Botox Unit Vs Botox CC Cost Comparison

BOTOX comes dry from Allergan.  Most office dilute the product with between 1.0 ml and 4.0 ml of saline.  So in a legitimate office, this would translate into a 1 ml ( 1 cc) syringe containing between 25 units and 100 units of BOTOX.  Assuming that your doctor dilutes with 4.0 ml of saline there would be 25 Units of BOTOX in the syringe that you are treated with.  At $46 per syringe, that would mean that your doctor's office is charging you $1.84 per unit of BOTOX.  What is the chance that you are being charged $1.84 per unit of BOTOX?  About zero.  The reason is that the cost on BOTOX for your doctor is over $5 per unit.  

So presumably there is much less BOTOX than 25 units per syringe.  I have seen BOTOX advertised in Los Angeles for as little as $6.00 per unit.  Now if you think those offices are providing an actual unit for $6.00 then perhaps you also will believe that the Cubs will win the World Series next year.  At $6.00 per unit that $46.00 syringe would contain about 8 units of BOTOX.  This would mean that your doctor is diluting a vial of BOTOX with about 12.5 ml of saline.  What do these calculations mean?  One, your doctor is not honest with your regarding what you are being charged for, and two, it is time to find an honest BOTOX injector.  

You do not necessarily need to spend $18 per unit but it is much more likely that your friends are getting what they are paying for.  If the price is too good, it probably is.

The price of Botox operation depends on several factors such as the difficulty of your case and your request for your operation area.
In my practice, prices for Botox operation reaches from 325 Euro up to 350 Euro range. If you want to learn more you can visit my profile.

Thank you for your question. Botox is not normally sold by the cc. This is more common for fillers. Some injectors sell Botox by the syringe, but this becomes a very difficult way to compare with units as the injector may reconstitute their Botox differently. I train other injectors on the safe and effective use of Botox (and other injectables).  I find that core aesthetic physicians (e.g. plastic surgeons and dermatologists) have a deeper understanding of anatomy and the physiology of facial aging and thus I spend less more time focusing my teachings on assessment and the underlying anatomy. For non-core (e.g nurses, family practice physicians, OB/Gyn), this is not something they get a lot of training in during their medical training. Most of Botox complications that reported is usually due to technique and inadequate assessment. I would strongly recommend that you stick with a board certified plastic surgeon or dermatologist who does a high volume of injectables as part of their practice.  You may pay more, but knowledge and experience is vitally important to having a safe and effective result.

Most injectors charge per unit. This can range from $10-$15 in Toronto, ON. I am unsure how much 1 cc would be since a Botox unit can be diluted at a varying amount. 

Most botox providers dilute the botox with 2 cc's of normal saline. So 1 cc should contain 50 units more or less (there are 100 units in a vial). The best way is to go with units. This way you can compare apples to apples.

The result  really depends on how many units are actually delivered and that will vary according to the dilution or preparation of the product. It would be like charging you for sugar that was in a cup of coffee. It really depends on how many packets of sugar you put in. One packet will not taste the same as 4 packets, despite both being deleivered in 8 ounces. Ask how many units you are receiving.

As dilution between different doctors offices vary, the standardization occurs by describing the number of units injected. Most doctors would dilute the bottle of Botox with either 1, 2 or 2.5 ccs of water. If you inject with 10ccs, the longevity of the effectiveness will be short and the risk of affecting other muscles and getting an undesired effect is higher from gravitational shifting of the higher volume of fluid needed to give the same number of units of Botox as a regular dilution.  Even if 10 ccs were used to dilute the Botox, one cc costing $46 would not cover the cost of the Botox that the physician has to pay! There may have been a misunderstanding. You should ask how many units are in that one cc.

Botox is a medication- its biologic activity is expressed in terms of 'units'. This makes for convenient dosing and replication of treatment between providers. The 'CC' refers to the volume of saline that the units of Botox are placed in. The important number to pay attention to is the number of units you were treated with.

Botox is priced with great variation. Our clinic offers Botox specials as low as $10 per unit.  A typical treatment for forehead lines (vertical and horizontal) and  crow's feet  is about 30 units. Optimally, the treatment should last 4-5 months.

Botox is measured in units.  You should always ask how many units have been injected into which areas.  CC or cubic centimeter is a measure of volume which is equal to one milliliter.  Botox should not be measured in cc's as there could be a different amount of units per cc depending on how the physician mixed it.  It is also important to ask when your Botox was mixed or reconstituted as there is an amount of time after reconstitution where the Botox will no longer be as effective.

Botox is measured in units. How many units per cc is the "dilution" and that can be different based on who is preparing the Botox. Ask your injector how he/she dilutes the medication.