Dermaplaning Benefits, Pros and Cons

Dermaplaning is a minimally invasive cosmetic procedure that shaves away the uppermost layers of skin with a blade, and Cleveland Clinic lists it among treatments used for dull skin, fine lines, mild acne scars and peach fuzz.

A 2023 laboratory study on ex vivo human skin documents what the blade physically takes off: dermaplaning removed the stratum corneum — the skin's outermost layer — and parts of the viable epidermis beneath it.

The uses on Cleveland Clinic's list are all surface concerns — which is the layer the blade works on.

The same study measured a side effect that matters for everything you put on your face afterwards: dermaplaning significantly increased how much of a test drug permeated the treated skin, with results varying between operators.

More of a product gets through — potentially useful, and one reason post-treatment instructions deserve following.

Two myths are worth clearing up at the start, because they distort both the pros and the cons: the fine hair dermaplaning removes does not grow back thicker or darker, and dermaplaning does not remove hair permanently.

Cleveland Clinic states that peach fuzz does not grow back thicker after removal — regrowing hairs can seem thicker because the blunt tip pushes through the skin surface, but they feel softer as they grow — and that any hair removal from dermaplaning is temporary, because the hair grows back.

Our dermaplaning for peach fuzz guide covers the hair side in detail.

For the treatment as a whole — how a session works, what it costs and who may hold the blade — see our dermaplaning guide.

None of this adds up to a dramatic transformation, and none of the sources we read claims one.

Here is the case for dermaplaning as the sources actually support it:

• It targets the surface complaints Cleveland Clinic names as dermaplaning uses: dull skin, fine lines, mild acne scars and peach fuzz.
• One appointment does two jobs: the blade exfoliates the skin's uppermost layers and removes fine facial hair in the same visit.
• Cleveland Clinic says dermaplaning usually isn't painful — a scratching or stinging sensation is possible, and numbing cream may be used.
• Treatment can take from a few minutes to 90 minutes depending on the size of the area, per Cleveland Clinic.
• There is no regrowth trap: the fine hair does not grow back thicker, and the hair that returns feels softer as it grows.
• The physical action is measurable, not just marketing: the 2023 lab study found the stratum corneum and parts of the viable epidermis removed.

Two things keep this list honest, and they are the next section's subject: the clinical evidence behind the results is thin, and the hair removal is temporary, because the hair grows back.

The drawbacks mirror the pros, and the first one is the evidence itself.

A 2011 systematic review in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, which examined dermaplaning alongside topical oxygen and light therapy, found the scientific data supporting these methods "scarce, anecdotal, and not well documented" — even though patients reported satisfaction.

In the sources we read, no controlled trial reports a success rate for cosmetic dermaplaning, so there is no percentage you can hold expectations against.

The hair grows back, and we could not confirm from a clinical source how long regrowth takes or how often the treatment should be repeated — so ask a spa that quotes you a schedule where that schedule comes from.

The uses list has a floor under it.

Cleveland Clinic's wording says fine lines and mild acne scars, and the clinic states plainly that dermaplaning may not reduce the appearance of deep or raised acne scars — for those, more intensive treatments such as laser may be needed.

The exfoliation also changes how your skin behaves afterwards.

Because dermaplaning significantly increased drug permeation in lab skin, products applied to freshly treated skin get through more easily — one reason a provider may adjust your skincare, and a reason irritation from stronger actives is possible if you don't follow the aftercare you're given.

It depends on the job you want done, and the sources only take the question so far.

If the job is surface-level — dullness, fuzz, a light exfoliation — dermaplaning is a low-key appointment: Cleveland Clinic says it usually isn't painful, the physical action on the skin's top layers is documented in lab skin, and the fine hair goes with it for a while.

If the job is deeper — significant scarring in particular — the same sources point elsewhere: dermaplaning may not reduce deep or raised acne scars, and more intensive treatments such as laser may be needed for those.

The money side of "worth it" we cannot settle: our research found no tier-1 or tier-2 national price figure for dermaplaning, so every quote you see is provider-specific.

The benefit side is equally unquantified — no controlled trial we read reports a success rate, and the 2011 review's verdict on the evidence was "scarce, anecdotal, and not well documented".

What is left is a treatment whose honest pitch is modest: surface exfoliation and temporary fuzz removal, in an appointment Cleveland Clinic describes as usually not painful.

Treat the consultation as the test.

A licensed provider can tell you whether the concern you want addressed is one dermaplaning can reach — and a good one will say so when it isn't.