How a med spa or clinic gets onto our lists

What the clinic spends its days on

First comes the work each clinic really does. A med spa list is for clinics that give injectables and medical skin treatments, not hair salons, day spas without medical staff, tanning studios or shops that sell skin care. Within a list, clinics that make the treatment a core part of their week rank above those that list it as one more line on a long menu.

Some pages draw the line tighter. HydraFacial, Morpheus8 and CoolSculpting pages are for clinics that offer that named treatment. A laser hair removal or tattoo removal list is for clinics with lasers of their own. A plastic surgeon list is for surgeons who operate, and a men’s health list is for clinics where testosterone and related care are the main work, not an extra on the menu.

A record that holds up over time

Then we look at what patients have said about each clinic in public, comments anyone can read and judge for themselves. We read those comments alongside the clinic’s years in practice, so a new clinic with a few enthusiastic patients does not outweigh one that has been praised consistently for years.

What its own website tells you

Each clinic’s own website gets read too, along with its official social accounts. Does it name its medical director and the providers who treat patients, with their professional titles? Does it say which brands of toxin, filler or device it uses, how consultations work, what aftercare is included and what treatments cost? Clinics that answer these questions before you walk in give you something solid to compare.

Independence

We set the order of each list ourselves, on merit, and revisit it regularly. Inclusion is free, and no payment can alter the criteria. After selection, a clinic may pay for Pro, which brings contact links, a gallery, before-and-after photos and details of its providers to the clinic page, or for Top, a place among the first three of a list. Each paid option is marked as such wherever it appears.

Checks worth making before you book

Licenses. Get the full name and professional title of whoever will treat you. Physicians, and in most states physician assistants, appear in the license lookup of the state medical board. Nurses and nurse practitioners appear on the state board of nursing website and on Nursys, the free lookup run by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. These lookups usually show public discipline too.

Supervision. State rules decide who may inject or run a laser and how closely a physician must supervise, and they differ from one state to the next. Ask who the clinic’s medical director is and who assesses you before a prescription treatment.

Products. Ask for the brand of toxin or filler, check that it is approved by the FDA, and ask to see the sealed box or vial with its lot number. For weight loss injections, ask whether you would get a brand-name medicine approved by the FDA or a compounded version, which is not FDA approved.

Surgeons. For plastic surgery, search the surgeon’s name on Certification Matters, the public lookup of the American Board of Medical Specialties, to confirm certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Ask where the operation will take place and whether that facility is accredited or licensed by the state.

IV drips and testosterone. An IV drip should be ordered by a licensed prescriber after a look at your health history. Testosterone is a prescription medicine, and a clinic should run blood tests before prescribing it and while you take it.

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