How Long Does a Facelift Last?

Great question. I generally tell patients there are a couple of ways to look at this. In one sense, the results are permanent because even 10, 15, or 20 years later you will look better than if you didn’t have a facelift. We will turn back the clock, but the clock keeps ticking. You will continue aging from a new, younger-looking baseline and your genetics and lifestyle choices will affect your long-term outcome. Your results will last longer if you limit sun exposure, avoid smoking, follow a healthy diet, and use great skincare. Max out maintenance with Botox, fillers, and collagen-stimulating treatments like micro-needling or TempSure Envi RF treatments, and your facelift will last even longer! As always, I advise patients to choose a board-certified plastic surgeon experienced in facial surgery and find someone you connect with and trust. Good Luck!

Thanks for the question! 
The facial aging process is like a train that is continuously moving along the train tracks. There are things like a healthy calorie-restricted diet, rich in antioxidants, avoiding sunlight and wearing sunscreen that can slow the train down. Things like weight fluctuations, “sunworship”, smoking, and a poor diet can speed it up.


A facelift is a powerful anti-aging procedure that can pull that train back, but it does not stop this process. Nothing can.
You can expect to look 10-15 years younger and results can last 10-15 years but is often a one-and-done procedure meaning you do not need to keep returning for touch-ups or procedures like you would with filler and botox.



The use of physician or medical-grade skincare like a Retinol (Vitamin A), Vitamin C, and Hydroquinone can all significantly help you protect your facelift investment.

Best Wishes,



K. Chopra, M.D.

Plastic Surgeon

Johns Hopkins Trained

Face, Body and Breast Expert

Experience has shown that, when based on an effective SMAS correction, a facelift should provide rejuvenation in appearance of the treated areas in most for around 8 – 12 years, and often longer. Naturally this can vary depending on an individual’s genetics, skin elasticity, lifestyle and skin care. The benefits achieved by the removal of excess skin and the provision of deep layer support will provide a degree of benefit for a lifetime. This means that if you are 50 and your facelift helps you look, say, 40 years of age in treated areas then, when you are 60, treated areas should still look around 50 and so on. In other words, the years that have been taken off your external appearance should largely stay off, however, as we cannot stop the ageing process completely, you will continue to age, albeit slower than most others around you