For men, engaging with cosmetic surgery or tweakments to enhance appearance was, until recently, perceived as a largely feminine endeavor. Not anymore.
In 2025, we saw finance bros opt for filler, tech bros get face lifts and even manosphere podcasters undergo tweakments. Aesthetic clinics and plastic surgeons across the world are seeing an uptick in male clientele, for invasive procedures like face lifts, abdominal etching and breast reductions, as well as non-invasive treatments like skin lasers, Botox and filler. According to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), face and neck lifts surged 26% among UK men between 2024 and 2025. This year, experts expect these treatments and more to continue to rise, as men become increasingly aware of what’s available to address concerns around their appearance.
“[We’re seeing a rise in] surgery or injectables for men in leadership roles — executives, entrepreneurs, or finance professionals who want to project confidence and authority,” says US-based board-certified plastic surgeon Douglas Steinbrech, who owns clinics in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. “A strong, chiseled jawline is often associated with leadership and decisiveness. Under the surface, factors such as boardroom value, increased awareness through social media and Instagram competition are impelling more men to go under the knife.”
Consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon Jonathan Dunne, who co-founded London aesthetics clinic Montrose, says the practice’s male client base has tripled from 2024 to 2025. Men aged 18 to 89 now represent a third of Montrose clients, with 53% of those aged 30 to 50. Men traditionally visited the clinic for more traditional concerns such as Masseter Botox to release jaw tension and Botox for excessive sweating, but in recent years, there has been a growing trend of those opting for skin tweakments and treatments like the Scion Broadband Light Laser (BBL), for example, Dr. Dunne says.
Social media and remote working has prompted the shift. “Several cultural forces are shaping the trend: increased professional visibility through social media, high-definition photography, virtual meetings [or Zoom face], and a growing awareness of how subtle enhancements can support confidence in competitive environments,” explains Dr. Dunne.
In response to growing demand, men’s beauty is rapidly innovating, with procedures and treatments tailored to men’s individual needs and concerns. From so-called brotox (which is the same as traditional Botox, but at a higher dosage to account for men’s thicker skin and stronger facial muscles) to abdominal etching and male breast reduction, clinics are increasingly adding services targeted to male clientele. Male breast reduction is one of the fastest-growing cosmetic procedures among men in the US in 2024, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
As procedures and tweakments become more mainstream, men are moving far beyond shame. Beverly Hills cosmetic surgeon Sean Satey says that “men are moving from feeling embarrassed to being curious and somewhat comfortable” with enhancing their appearance. For example, there’s been a “steady interest” in patients requesting scrotox, a procedure that relaxes scrotal muscles, smoothes out wrinkles, reduces tightness, sweating and makes testicles appear larger, he says. Dr. Satey doesn’t offer the procedure at his practice, however.
At Harley Street Skin Clinic in London — which does offer the service — there has been a significant rise in scrotox enquiries over the past five years, especially in the last 12 months, says lead practitioner Dr. Aamer Khan. “Men are now far less embarrassed about asking for this treatment. While it is a cosmetic trend, many men request scrotox for functional reasons, including excessive sweating, discomfort and chafing,” he says. “Many other requests are from those who want less wrinkling and a more youthful-looking scrotum, while other male clients have anxieties around the size of their sexual organs, although often this is based on unrealistic perceptions largely resulting from social media.”
“Whether through refined anti-wrinkle treatments, discreet jawline contouring or regenerative skin therapies, the aim is never to change a client’s identity, but to help them look like the most refreshed, assured version of themselves,” says Dr. Dunne.
Plastic and reconstructive surgeon Ash Soni, who also founded The Soni Clinic in London, has been treating men across a wide range of industries, from A-list celebrities and racing drivers, to CEOs and men working in construction. “The stigma in the aesthetic industry is beginning to fade, with more men undergoing treatments and speaking openly about them,” Dr. Soni says. “In my practice, male patients have increased over the past three years, growing from 5% to 10% of my total clientele.”
As men become more aware of the tweakments available, they’re taking a more preventative approach to their skin health, too. “In my practice, there has been a significant rise in male clientele, moving away from reactive visits — where they come in to fix a specific problem, like acne or sun damage — to a proactive, maintenance-led approach,” says Melanie Grant, the celebrity facialist and aesthetician with outposts in Los Angeles, Melbourne, Sydney and New York. Today, men are visiting Grant’s clinic for LED light therapy, ultrasound technology, IPL or gentle lasers, and custom clinical peels, she adds.
“There’s far less stigma around men in the treatment room. Ten or 20 years ago, male clients might have slipped in through a side door or felt out of place in a skin clinic. Now, they are some of the most inquisitive and engaged clients, often arriving with a deep knowledge of ingredients like Vitamin C, retinol and niacinamide. The modern face for men is no longer about being rugged and weathered, it’s more about being polished, healthy and well-maintained,” says Grant.
Sarah Chapman, a facialist who owns a clinic in London, says 50% of male clients who visit for treatments are spending on average £500 per visit on products like clinical grade cleansers. “Men increasingly understand that professional treatments and daily skincare work in synergy to deliver optimal results. They ask about multi-functional and efficient formulations," she says.
For others, it’s too late for prevention, and they’re taking drastic steps to reverse years of aging and damage to the skin and body. Over the last decade, US plastic surgeon Dr. Steinbrech noticed an uptick in the “father who dedicated years to his family and career but neglected himself, and now wants a reset”, he says.
It led Dr. Steinbrech to coin the ‘Daddy-do Over’, a treatment plan designed to reverse aging in older men. He says that men are spending anywhere between $30,000 to $150,000-plus at his offices for the service, which typically includes high-definition liposuction, BodyBanking muscle grafting (where body fat is removed to different areas of the body to create definition) and neck procedures such as submental liposuction, or energy-based tightening (radiofrequency or ultrasound and laser), where excess fat is removed from under the chin and the jawline. Crucially, “the result must never look feminized or overdone”, Dr. Steinbrech says.
His practice also specializes in abdominal etching and abdominal highlights, a liposuction procedure that creates a six-pack look. Requests for abdominal etching, abdominal highlights and Daddy Do-Over procedures have increased by more than 350% in Dr. Steinbech’s practice over the last decade, he says. It’s influenced partly by action heroes and male celebrities. Under the surface, however, in agreement with Dr. Dunne, factors such as “boardroom value, increased awareness through social media and Instagram competition” are compelling more men to go under the knife.
These attitudes to self-optimization should be noted by beauty brands on the whole. As adoption rises and surgeons innovate solutions for men’s concerns, spending on products to build skincare routines between treatments is growing. Men have increased their spending powers by 58.1% within the pharmacy, health and beauty category in the last five years, according to Barclays’s Man in the Mirror report. The report adds that 19% of men say they care more about beauty now than they did a decade ago.
Men’s skincare brand Crowned Skin, founded by tech entrepreneur Darrell Spencer in 2021, relaunched its body butters and body oil cologones in September 2025 with new formulas, as demand for men incorporating scent into bodycare rose.
“When we relaunched the products, it reflected how we see the modern male consumer changing. Men are becoming far more informed and they’re asking questions about ingredients, skin health and long-term performance. There is a clear shift away from loud and ‘traditionally manly’ formulas as [men want something that] feels cleaner, more clinical and more refined. Our evolution has been about meeting men where they actually are and giving them products that feel intentional, elevated and effective,” Spencer says.
“Men prioritize efficacy and education over traditional gendered marketing. The takeaway for brands is that the ‘for men’ labeling, often characterized by dark packaging and woody scents, is becoming less relevant than clinical transparency,” Grant says. “Brands [and clinics] should focus on providing clear, science-backed instructions and multi-tasking products that simplify the user experience while delivering visible results.”
The clear takeaway is that selfcare is no longer just for women.
“Traditional masculinity feels outdated, gender norms have softened, and we’re living in a culture where male expression and self-awareness are celebrated,” says Clare Goodwin, founder of communications agency CGC.
