Ultherapy for the Neck: Turkey Neck and Sagging Skin

Ultherapy is a focused-ultrasound device, and the neck is one of its cleared treatment areas.

FDA authorized the original system through the De Novo pathway (DEN080006) in 2009 for lifting the eyebrow, then cleared it (K121700) on 2012-10-02 to lift lax submental (beneath the chin) and neck tissue.

The neck and under-chin remain named areas on the current cleared indications list.

It is FDA-cleared, not FDA-approved.

The neck clearance came with data.

In the trial supporting it, 51 of 70 patients had at least 20 mm² of measured lift, and masked evaluators judged 84.3% of those improved; adverse events were mild and short-lived, with no serious adverse events reported.

Mechanically, the transducers treat at fixed depths of 1.5 mm, 3.0 mm or 4.5 mm, and the DeepSEE imaging can visualize tissue up to 8 mm below the skin surface.

Merz, the device's maker, says results come from a single PRIME session in most cases, with some initial lift and final results developing over 2 to 3 months.

Independent evidence is more guarded: a 2014 review found non-invasive tightening results have been inconsistent, with response possibly depending on age, degree of laxity, smoking, ethnicity, BMI and pain tolerance, and no consistent predictor established.

The device-wide picture — cleared areas, the PRIME console, pain and safety — is in our Ultherapy guide.

"Turkey neck" is informal shorthand for what Ultherapy's neck indication names: visibly loose, sagging tissue on the neck.

A "double chin," in the Kybella label's wording, is fullness associated with submental fat.

Ultherapy's cleared neck indication addresses the first — FDA cleared it to lift lax submental and neck tissue.

Removing fat is not on the cleared indications list, which FDA states as lifting the eyebrow, lifting lax submental and neck tissue, improving décolleté lines and wrinkles, and improving the appearance of skin laxity on the abdomen, anterior arms, posterior arms and knees (the knee indication came in May 2026).

For fat, the treatment type is different: Kybella is an injectable prescription drug, FDA-approved since 2015 to improve the appearance of moderate to severe fullness associated with submental fat in adults.

Its label tells providers to weigh risks in people with excess skin laxity or prominent platysmal bands, where results may not look good.

Our Kybella guide covers that treatment's sessions, results and side effects.

Merz describes the typical Ultherapy candidate as someone with mild to moderate skin laxity, often in their 30s or older, and says the device is not a replacement for a surgical facelift.

AAD's candidate picture is similar: the best skin-tightening candidates have a small amount of sagging, a stable healthy weight, don't smoke, drink little alcohol and protect their skin from the sun, while people with lots of sagging skin may not benefit.

Neither source calls a non-surgical tightening a match for surgery — AAD says none of these procedures matches a facelift, eyelid surgery or neck lift.

The instructions for use also name people and situations the device has not been studied for.

• Contraindicated: open wounds or lesions in the treatment area, severe or cystic acne in the area, or active implants (such as pacemakers or defibrillators) or metallic implants in the area.
• Not evaluated: use over dermal fillers, mechanical implants or breast implants, in patients on anticoagulants, in pregnant or breastfeeding women or children, or in people with conditions including bleeding disorders, herpes simplex, autoimmune disease, diabetes, epilepsy or Bell's palsy.

One session is the baseline both sources describe.

Merz says results come from a single Ultherapy PRIME session in most cases, and AAD says that with one treatment, most people see modest lifting and tightening within 2 to 6 months, and more treatments may add benefit.

We found no session count for the neck specifically in FDA's clearance documents or the maker's FAQ — there is no published neck number to hold a quote against.

A session itself runs 30 to 90 minutes depending on the area treated, Merz's FAQ says, and patients may feel heat or tingling.

The same FAQ calls the treatment "without any downtime," with redness typically fading within a few hours.

The IFU's trial picture is more detailed: in the face and neck trials, redness usually resolved within hours, swelling within 3 to 72 hours, welting within a week, bruising and tenderness anywhere from 2 days to 2 weeks, and transient muscle weakness or numbness from nerve inflammation typically resolving in 2 to 6 weeks; no permanent facial nerve injuries were reported in trials.

On how long a neck result lasts, the published record is limited.

Merz's "up to a year or more" durability claim is for the face, and FDA's cleared labeling describes the device as producing "temporary changes in the physical appearance of the skin." We found no neck-specific duration figure in the clearance documents or the manufacturer's FAQ; a licensed provider can tell you what they see in neck patients over time.

We could not confirm a national price for Ultherapy on the neck.

As of October 2026, our research found no verifiable national price range for Ultherapy or for nonsurgical skin tightening by modality: in our checks, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons had no nonsurgical skin-tightening cost page to read, and RealSelf's cost pages were blocked to our researchers.

Without a verified benchmark, a figure you see online has only the site publishing it behind it — ask licensed providers for written quotes.

With no national benchmark, each quote stands on its own, and it is worth asking what a price includes: the neck alone or the neck plus the under-chin, how many sessions are planned, and whether a touch-up session costs extra.

AAD says insurance does not cover non-invasive skin tightening, and describes results as gradual, with usually only some redness and swelling afterward.

Pricing across all of Ultherapy's treatment areas is on the Ultherapy cost page.

AAD sorts skin tightening into three tiers: subtle results from creams, modest tightening from non-invasive procedures (ultrasound, radiofrequency, certain lasers), and the most tightening without surgery from minimally invasive ones (radiofrequency delivered under the skin through a thin tube or needles, and laser resurfacing).

None of them, AAD says, matches a facelift, eyelid surgery or neck lift, and people with lots of sagging skin may not benefit from any of them.

Non-surgical tightening is not a substitute for a surgical neck lift; whether surgery makes sense is a question for the surgeons who perform one.

Another FDA-cleared ultrasound device is Sofwave, cleared on 2024-05-30 (K240687) to improve facial lines and wrinkles, lift the eyebrow, lift lax submental and neck tissue, and give short-term improvement in the appearance of cellulite in adults 22 and older.

That clearance is why Ultherapy's "only treatment cleared by the FDA" marketing line for the brow, neck and under-chin is outdated; Merz's narrower claim is that Ultherapy is the only such treatment with real-time imaging.

The two clearances overlap but are not identical — Ultherapy also carries décolleté and body-area indications.

AAD's other options: with non-invasive radiofrequency, most people have one treatment and feel some tightening right away, see best results in about six months, and may keep results for 2 to 3 years with the right skin care.

Non-ablative lasers may take 3 to 5 treatments, with results appearing gradually 2 to 6 months after the last one.

Minimally invasive radiofrequency under the skin showed results in about a month, with gradual tightening for close to a year in some studies — but it involves sedation, a few days of downtime, a driver home and possibly a compression garment for 4 to 5 days.