropody appointment are typically £45 (checked October 2026). Look for “HCPC” on the listing and check the name on the HCPC register.
Sources
- NHS: Warts and verrucas
- NHS: Corns and calluses
- Royal College of Podiatry: Common foot problems
- Health and Care Professions Council: check the register