How is Botox® Priced?

As mentioned on our Botox page, Botox is typically priced in two different ways: 1) By units or 2) By area. A medical professional will pick which way they want to charge their patients for a Botox treatment between these two options. But before we get too far down the road, the best place to start would be a definition for both terms.

Botox Pricing Structures

First, what is a unit? A unit is a measurement for products like Botox. It is similar to other types of measurements like ounces, inches, and grams. In fact, licensed medical professionals can only buy Botox® in a 50-unit vial or a 100-unit vial in the United States. Medical professionals that charge by the unit are charging you based on how many units it takes them to achieve your desired outcome. The units can span across as many “areas” as needed to achieve your goal. Each practice sets its own price per unit. For example, if a practice charges $15/unit and you needed 20 units to treat your frown lines and 16 units to treat your crow’s feet then that would cost $540 (36 units x $15).

Second, what is an area? There are typically 3 different “areas” in which Botox® is administered. They are as follows:

1. Glabella complex
   1. Otherwise known as the frown lines between your eyebrows
2. Frontalis
   1. otherwise known as the forehead
3. Lateral canthal lines
   1. otherwise known as crow’s feet

There is a fixed price for treating each area. How much that price is varies from medical practice to medical practice. For example, a practice might charge $300/per area. If you wanted to get your frown lines and crow’s feet treated it would cost $600 (2 areas x $300). Medical professionals that charge by the area are charging you based on how many areas you want to be treated.

Botox Charges at Village Dermatology

We here at Village Dermatology have decided to price Botox by the unit.  So, your charge will be how many units you need, multiplied by the price of units at that time.  Sometimes we run promotions and specials, so subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Facebook/Instagram and stay abreast of any promotions we are running at that time.

So why the vast differences in prices regardless of unit or area pricing?

Each medical professional must decide what they are going to price their service at in the market. Essentially, we are talking about Economics 101. If they feel their services are worth more in the market based on training, outcomes, reputation, etc then that price will be reflected in what they charge. If they do not have the right training, bad outcomes, poor reputation, etc then they will be forced to charge less as they have nothing of value to offer their patients other than a low price.

Botox pricing – Too good to be true

Caution should be used if you find a practice or medical professional that is charging prices that are extremely low and “too good to be true”. Unfortunately, there are ways to obtain illegal Botox® (via importation) at a substantially lower cost. The issue with importation is that there is no quality control in other countries and just because they say they are selling “authentic” Botox®, there is no way to tell. These practices have either been scammed by an illegal importer from another country or have knowingly decided to put profits over patient safety. Either way, it is something you should be aware of as an educated patient. All legitimate medical professionals and practices (like Village Dermatology) buy their Botox® directly from the manufacturer Allergan. A good way to tell if the medical practice you are considering choosing for your treatment is buying from Allergan is to go to the Botox Cosmetic website and use their Find-A-Doctor tool https://www.botoxcosmetic.com/choosing-a-provider#. Only practices that buy from Allergan show up on this tool.

Here are some additional articles you might find helpful on this subject of importation.

1. https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-fda-cases/botox-police-fda-crime-unit-draws-fire-over-import-crackdown-idUSL1N1BK19T

We genuinely hope that helps to clear some things up regarding how Botox® is typically priced across the US and more importantly how to stay away from medical practices that use illegal products. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Live a beautiful life,
Village Dermatology Team

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