What are the different types of facelifts?
Over time, skin loses its natural elasticity as collagen production decreases or stops altogether. When that happens, fine lines, wrinkles, sagging skin, and dark spots become more visible. Fortunately, several facelift types include surgical and non-surgical options that can help you restore a naturally youthful appearance.
Facelift surgery is designed to provide you with smoother, more vibrant skin. A facelift reduces the cosmetic effects of aging on the face by removing excess skin and tightening underlying facial muscles.
Signs of facial aging can be dramatically improved with a facelift. As one of the top providers of facelifts in NYC, Dr. Matthew White can help you look several years younger with this advanced procedure that produces natural and beautiful results.

Nine different types of facelifts
Like other facial plastic surgery procedures, facelifts are categorized based on whether they are surgical or non-surgical. You and Dr. White will decide which option is right for you based on your aesthetic goals and comfort level.
If you’re considering a facelift, there are nine types of facelifts that you should know about, each targeting a different portion of your facial structure:
Deep Plane/SMAS Facelift
A deep plane facelift eliminates the look of sagging skin at the base of the chin and neck by lifting and strengthening the lax muscles. Deep plane facelift procedures involve the surgeon going beneath the musculoaponeurotic system (SMAS), which is close to the muscles used for smiling and frowning. The SMAS layer will be repositioned, reshaped, and smoothed to iron out wrinkles, making you look younger and more radiant.
Mini Facelift
Small, inconspicuous incisions are made under the hairline so your surgeon can tighten and smooth out your skin while also removing excess tissue. A mini facelift effectively reduces the appearance of jowls or eliminates it. The procedure is considered a more “accelerated” version of a facelift, with a shorter treatment time and a faster recovery.
Mid-Facelift
The mid-facelift targets the midsection of the face, particularly the cheeks. Your facial plastic surgeon will remove excess or use existing tissue to lift the cheeks, eliminate sagging, and remove fine lines and wrinkles. While the mid-facelift is highly recommended for patients who don’t have jowls or marionette lines, it can also be performed in conjunction with procedures that remove jowls and marionette lines.
Mid-facelift benefits include:
- Beautiful yet subtle results
- Surgery is relatively simple
- Can restore a more youthful appearance
- Results last for years
- Less recovery time than a complete facelift

Cheek Lift
A cheek lift enhances the appearance of the cheekbones while removing or reducing the look of fine lines and wrinkles in the mid-face area. A cheek lift can help you achieve a voluminous, uplifted appearance while also eliminating under-eye puffiness and contouring nasal folds so that they’re less pronounced.
Jaw Line Rejuvenation
Most women exhibit signs of aging around their jaw and neckline. A jawline rejuvenation involves extracting excess fat cells from the neck area through neck liposuction to allow your surgeon to contour and reshape your jawline to make it smoother.
S-Lift
An s-shaped incision is made on the lower half of the face around the neck and jawline, allowing your surgeon to separate the top layer of skin from the facial muscles and tissues underneath. This lifts the skin, removes excess fat cells, and contours the muscles and underlying tissue, giving you smooth, wrinkle-free skin.
Cutaneous Lift
A cutaneous lift focuses on the lower face area, including the jaw and neck. Your surgeon will remove and discard excess skin while the remaining skin is stretched to the incision areas. As a result, the skin is tightened, and the wrinkles are removed.
Temporal or Brow Lift
Your temples and brows are so close that smoothing out wrinkles in one area also benefits the other area of the face. If your eyebrows are droopy or hang too low, an excellent alternative to the much more invasive eyebrow lift is the brow lift. The skin and underlying muscles are lifted to stretch out the drooping skin on your eyelids, giving you a more awake and youthful appearance.
The endoscopic brow lift can provide significant aesthetic improvement in the upper area of the face, such as:
- Youthful results without looking overdone, taking up to 10 years off the face
- Long-lasting results
- Smoothes deep lines, wrinkles, crow’s feet, and forehead lines
- It can be performed with other procedures for a more comprehensive makeover
- Performed endoscopically using small instruments and a tiny internal camera, you get smaller incisions and less recovery time
Liquid Facelift
Liquid facelifts are the most popular type of facial rejuvenation procedure currently being practiced across North America. Simple, time-efficient, and non-invasive, a liquid facelift involves using an injectable serum targeting the problem area of your face. Serums like Botox or Restalyne contain concentrated collagen or hyaluronic acid, stimulating collagen production and promoting skin elasticity.
Dr. White customizes the facelift procedure to meet your needs
Dr. White personalizes all of his facelifts to each patient’s unique goals and characteristics, ensuring that the incision is hidden and concealed by the skin’s natural creases. Routinely sought for his expert opinion in the vast and often complex field of cosmetic surgery, Dr. White makes extraordinary efforts to deliver the best facial plastic surgery Manhattan has available. By exclusively performing procedures that target the face, he consistently provides his clients with the precise cosmetic outcomes they desire.