📅 23 August 2026🏷 Botox Alternatives

Xeomin Units and What It Costs

By Lucas, Founder & Lead Researcher

Reviewed for medical accuracy against our Medical Review Board · Last updated 23 August 2026

Put the two labels side by side and something unusual appears: Botox Cosmetic and Xeomin specify exactly the same doses for the same three areas. Twenty units for frown lines, twenty for the forehead, twenty-four for crow's feet, sixty-four for all three. Same numbers, same injection counts, same totals. That makes Xeomin the only alternative where a price per unit can be compared with a Botox price per unit honestly, and therefore the only one where a discount is really a discount.

A gloved hand holding a graduated syringe of yellow solution against a pale background, with the barrel markings clearly legible — The markings are what you are billed for. Xeomin and Botox Cosmetic specify the same labelled doses for the same three areas, which is why their per-unit prices can be compared honestly.

Every rate below was read off a clinic's own published price list during our city research, and every one is attributed.

1. The short answer

A Xeomin frown line treatment at the labelled 20 units costs roughly $200 to $260 at the rates clinics publish, which is typically 14% to 15% less than the same clinic's Botox treatment. Per unit, published Xeomin rates we have verified run $11 to $12 against Botox at $13 to $14 in the same practices.

Because the labelled doses are identical, that percentage is the actual saving rather than an illusion. This is the one alternative where you can compare per-unit prices and trust the answer.

2. The doses are identical, and that is the whole story

Both labels state that units are specific to each product's own assay and cannot be converted into another product's units. That is true and it is worth respecting. But both labels also publish doses, and for the three upper facial areas they land on the same numbers:

Labelled cosmetic doses, Botox Cosmetic against Xeomin
Area	Botox Cosmetic	Xeomin	Same?
Frown lines (glabellar)	20 units, 4 into each of 5 sites	20 units, 4 into each of 5 sites	Identical
Forehead lines	20 units, plus 20 in the glabella	20 units, plus 20 in the glabella	Identical
Crow's feet (lateral canthal)	24 units, 4 into each of 3 sites per side	24 units, 4 into each of 3 sites per side	Identical
All three together	64 units	64 units	Identical
Platysma bands (neck)	26, 31 or 36 units	Not approved	Botox only

Two manufacturers, two separate approval programmes, two assays that are formally incomparable, and they arrived at the same dose, the same number of injection points and the same total for every area both of them cover. Whatever the labels say about conversion in principle, in practice for these three areas the units line up.

Compare that with Dysport, which needs 50 units for the same frown lines, and the difference in what a per-unit price means becomes obvious. Our guide to Dysport units against Botox units covers that side.

3. Real published rates

Only 16 of the 80 providers whose price lists we have read publish that they carry Xeomin, so this is a smaller sample than for Botox or Dysport. What it shows is consistent: Xeomin is priced at or slightly below the same clinic's Botox rate.

Published per-unit rates in the same practice, read from each clinic's own price page
Clinic	Botox	Xeomin	Saving on a 20 unit treatment
Medical Aesthetics, Charleston	$13	$11	$260 to $220, 15%
SLK Clinic, Nashville	$14	$12	$280 to $240, 14%
Balanced Aesthetics, Denver	$13 above 51 units	$12, or $11 above 51 units	varies by total

The Nashville clinic deserves credit for stating the reasoning on its own page: it describes Xeomin as dosed roughly one to one with Botox, which is exactly right and is the only reason the discount is meaningful.

4. What each area costs

Because every figure below is a labelled dose rather than an estimate, these are unusually firm numbers for aesthetics.

Xeomin treatment cost by area, at $11 and $12 a unit
Area	Labelled units	At $11	At $12
Frown lines	20	$220	$240
Forehead lines (with frown lines)	40	$440	$480
Crow's feet, both sides	24	$264	$288
All three areas	64	$704	$768

Note the forehead row. The label treats forehead lines and frown lines as one 40 unit regimen rather than a 20 unit standalone, because relaxing the only muscle that lifts your brow without also relaxing the muscles that pull it down risks dropping the brow. So a forehead-only quote of 20 units is worth asking about. Our page on Botox by facial area explains the mechanism, which is identical for either product.

5. Treating all three areas at once

The 64 unit figure is not our arithmetic, it is the label's maximum for a simultaneous three-area treatment, and both products give the same number. At $11 to $12 a unit that is $704 to $768, against $832 to $896 for Botox at $13 to $14.

So the saving scales: about $128 on a full upper face against roughly $40 on frown lines alone. If you treat all three areas regularly, Xeomin is where the per-unit gap turns into real money.

One thing to weigh against it. In Xeomin's own trials, crow's feet treated alone succeeded in 24% of patients against 33% to 53% when the whole upper face was treated at the same dose. That argues for treating the areas together on results grounds as well as price, and it is covered in the Xeomin guide.

6. Vial sizes and the small-treatment problem

Xeomin comes in 50, 100 and 200 unit vials, and once reconstituted must be refrigerated and used within 24 hours, for one session and one patient. Unopened vials, unusually, need no refrigeration at all.

The 50 unit vial matters for pricing. A single frown line treatment is 20 units, so a clinic opening a 50 unit vial for one patient has 30 units it must use that day or discard. That is the real reason small treatments sometimes carry a minimum charge, and why you may be offered a second area while you are in the chair. It is genuine economics rather than pressure, but recognising it helps you decide calmly.

The 200 unit vial is the largest in this class, which suits clinics treating several patients in a session and is part of why Xeomin turns up in busier practices.

7. Cost per year

The label sets a minimum of three months between treatments and gives a typical duration of up to 12 to 16 weeks, so three treatments a year is the realistic plan. Four is possible if your results sit at the short end.

Annual cost at three treatments a year
What you treat	Xeomin at $11	Xeomin at $12	Botox at $13
Frown lines only	$660	$720	$780
Frown lines and forehead	$1,320	$1,440	$1,560
All three areas	$2,112	$2,304	$2,496

Roughly $400 a year saved on a full upper face, for the same labelled treatment. That is the honest size of the Xeomin advantage: real, worth having, and not transformative.

8. Against Dysport, where the arithmetic breaks

This is the comparison that catches people out, because Dysport's per-unit rate looks dramatically better and often is not.

A frown line treatment at each product's labelled dose
Product and rate	Units	Total
Xeomin at $11	20	$220
Botox at $13	20	$260
Dysport at $4 (Charleston, same clinic)	50	$200
Dysport at $13 (Botox parity pricing)	50	$650

A clinic pricing Dysport properly can beat Xeomin slightly. A clinic charging its Botox rate per Dysport unit produces a treatment three times the price of the Xeomin equivalent, for no benefit. Our Dysport cost page works that trap through, and Xeomin against Dysport covers the rest of the differences.

9. The one area Botox has and Xeomin does not

Worth knowing before you assume Xeomin covers everything Botox does. Botox Cosmetic holds a fourth cosmetic indication that Xeomin lacks: platysma bands in the neck, added to its label in October 2024, at 26, 31 or 36 units depending on how many bands are treated.

So on labelled cosmetic breadth it is Botox with four areas, Xeomin with three, Dysport with one. If your treatment plan includes the neck, that area is on-label with Botox and off-label with Xeomin, as our page on the neck and platysmal bands covers.

10. Where the real savings are

A clinic that prices Xeomin below its Botox rate. Worth 14% to 15%, and unlike most aesthetic savings this one survives the arithmetic.
Treating areas together rather than separately. The saving scales with the total, and the trial data supports it on results as well.
Avoiding a minimum charge on a small treatment. Ask before you book, not after.
Reading new-patient offers properly. Our page on which deals are real covers the memberships, minimums and per-area pricing that undo a headline rate.

Not on the list: choosing your injector on price. There is no reversal agent for any botulinum toxin, so a placement you dislike is a wait of three to four months rather than a refund.

11. What to ask

"How many units, and what is the total?" With Xeomin you can also check the answer against the label: 20, 20, 24, or 64 for all three.
"What would the same treatment cost in Botox here?" A fair question, and with Xeomin the comparison is genuinely like for like.
"Is there a minimum charge?" Particularly relevant for a single 20 unit area out of a 50 unit vial.
"Are you treating my forehead and frown lines together?" The label's forehead regimen is 40 units across both areas for a reason.

Rates vary by city, and across the sixteen cities where we have read published pricing, Botox runs $9 to $18 a unit. Our city guides list named clinics and their own figures, and the Botox price guide covers what drives the spread.

Frequently asked questions

How much does Xeomin cost?

Published rates we have verified run $11 to $12 a unit. At the labelled 20 unit dose for frown lines that is $220 to $240, against $260 to $280 for Botox in the same practices. Treating all three approved areas is 64 units, so $704 to $768. Because the labelled doses are identical to Botox's, those percentage savings of about 14% to 15% are real rather than an artefact of different unit scales.

How many units of Xeomin do I need?

The label gives 20 units for frown lines, 20 for forehead lines on top of 20 in the glabella making 40 for that regimen, 24 for crow's feet with 12 per side, and a maximum of 64 units for all three areas in one session. Those are reviewed doses rather than convention, so you can check a quote against them, which is unusual in aesthetics.

Is Xeomin cheaper than Botox?

Usually slightly, and the saving is genuine. Two examples from clinics' own price lists: Medical Aesthetics in Charleston publishes $13 a unit for Botox and $11 for Xeomin, and SLK Clinic in Nashville $14 against $12. Since both labels specify the same doses for the same areas, those are true savings of about 15% and 14% on the same treatment.

Are Xeomin and Botox units the same?

Formally no, and both labels say units cannot be converted between products because each is measured by its own assay. In practice, for the three upper facial areas both cover, the two manufacturers specify identical doses: 20 units for frown lines, 20 for the forehead, 24 for crow's feet and 64 for all three. So a per-unit price comparison between Xeomin and Botox is meaningful, which is not true of Dysport at 50 units for the same frown lines.

Which is cheaper, Xeomin or Dysport?

It depends entirely on how the clinic prices Dysport. At one Charleston clinic publishing Xeomin at $11 and Dysport at $4, the labelled treatments come to $220 and $200, so Dysport is marginally cheaper. At a clinic charging its Botox rate of $13 per Dysport unit, the same treatment is $650 against $220 for Xeomin. Ask for the total, not the rate.

Why is there sometimes a minimum charge for Xeomin?

Vial economics. Xeomin's smallest vial is 50 units and a frown line treatment is 20, so a clinic opening a vial for one small treatment must use or discard the remaining 30 units within 24 hours of reconstituting it. That is why small single-area treatments can carry a minimum, and why you may be offered a second area while you are in the chair. It is real economics rather than a sales tactic, but it is worth recognising.

How much does Xeomin cost per year?

The label allows retreatment no more often than every three months and gives a typical duration of up to 12 to 16 weeks, so three treatments a year is realistic. Frown lines alone works out at $660 to $720 a year at $11 to $12 a unit. All three areas comes to $2,112 to $2,304. The equivalent Botox schedule at $13 a unit is $780 and $2,496, so about $400 a year more for a full upper face.

Does Xeomin treat everything Botox treats?

Cosmetically, almost. Botox Cosmetic holds four approved cosmetic areas and Xeomin three: Botox adds platysma bands in the neck, at 26 to 36 units, which joined its label in October 2024 and which Xeomin is not approved for. Medically they diverge more: Botox holds chronic migraine and excessive underarm sweating, while Xeomin holds chronic sialorrhea, meaning excessive drooling, in patients two years and older.

Is a Xeomin coupon or rewards programme worth using?

Sometimes, and the thing to check is whether the discount survives the conditions attached. The patterns that quietly undo a headline rate are membership fees with minimum terms, per-visit unit minimums, first-visit-only pricing that reverts afterwards, and per-area pricing that costs more than per-unit for a small treatment. Our page on which deals are real covers each of those.

Why do only some clinics carry Xeomin?

Purchasing rather than clinical preference. Of the 80 providers whose published brand lists we have read across sixteen cities, 16 carry Xeomin against 54 for Dysport. It is worth asking whether a clinic can obtain it, particularly since it is the alternative whose units line up with Botox and the only one besides Botox with the forehead and crow's feet on its label.

Should I pay more for Botox instead?

Not on efficacy grounds. Neither label supports a claim that one outperforms the other, and for the three areas both cover, the doses are identical. Reasons to choose Botox anyway: you want platysma bands treated on-label, you are treating chronic migraine or excessive sweating, or your injector is simply more experienced with it, which matters more than either product's label.

Does insurance cover Xeomin?

Never for cosmetic use. Xeomin does hold medical approvals, for chronic sialorrhea and upper limb spasticity in patients two and older, and for cervical dystonia and blepharospasm in adults, and treatment for those may be covered. That is a neurology or specialist referral rather than an aesthetics appointment, and the doses are much larger: 100 units per session for adult sialorrhea.

Written by

Lucas Pradella

Founder & Lead Researcher, BestBotoxClinics.com

Lucas founded BestBotoxClinics.com to bring clarity to the aesthetics industry, bringing 13+ years of experience in digital research and analysing online data for signals of quality and trust. He is not a physician, his work is research, data analysis and verifying provider credentials.

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Medical accuracy: BestBotoxClinics.com maintains a Medical Review Board of licensed clinicians. This article is educational and is not medical advice.