VI Peel: Types, Cost, Peeling Timeline and Results

VI Peel is a line of professional chemical peels made by the Vitality Institute (VI Aesthetics), a company based in Los Angeles.

VI says it makes six formulas — five for the face and one for the body — and that its products are only available to purchase and apply through a licensed healthcare professional.

No VI Peel is FDA-approved; the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) considers chemical peels cosmetic, which is also why insurers do not cover them.

VI describes all six as medium-depth peels: the company says they "penetrate through the Dermal-Epidermal Junction to the papillary dermis," a layer of the dermis — the living skin beneath the skin's surface.

That is VI's own description of its product line, not an independent classification.

For context, the AAD sorts chemical peels into light, medium and deep classes by healing time — 1 to 7 days for a light "lunchtime" peel, 7 to 14 days for a medium peel, and 14 to 21 days for a deep peel done in a surgical setting.

What is actually in the peel is harder to pin down.

We did not find per-formula ingredient lists published on VI's consumer site, and the ingredient lists that circulate on retailer and clinic pages — commonly TCA, retinoic acid, salicylic acid, phenol and vitamin C — are unverified, so we will not repeat them as fact.

What we can say is that VI's own FAQ tells anyone with an aspirin, hydroquinone or phenol allergy not to get a VI Peel, which is consistent with some of those ingredients being present, but the exact formulation of each formula is not something we could confirm.

If you want the general education — how peel depth works, what each acid class does, and how recovery differs — that lives in our chemical peels guide.

This page stays on the VI Peel line itself.

VI positions each formula at a different set of skin concerns.

Everything in the table below is VI's own description of its products, not an independent assessment.

For each formula in detail, including VI Precision Peel Plus, see our formula breakdown.

On skin tone, VI's FAQ says all VI Peel treatments are "safe and effective for ALL skin tones." That is the manufacturer's marketing claim, and we cannot verify it.

The AAD's separate guidance on chemical peels is more conditional: people with skin of color can safely have peels, the academy says, but should see a dermatologist experienced with darker skin, because without that expertise permanent pigment problems can develop.

VI also publishes a list of people who should not get a VI Peel:

• People who are pregnant or breastfeeding
• Anyone allergic to aspirin, hydroquinone or phenol
• Anyone who has taken oral isotretinoin in the last 6 months
• People with active cold sores, warts or open wounds, or a history of herpes simplex
• People who had chemotherapy or radiation in the last 6 months
• People with autoimmune disease, liver disease or weakened immunity

VI says that list is not exhaustive, and that its peels are typically not recommended for patients with eczema.

Treat it as a manufacturer's contraindication list, not a medical screening: whether a peel makes sense for your skin, your medications and your history is a question for a licensed provider who examines you.

We can't give you a price.

We could not verify VI Peel prices from any manufacturer, survey or professional source, and VI publishes no prices itself — so any specific dollar figure you see online is unverified as far as our research goes.

Whatever a practice quotes you is that practice's own price.

For more on pricing, see the cost of a VI Peel.

The cost structure we can describe comes from VI's own recommendations.

VI says a series of 3 to 6 peels, spaced every 4 to 6 weeks, gives the best results, and that you can also have 4 peels a year, quarterly or seasonally, for maintenance.

If you follow that cadence, the number that matters is the per-peel price multiplied by the peels in your plan — so when you ask a med spa for a price, ask what a series costs as well as a single peel.

Two more things shape the bill.

First, insurance: the AAD considers chemical peels cosmetic, so insurance does not cover them.

Second, the aftercare: VI's instructions have patients using a post-peel kit for the full week after treatment, so ask whether that kit is included in the quote or billed separately.

How many sessions: VI recommends a series of 3 to 6 peels for optimal results, spaced every 4 to 6 weeks, and says people who want to maintain results can instead have 4 peels a year, quarterly or seasonally.

That is the manufacturer's recommendation, not an independent guideline, and a provider may plan something different for your skin.

What results to expect is the question our research can least support.

We did not find independent clinical trial data measuring VI Peel outcomes; the only VI-specific material our research turned up was VI's own patient-results marketing and per-formula descriptions.

We won't restate marketing as expected outcomes.

Ask any provider you consult what changes they see, over what timeline, in patients with skin like yours.

For photos, see before and after VI Peel.

How long results last is the same story: we could not confirm a sourced duration for VI Peel results, so a month count attached to this brand anywhere online is unverified as far as our research goes.

A provider can tell you what they see in their own patients — and no evidence we found supports a promise of permanent results.

On pain: VI's own FAQ warns about itching and stinging, so a VI Peel is not something we would call painless — no source we verified supports that word.

If comfort during treatment matters to you, ask the practice before you book how they handle it.

On downtime, VI describes a peeling week.

The company's patient page lays out a typical course:

• Day 2: some flaking
• Days 3 to 5: peeling
• Day 6: peeling eases
• Day 7: by now, VI says, most patients have stopped peeling

VI's aftercare rules for that week are specific:

• No makeup and no topical products of any kind — including sunscreen — for the first 4 hours after application
• Use only the post-peel kit for the full week
• No exercise for 72 to 96 hours — VI's stated reason is to prevent blistering and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH); VI says to sit out the whole 7 days if you are prone to pigmentation or melasma

Keep that timeline in perspective: it is VI describing its own product.

The AAD's general healing guidance for the medium-peel class is 7 to 14 days, with redness and swelling.

The two describe different things — a manufacturer's course for one product line versus a class of procedures — and your skin may not follow either exactly.

For the peeling week in pictures, see VI Peel day-by-day photos.

Start with VI's own warnings: the company's FAQ flags itching and stinging during treatment, and it tells patients prone to pigmentation to keep heat and exercise out of the peel week because of the risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) — dark marks that can follow skin inflammation.

For chemical peels as a class, the AAD lists persistent redness that can last months, skin that temporarily darkens, skin that turns lighter than the surrounding area after medium or deep peels and, rarely, scarring.

The academy's guidance for skin of color is worth weighing against any marketing you read: peels can be done safely in darker skin, but by a provider experienced with it — without that experience, people can develop permanent pigment problems.

VI Peel shares a med spa menu with other chemical peels and with non-peel skin treatments.

One honesty note first: we found no head-to-head trials comparing VI Peel with the alternatives in the sources we checked, so there is no evidence-based ranking here — only what each treatment is, from its own source.

Against other peels, the meaningful variables are depth and formula, and that comparison is generic peel education — our chemical peels guide owns it.

What is VI-specific: one company's line of six formulas, all described by that company as medium-depth peels, sold only through licensed healthcare professionals.

Against non-peel treatments: microneedling uses tiny needles to puncture the skin and stimulate collagen — the AAD calls it collagen induction therapy and lists acne scars, dark spots, large pores, melasma, stretch marks, texture and fine lines among its uses, with redness and swelling that usually clear within a few days to a week. Microdermabrasion is a nonsurgical, nonchemical treatment aimed at superficial concerns — fine lines, dullness, brown spots, mild acne scars, sun damage — in courses of five to 12 sessions spaced a week or two apart. Hydrafacial markets its Platinum treatment as seven steps in one, including cleansing and exfoliation, a peel step, vortex extraction and booster serums; the device's user guide says the system abrades the upper layers of the skin.

Those descriptions come from three different sources — the AAD, Cleveland Clinic and Hydrafacial's own manual — so they are context, not a like-for-like ranking.

The practical sorting question is the concern you want addressed.

VI positions its formulas at pigmentation, acne and mature skin; the AAD positions microneedling at scarring and texture; Cleveland Clinic positions microdermabrasion at superficial dullness and spots.

Take that map to a licensed provider, and ask what they would recommend for your skin, and why.

VI is explicit about who it sells to: the company says VI Peel products may only be purchased and applied through a licensed healthcare professional, are not sold to consumers, and that peels sold by consumer retailers or online "should be considered unsafe." To become a VI Peel provider, VI says a practice must have a licensed medical director — the company lists MDs, DOs, PAs, RNs and NPs.

Read that for what it is: VI's own account policy for who can buy its products, not a statement of who may legally perform a peel in your state.

That is governed by state licensing law, and it is exactly why we don't publish one national answer.

When you screen a med spa, ask three questions: who will apply the peel, what license do they hold, and what training have they had on this product line.

The AAD's experience point belongs in the same conversation: if you have skin of color, ask any provider you screen directly about their experience with darker skin.

And since VI publishes the formula names but no prices, the practice you visit is the source for both what it stocks and what it charges.