Botox and Anti-Wrinkle Injections in London

Q: How much does Botox cost in London?

Cost is confirmed at consultation.

Anti-wrinkle injections are the most performed aesthetic treatment in the world and the one most often done badly, because the medicine is the same in every syringe and the result depends entirely on who maps the muscles and decides the dose. I have injected faces for over a decade and taught other doctors and nurses to do it. Every face here is dosed to its own muscles, and every patient keeps their expression.

Botox is the best-known brand of botulinum toxin type A, a prescription-only medicine that relaxes the muscles of facial expression so that the lines they fold into the skin soften and, over time, stop forming. It treats the horizontal forehead lines, the frown lines between the brows and the crow’s feet at the eyes, and in smaller doses the brow, the bunny lines, a gummy smile, the lip, the chin, the corners of the mouth, the jaw, the neck and the sweat glands of the underarms. A treatment takes 10 to 15 minutes, results begin at day three and are full at fourteen, and the effect lasts three to four months. Because the medicine is prescription-only, it is prescribed after a face-to-face consultation with me, and I use Botox, Bocouture or Azzalure depending on the face. Your fee is confirmed at consultation, once your treatment plan is agreed.

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2 weeks
Full result and review

ABOUT ANTI-WRINKLE INJECTIONS

What Botox is, how it works and what it can and cannot do

Lines on the face come in two kinds. Dynamic lines appear when a muscle contracts, the forehead lifting, the brow frowning, the eyes crinkling, and disappear when it relaxes. Static lines are the creases that remain at rest after years of the same movement have folded the skin along the same line. Botulinum toxin treats the first directly and the second slowly. Injected into a muscle in tiny doses, it blocks the release of acetylcholine at the nerve ending, so the muscle receives a weaker signal and contracts less. The skin over it is no longer folded, the dynamic line softens within days, and a static line that has not yet become a permanent crease softens over months as the skin repairs.

The dose decides everything. Too little and the line remains; too much and the face is frozen, the brow drops, or the eyebrows arch into the Spock look that comes from relaxing the middle of the forehead and not the sides. Every muscle of the face pulls against another: the frontalis lifts the brow and the glabellar muscles and the orbicularis pull it down, so treating one without balancing the other moves the brow. I map each face by asking you to frown, raise, squint and smile, marking where the muscles actually are rather than where the textbook says, and I dose to the strength of the muscle and the look you want, from full softening to the light touch people call baby Botox. The medicine is the same; the plan is not.

What anti-wrinkle injections cannot do: they cannot fill a crease that is already etched at rest, which needs skin boosters, a retinoid or, for a deep line, a little filler; they cannot lift skin that has loosened, which is Sofwave or a thread lift; and they cannot restore volume, which is filler. Most faces over forty need a plan that uses two of these, and the fine lines and wrinkles page explains how I decide. My blog on how long Botox lasts covers the timeline in detail.

AREAS TREATED

Where anti-wrinkle injections are used

The upper face is the classic treatment. The rest are small, precise doses that change a specific thing, and each has its own page where the detail warrants it.

Forehead, frown and crow's feet

The three standard areas. Softens horizontal lines, the elevens between the brows and the lines at the eyes.

Brow lift

A few units below the outer brow and in the frown to let the forehead lift the brow tail. Opens the eye by a millimetre or two.

Gummy smile, lip flip, chin and mouth corners

Small doses to the lip elevators, the lip border, the mentalis or the muscles pulling the corners down.

Masseter and jawline

Slims a square jaw and relieves teeth grinding.

Nefertiti neck lift

Relaxes the platysma to lift and sharpen the jawline and soften neck bands.

Excessive sweating

Underarms, hands or feet. Blocks the nerve signal to the sweat glands for six months or more.

Trapezius and calf slimming

Slims the shoulder muscles for a longer neck, or the calves. Assessed at consultation.

THE TREATMENT

What happens at the consultation and the treatment

The consultation takes 15 minutes for a new patient and is legally required, because the medicine is prescription-only and I am the prescriber. I ask what bothers you and what you want to keep: many patients want their forehead smooth but their brows mobile, or their crow’s feet softer but their smile unchanged. I watch you frown, raise, squint and smile, look at the resting position of the brows and eyelids, feel the strength of the muscles, and ask about previous treatment and what you liked and disliked about it. Then I mark the points on the skin and explain the dose, and we agree the areas and the price in writing.

The treatment takes 10 minutes. No anaesthetic is needed; the needle is the finest made and each injection is a brief scratch. Small bumps appear at each point and settle within twenty minutes. I dose by the muscle, not by a fixed number of units per area, so a strong male frown receives more than a fine female one and a first-timer receives a little less than someone whose muscles I know. The bumps are gone before you leave; the medicine has done nothing yet.

Results begin at day three to five, are full at day fourteen and last three to four months, longer with regular treatment as the muscles weaken. The review at two weeks is included: I check symmetry and movement and add a small top-up where one side is stronger. Anti-wrinkle injections combine with filler two weeks either side, with Profhilo or skin boosters to finish the skin over the relaxed lines, and with the masseter and Nefertiti treatments for the lower face in the same appointment.

“The frozen forehead is not a Botox problem, it is a dosing problem. I would rather a patient come back at two weeks for a few more units than spend three months unable to look surprised. Preservation over paralysis: the aim is a face that moves, with the lines taken out of it.”

Dr Chiké Emeagi, MRCS, GMC 4418489

BOTOX VS THE ALTERNATIVES

How anti-wrinkle injections compare with other line treatments

Each row is a treatment patients ask me to compare. The realistic-result column is what I say in the room.

Treatment	What it does	Best for	Onset and duration	Downtime	Realistic result
Anti-wrinkle injections, standard dose	Relaxes the muscles of expression	Dynamic lines of the forehead, frown and eyes	3 to 14 days; 3 to 4 months	None	Lines softened; expression kept if dosed well
Baby Botox	Smaller doses at more points	Younger faces, first-timers, anyone wanting movement	3 to 14 days; 2 to 3 months	None	A softer, more natural version; wears off sooner
Skin boosters and Profhilo	Hydrate and remodel the skin	Fine crepiness and static lines with the muscle already relaxed	4 to 8 weeks; 6 to 9 months	Bumps for a few hours	Better skin; does not stop the muscle folding it
Dermal filler	Fills a crease or restores volume	Deep static lines; hollows	Immediate; 9 to 18 months	Swelling 2 to 3 days	Fills what toxin cannot; the two are used together
Prescription retinoid	Thickens the dermis over months	Fine lines and texture; prevention	3 to 6 months; ongoing	Dryness at first	The best long-term partner to injections
LED and skincare alone	Modest collagen support	Prevention; anyone avoiding injections	Months	None	Cannot relax a muscle; my blog on LED versus Botox is honest about this
Sofwave or threads	Tighten or lift skin	A heavy brow or loose skin, not lines	12 weeks or immediate; 12 to 24 months	None or a week	Lifts what toxin cannot; often combined with a brow lift
Surgical brow lift or blepharoplasty	Repositions the brow or removes lid skin	Heavy ptosis; skin excess	Permanent	Surgical	Referred where injections will not do it

My blog on whether LED can replace Botox is the honest version of the last two rows.

TIMELINE

What happens week by week

The medicine works gradually. This is the course most patients follow after an upper-face treatment.

Time	What is happening	What you notice	What to do
Day of treatment	Medicine binding at the nerve endings	Small bumps for 20 minutes; nothing else	Stay upright 4 hours; no rubbing, exercise, alcohol or make-up over the points for the rest of the day
Days 3 to 5	Muscles weakening	Frowning takes effort; the forehead feels heavy for a day or two	Nothing
Days 7 to 10	Most of the effect established	Lines softened; the face looks rested	Nothing
Day 14	Full effect	The complete result	Review; small top-up if one side is stronger or a line remains
Weeks 8 to 10	Nerve endings beginning to recover	Movement returning gradually; lines still soft	Nothing
Months 3 to 4	Effect wearing off	Lines returning, usually less deep than before	Repeat when you notice them, not on a fixed date
After a year or two of regular treatment	Muscles weaker, habit of expression softened	Longer gaps, often 4 to 5 months, and lower doses	Maintenance

A heavy brow or a drooping eyelid in the first fortnight is uncommon, temporary, and something I want to hear about the day you notice it.

RESULTS

Results and what to expect

A good anti-wrinkle result is a face that looks rested and still looks like you. The forehead is smoother when you raise your brows but the brows still rise; the frown lines are gone but you can still look cross; the crow’s feet are softer and the smile is unchanged. People comment that you look well, or ask whether you have been away. In photographs, the change is in the lines that used to catch the light. Over a year or two of regular treatment the static creases soften too, because the skin has stopped being folded along them, and most patients find they need less product and less often.

The honest expectations. The first treatment is the most conservative, because I would rather add at the review than have you frozen for three months; if you have been used to heavier doses elsewhere, say so. A crease that is etched at rest will soften but not vanish, and needs skincare or a little filler as well. Lines from sleep, sun and volume loss are not muscle lines and do not respond. The known complications, a heavy brow, a dropped eyelid, an arched Spock brow or an asymmetric smile, all come from placement and dose and are all temporary; they are avoided by mapping the face properly and treating the muscles in balance. A small number of patients, usually after years of treatment, develop resistance to one product and respond to a switch.

I photograph at rest and in expression before treatment and at the two-week review.

AFTER TREATMENT

Recovery, downtime and aftercare

The first four hours. Stay upright; no lying down, bending forward for long periods or resting your face on your hand. No make-up over the injection points. Frown, raise and squint a few times to work the medicine into the muscle.

The first 24 hours. No exercise, sauna, alcohol, facials, massage or hats and headbands pressing on the forehead. No flights if avoidable.

The first two weeks. Nothing to avoid. Note anything asymmetric, heavy or unexpected and bring it to the review, or call me sooner.

Bruising. Occasional, small, most likely at the crow’s feet; make-up covers it from the next day. Patients on aspirin, fish oil or ibuprofen bruise more.

You leave with written aftercare, the date of your two-week review and my direct contact details.

IS THIS FOR ME?

Are anti-wrinkle injections right for you?

Almost every adult with lines that appear on expression is a candidate. The consultation is about the dose and the look, and about what else the face needs.

A good candidate

Forehead lines, frown lines or crow's feet that show on expression. Early static lines from the late twenties. A heavy brow, a gummy smile, a dimpled chin, downturned mouth corners, a wide jaw, neck bands or excessive sweating. Men, who are a third of my patients. Anyone wanting a natural, mobile result. Any skin type and tone.

Better with something first or alongside

Deep etched creases: skincare and a little filler as well. Loose or heavy brow skin: Sofwave or threads, because relaxing the forehead alone can drop a heavy brow. Volume loss: filler first. Crepey skin over the lines: a skin booster two weeks after.

Not suitable now

Pregnancy or breastfeeding. Neuromuscular conditions such as myasthenia gravis or Eaton-Lambert syndrome. Certain antibiotics and muscle relaxants, discussed at consultation. Infection at the site. A known allergy to any component. Anyone wanting a frozen result, whom I will treat conservatively or decline.

PRICING

What Botox costs in London

Every price includes the consultation, the treatment with a licensed UK product dosed to your muscles, written aftercare and a review at two weeks with a balancing top-up where needed. Prices are per area for the upper face and flat for the specialist treatments. The review is part of the treatment, not an extra.

Treatment	What it does
1 area	Forehead, frown or crow’s feet
2 areas	Any two
3 areas	Forehead, frown and crow’s feet; the most popular
4 areas	Three areas plus bunny lines, brow lift or another small area
Brow lift, gummy smile, lip flip, mouth corners or dimpled chin	Small targeted doses
Masseter or jawline slimming	Flat fee, dose to muscle
Nefertiti neck lift	Jawline and neck bands
Excessive sweating	Underarms, hands or feet
Trapezius or calf slimming	Larger doses; assessed at consultation

Prices are from the clinic price list. Your fee is confirmed at consultation, once your treatment plan is agreed.

WHY US

Why choose Hampstead Aesthetics for anti-wrinkle injections

The medicine in the syringe is the same in every clinic in London. What differs is who maps your muscles, who decides the dose, who prescribes it, and who you call if the result is not right. I am a GMC-registered doctor (4418489) and independent prescriber, a Member of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and a GP with a master’s degree in aesthetic medicine, and I have taught facial anatomy and injection technique to other doctors and nurses for a decade. I consult, prescribe, inject and review every patient myself; there is no separate injector working from my prescription, which is how most of the cheaper treatment in London is delivered.

I stock Botox, Bocouture and Azzalure so that a patient who responds better to one of them, or has developed resistance to another, has options. The clinic is on West End Lane in West Hampstead, NW6, two minutes from West Hampstead Jubilee line, Overground and Thameslink stations. Patients come from Hampstead, Swiss Cottage, St John’s Wood, Belsize Park, Kilburn, Primrose Hill, Camden, Finchley and across North and West London.

AT HOME

What makes the result last and the lines stay away

Sunscreen every day, because ultraviolet is the main reason lines etch into creases between treatments. A retinoid at night through the prescription retinoid programme or ZO Skin Health, which thickens the dermis so that lines fold less deeply. Sunglasses, which reduce the squint that drives crow’s feet. Not smoking, which shortens the effect and deepens the lines. Repeat treatment when the lines return rather than on a fixed date; most patients settle at every four months and many stretch to five. A skin booster or Profhilo once or twice a year finishes the skin over the relaxed muscles, which is what makes a face look rested rather than treated.

PATIENT REVIEWS

What patients say

Google 4.8 ★★★★★

I usually get Botox treatments and wouldn't trust my face in the hands of anyone else. From day one, Dr Chiké has been welcoming and thorough.

I had a great session of Botox here. Really friendly, knowledgeable and pain free.

I recently had Botox done by Dr Chiké and couldn't be happier. The outcome is beautifully natural, refreshed without losing any expression.

TRUSTED BRANDS

Clinically validated products we use

Botox (AbbVie), Bocouture (Merz) and Azzalure (Galderma) are licensed botulinum toxin type A products and prescription-only medicines, supplied through their authorised UK distributors and prescribed by me after a face-to-face consultation; the product and batch are recorded in your notes. Botox is a registered trademark of AbbVie. Which product is used is a clinical decision made at that consultation.

WHO IS YOUR PRACTITIONER

Medical Governance & Practitioner Verification

Dr Chike Emeagi - GMC Registration No. 4418489

At Hampstead Aesthetics, every anti-wrinkle treatment is prescribed and carried out by Dr Chike Emeagi, a fully registered medical doctor and GP whose qualifications and licence to practise are publicly verifiable.

MRCGP - Member of the Royal College of General Practitioners
MRCS - Member of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
MSc Aesthetic Medicine - Postgraduate master's degree in aesthetic clinical practice
GMC Licensed - Full licence to practise, verifiable on the public medical register
Independent prescriber; former anatomy demonstrator; trainer for Derma Medical

You are encouraged to verify Dr Chike’s registration directly on the https://www.gmc-uk.org/doctors/4418489 GMC’s online medical register before booking. Any doctor practising without a valid GMC licence is doing so illegally.

DOCTOR LED TREATMENT

Why Doctor Led Matters

Botulinum toxin is a prescription-only medicine, which means a prescriber must assess you face to face before it is supplied, and a non-prescriber injecting it without that consultation is breaking the law. It is still routinely offered that way, often with the prescription written remotely by someone who never sees you. The complications, a dropped eyelid, a heavy brow, an asymmetric smile, a frozen face, come from the map and the dose, and the map and the dose are clinical judgements.

At Hampstead Aesthetics I am the prescriber and the injector. I examine the muscles in movement, mark every point, choose the product, place every injection myself and review you at two weeks. If something is not right, the person who treated you is the person who answers the phone.

YOUR SAFETY

Emergency Safety Protocols

Anaphylaxis kit on site — full adrenaline protocol for allergic reaction.
Hyaluronidase on site — reversal agent for hyaluronic acid filler and part of the vascular occlusion protocol.
ACE-certified practitioner — I hold emergency complication management certification.
999 escalation protocol — written procedures for emergency hospital transfer.

Every product and device is CE-marked and sourced from authorised UK distributors. The clinic holds full professional indemnity insurance covering all treatments.

CONSENT

Consent, Privacy & Your Rights

Before treatment you have a full written consultation covering medical history, contraindications, realistic outcomes and the specific risks of each treatment in your plan. Treatment only proceeds with informed, documented consent. If you have a concern, raise it with me directly; if it is not resolved, you can escalate to the General Medical Council.

Your consultation, treatment and review are all conducted by the same doctor. There are no hand-offs.

Reviewed September 2026. Dr Chike Emeagi, GMC No. 4418489. Regulatory position correct at date of review; licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England is subject to change.

FAQ's

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Botox cost in London?

Your fee is confirmed at consultation, once your treatment plan is agreed.

How long does Botox last?

Three to four months for most patients after a first treatment, and often four to five with regular treatment as the muscles weaken and the habit of expression softens. Strong muscles, high metabolism and heavy exercise shorten it; skincare and sun protection do not lengthen the medicine’s effect but keep the lines from returning as deeply. My blog on how long Botox lasts goes through the detail.

How long does Botox take to work?

The first softening is at day three to five, most of the effect is there by day seven to ten, and the full result is at fourteen days, which is when I review. It does not work faster with more units, and topping up before two weeks is how faces get frozen.

Does Botox hurt?

Very little. The needle is the finest made, each injection is a brief scratch, and three areas take a couple of minutes. No anaesthetic is needed; a cold pack is available for the crow’s feet, which are the most sensitive point. Small bumps at each point settle within twenty minutes.

What is baby Botox?

The same medicine in smaller doses spread across more points, so that the muscle is softened rather than switched off. It suits younger faces, first-timers and anyone who wants their lines reduced but their expression intact. It wears off sooner, at two to three months, and it is a dosing choice I make with you rather than a different product.

Will I look frozen?

Not if the dose is right. A frozen face is an over-dosed face, and it is avoided by mapping the muscles in movement, dosing to their strength, treating the muscles in balance so the brow stays level, and reviewing at two weeks. I would rather add a few units at the review than have you unable to raise your brows for three months.

How many units of Botox do I need?

It depends on the muscle. A typical forehead takes 10 to 20 units, a frown 20 to 25 and crow’s feet 10 to 12 a side; a strong male frown can take 30 or more and a baby Botox forehead as few as 6. I price by area rather than by unit so that the dose is decided by your muscles rather than by the price.

Botox or fillers, which do I need?

Botox for lines that appear when you move your face; filler for hollows and for creases that are there at rest. Most faces over forty benefit from both: toxin to stop the folding, filler or a skin booster to restore what has already been lost. The consultation is where I tell you which you need.

Is Botox safe?

In trained medical hands, yes; it has been used in medicine for over thirty years and in aesthetics for over twenty, and the doses used in the face are tiny. The risks, a heavy brow, a dropped eyelid, asymmetry, are placement and dose problems, temporary, and avoided by knowing the anatomy. The medicine is prescription-only for that reason, and the prescriber must see you face to face.

Which is best, Botox, Bocouture or Azzalure?

All three are licensed botulinum toxin type A products with the same mechanism and very similar results; the differences are in how they spread and how the units are counted. I use Botox as standard and keep the other two for patients who respond better to one of them or have developed antibodies to another. The product matters far less than the map and the dose.

Can men have Botox?

Yes, and around a third of my anti-wrinkle patients are men. Male muscles are stronger and need higher doses, and the aim is different: a flat, low brow rather than an arched one, and lines softened rather than removed, so that nothing reads as treated.

Can I have Botox while pregnant or breastfeeding?

No. The medicine has not been studied in pregnancy or breastfeeding and I defer treatment until after. Skincare, LED and a Hydrofacial are the options in the meantime.

Does Botox help teeth grinding or excessive sweating?

Yes to both, and both have their own pages. Masseter Botox relaxes the chewing muscle to ease grinding, clenching and jaw tension and slims a square jaw. Botox for sweating blocks the nerve signal to the sweat glands of the underarms, hands or feet for six months or more.

What should I avoid after Botox?

Stay upright for four hours, and avoid rubbing the area, exercise, alcohol, saunas, facials and tight hats for 24 hours. Make-up can go on after four hours. There is nothing else to avoid, and you can go straight back to work.

How often should I have Botox?

When the lines come back, which for most people is every three to four months at first and every four to five with regular treatment. There is no benefit in treating before the previous dose has worn off, and a fixed schedule is how doses creep up.

Where in London do you offer Botox?

At Hampstead Aesthetics on West End Lane, West Hampstead, NW6, two minutes from West Hampstead Jubilee line, Overground and Thameslink stations. Patients come from Hampstead, Swiss Cottage, St John’s Wood, Belsize Park, Kilburn, Primrose Hill, Camden, Finchley and across North and West London.

Arrange your anti-wrinkle consultation

If the lines on your forehead, between your brows or at your eyes have started to show at rest, or you want them softened without losing your expression, a consultation with me maps your muscles in movement, tells you honestly what a treatment will and will not do, and quotes in writing. Patients come from West Hampstead, NW6 and across London. Related: Masseter Botox, Botox brow lift, Fine lines and wrinkles, Dermal fillers.

VISIT US

Our London Clinic

Nearest Tube: West Hampstead (Jubilee Line) · 2 min walk

Overground: West Hampstead Overground · 3 min walk

Parking: Pay & Display on West End Lane

Proudly serving clients from:

West Hampstead · Hampstead · Primrose Hill · St John’s Wood · Belsize Park · Camden · Swiss Cottage · Finchley Road · Maida Vale · Queen’s Park · Highgate · Kentish Town

Reviewed by Dr Chiké Emeagi, MBBS, MRCGP, MRCS, GMC No. 4418489.

Last reviewed September 2026. This page is for information only and does not replace a medical consultation. Botulinum toxin is a prescription-only medicine; suitability is decided at a face-to-face consultation with a prescriber. Results vary between individuals and are not guaranteed. All treatments carry potential risks, which are discussed before any procedure. Before-and-after photographs show individual patients and do not guarantee identical outcomes. Prices are taken from the clinic price list at the date of review. Hampstead Aesthetics, 269 West End Lane, West Hampstead, London NW6 1QS.