Compare · Procedures

Radiesse vs Ultherapy

Radiesse: An injectable made of calcium-based microspheres in a gel. It adds volume the day it is placed and then prompts the skin to build collagen. It cannot be dissolved.

Ultherapy: Focused ultrasound delivered through the skin to heat small points in the deeper layers, so the body lays down new collagen over the following months. It gives a mild tightening of loose skin on the brow, jawline and neck. It is not a facelift, and the treatment itself is painful.

Reviewed by Dr. Schwarz, Board-Certified Dermatologist
Last updated: 10/22/2026
Editorial illustration for Radiesse, based on the entry’s treatment or equipment reference.Editorial illustration for Ultherapy, based on the entry’s treatment or equipment reference.
Choose ifKey differencesWhat is it?What it treatsTreatment areasSkin tonesHow it worksBefore your treatmentDay of treatmentAfter your treatmentRisksCostQuestionsRelated

Choose Radiesse if…

Choose for structural volume in the cheeks, jaw or hands when you want collagen stimulation too — it can't be dissolved.

  • Cheek, jawline or hand volume loss
  • You want results lasting over a year
  • Not for lips or under the eyes

Choose Ultherapy if…

Choose for a mild lift of the brow, jaw or neck without surgery or downtime — not a facelift, and the treatment hurts.

  • Early, mild sagging
  • No downtime is essential
  • You accept a modest, gradual result
Fine together

Can you have both?

Ultherapy lifts while Radiesse adds structure. Do Ultherapy first, or wait several weeks after Radiesse.

Key differences

● Radiesse
● Ultherapy
DowntimeNone → 2+ weeks
3–7 days
None
PainMinimal → Needs anesthesia or sedation
Mild
Significant
Results showImmediately → 3+ months
Immediately
1–3 months
How long it lastsWeeks → Years or permanent
1–2 years
6–12 months
Visits neededOne → Every few months
Yearly top-ups
Yearly top-ups
Cost per visit$ → $$$$$
$$$
$$$$
ReversibleYes, can be undone → No, permanent
No, fades slowly
No, fades slowly

What is it?

Radiesse

Ultherapy

What is it?

It is a calcium-based filler.

Radiesse contains calcium hydroxylapatite microspheres in a gel.

It provides structure.

It supports tissue and triggers a later tissue response.

Diluted uses differ.

Hyperdilute use is not the same as volumizing.

Ask about the plan.

The intended use determines the evidence and rescue options.

It uses focused ultrasound.

Ultherapy heats selected tissue depths under visualization.

It targets skin laxity.

It is used for selected concerns about loose skin.

It is not a facelift.

It does not remove excess skin.

Operator skill matters.

Energy placed in the wrong tissue can cause injury.

What it treats

Evidence level
Radiesse
Ultherapy
Strong evidenceMost established uses
Volume Loss on light skin.

Volume Loss

Restores fullness.

—
Moderate evidenceSome supportive research
Sagging Skin on light skin.

Sagging Skin

Diluted versions improve firmness.

A relaxed forehead with pronounced deep horizontal furrows.

Deep Wrinkles

Fills deep folds.

Sagging Skin on light skin.

Sagging Skin

Mild lift of brow and jaw.

Little evidence
A relaxed forehead with faint shallow horizontal fine lines.

Wrinkles and Fine Lines

Too heavy for fine lines.

A relaxed forehead with pronounced deep horizontal furrows.

Deep Wrinkles

Limited change on deep folds.

Not effective
Thin Lips on light skin.

Thin Lips

Not used in the lips.

Volume Loss on light skin.

Volume Loss

Doesn't add volume.

Acne scarring on light skin. Small sharply cut pits and broad shallow dips across a cheek, several sitting inside faint flat pink marks, with no active spots.

Acne Scarring

Doesn't change scars.

Treatment areas

Treatment areas

Facial volume loss and backs of the hands; product use and dilution depend on the plan.

Brow, jawline and neck.

Skin tones

Skin tone
● Radiesse
● Ultherapy
Lighter skin
Low risk
Bruising fades in a week.
Low risk
Not a pigment-based treatment.
Medium skin
Low risk
Not a pigment-based treatment.
Low risk
Energy bypasses the surface.
Deeper skin
Low risk
Bruising may leave brief dark marks.
Low risk
Safe across skin tones.

How it works

Radiesse

Ultherapy

How it works
Radiesse mechanism diagram. The material is placed: A clinician injects calcium hydroxylapatite in a gel carrier. The gel provides initial support: Early correction depends on formulation and placement. Collagen response develops: Tissue remodeling contributes as the gel carrier is absorbed.
Ultherapy mechanism diagram. Ultrasound locates tissue planes: Imaging helps the clinician view the treatment area. Focused energy creates heat points: Ultrasound concentrates energy at selected depths. Repair remodels support tissue: Collagen changes develop gradually; lifting effects vary.
Diagram explanation

The material is placed: A clinician injects calcium hydroxylapatite in a gel carrier. The gel provides initial support: Early correction depends on formulation and placement. Collagen response develops: Tissue remodeling contributes as the gel carrier is absorbed.

Schematic illustration. Technique and response vary. This explains a mechanism and does not specify treatment settings.

Ultrasound locates tissue planes: Imaging helps the clinician view the treatment area. Focused energy creates heat points: Ultrasound concentrates energy at selected depths. Repair remodels support tissue: Collagen changes develop gradually; lifting effects vary.

Schematic illustration. Technique and response vary. This explains a mechanism and does not specify treatment settings.

Before your treatment

Radiesse
Ultherapy
2–4 weeks before

2 weeks before: Events and dental: Do not book within two weeks of an event; bruising and swelling are normal, and swelling makes the early result look bigger.

Before you book: Infections and scans: Reschedule if there is an active infection, cold sore or inflamed cyst in the area.

Not specified
The week before

A few days before: Blood thinners: Ask the prescribing doctor before pausing one.

The day before: Alcohol: None.

Until the visit: Skin care: Nothing to stop, and no pre-treatment cream needed.

Day of treatment

Radiesse
Ultherapy
Before you arrive
Not specified

An hour before: Pain relief: Ask what is on offer.

Arrival & prep

The area is assessed sitting up, photographed, and the injection points marked.

Photos and a ride: Photographs first — the change is gradual and modest, so photos are the only reliable way to judge it.

Photographs are taken, areas marked, and the provider decides which depths and how many lines of energy each area gets.

Treatment

The product goes in deep, often onto or just above bone, through a needle or a blunt cannula, then each area is molded smooth.

A face takes about 20 to 40 minutes; hands and diluted treatments are quicker. You feel pressure and a deep ache more than sharp pain, with stinging at the entry points.

Gel goes on and the handpiece is pressed to the skin.

The provider checks the imaging screen and delivers a line of energy: seconds of deep heat and sharp pain, then a pause. Swapping the transducer changes depth. Face and neck take 60 to 90 minutes, smaller areas about 30. It is worst over the jawbone and brow and stops when the treatment does.

Before you leave

Swollen, with small red marks at the entry points and possible bruising.

Skin is flushed and slightly swollen, sometimes with small raised lines along the path.

After your treatment

Radiesse
Ultherapy
First 24 hours

Days 1 to 3: Bruises appear at needle sites and the area feels tender and firm — swelling and product, not a lump.

Days 1 to 7: The area is tender to press and can ache when chewing if the jaw was treated.

Days 2–7

Days 4 to 14: Swelling drains and the area softens.

Not specified
Weeks 2–4

Weeks 2 to 12: The gel carrier is absorbed while new collagen replaces it.

Weeks 1 to 4: Swelling gone, sensation returning, skin looking the way it did before.

Weeks 4 to 8: Remaining numbness or tenderness usually resolves.

Time to results

Immediately

2–3 months, building to 6

How long results last

About 12–18 months

About 1 year

Risks

Risks
  • Most reactions are injection-site effects that settle within a week or two
  • A lump you can feel
  • A pale or white line under the skin
  • Spreading redness or tenderness
  • A new lump months later
  • Unevenness between the two sides
  • Most of what happens is mild and short-lived
  • Numbness lasting more than a couple of months
  • Weakness or asymmetry of the face
  • A hollow or dented area
  • A raised line or ridge
  • A cold sore outbreak

Cost

Per session

In the US a syringe usually runs about $700 to $1,200.

In the US a single smaller area such as under the chin, the brow or the chest runs about $1,000 to $2,000, and a full face and neck about $2,000 to $4,500, varying a lot by city and practice.

Insurance

Insurance does not cover cosmetic use.

Insurance does not cover it.

Questions

Radiesse

Ultherapy

Individual Questions
Is Radiesse a filler or a collagen stimulator?

Both. The gel gives volume the day it is injected, and the calcium particles prompt new collagen over the following months as the gel is absorbed.

Can Radiesse be dissolved?

No. Hyaluronidase dissolves hyaluronic acid only, and there is no equivalent here. A result you dislike has to be managed with time, massage, steroid injection or, rarely, minor surgery. Understand that before you agree to it.

How long does it last?

Usually about 12 to 18 months in the face, then a gradual decline. Some people keep a little extra firmness from the collagen that formed, but that is a bonus, not the plan.

Why can it not go in my lips?

It is firm and lips move constantly. That gives a high rate of lumps, and a lump in a lip is visible and hard to treat in a product that cannot be dissolved. Hyaluronic acid is used there instead.

Will it show up on an X-ray or a dental scan?

Yes, on X-rays and CT scans, which is harmless. Tell your dentist and any radiologist so a bright patch is not investigated as something else.

Will it feel hard?

It should not, once swelling settles. Placed deep, it feels like your own tissue. Firmness you can feel through the skin after a few weeks usually means it sat too shallow — worth reporting.

Does Ultherapy hurt?

Yes — one of the more painful non-invasive treatments, worst along the jaw and brow where bone sits underneath. The pain comes in bursts with each line of energy and stops when the treatment ends. Ask about pain control before booking: a painkiller beforehand, a nerve block, or a mild sedative.

How much lift will I actually get?

A mild one. In somewhat loose skin it shows as a slightly crisper jawline and a small lift at the brow, visible in side-by-side photographs more than in the mirror. Heavy sagging does not respond.

When will I see it, and how long does it last?

Nothing for the first month, change from around two to three months, peak at about six. It then fades over roughly a year to eighteen months.

Is it the same as the HIFU offered at a spa?

Not necessarily. Ultrasound devices differ in energy and design, and most cheaper machines have no imaging screen, so the operator cannot see the tissue layers. Ask what device is being used and who is operating it.

Can nerve damage happen?

Rare, and reported — usually temporary weakness of a facial muscle or numbness recovering over weeks to months. It is the main reason to care who is holding the handpiece.

Is it safe on deeper skin tones?

Yes, and one of the better energy options for deeper skin tones, because ultrasound is not absorbed by pigment the way laser light is. Settings do not change.

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