In December 2025, the New York City Council and State launched a joint investigation into the city’s medical spa industry. The following month, the New York Department of State issued a formal consumer warning after investigators found unlicensed staff, counterfeit Botox, and treatments performed without any meaningful medical oversight. These weren’t underground operations. They were businesses that looked, from the outside, completely legitimate.
I’m Dr. Cris Andrade, an aesthetic medicine clinician practicing on Madison Avenue. I’ve been treating patients in this city long enough to see patients walk through my door after experiences that ranged from mildly disappointing to genuinely alarming. And I think the way most people try to find a med spa in New York scrolling Yelp, reading “Top 10” roundups, following whoever has the most Instagram followers leaves them more exposed than they realize.
What follows isn’t a ranked list. It’s the framework I’d give a close friend: the questions I’d ask, the things I’d look at, and the signals I’ve learned to trust or not.
Why “Best Med Spa in NYC” Lists Won’t Help You
The problem with ranked lists isn’t that the practices on them are bad. It’s that the criteria used to rank them have almost nothing to do with how your treatment will actually go.
Review volume reflects marketing and operations skill. “Celebrity clientele” reflects PR, not technique. A beautiful waiting room tells you the interior designer was talented. And the listicles published by aesthetics media companies are often shaped more by advertising relationships than by anyone who has held a syringe.
More practically: none of these signals tell you who will be holding that syringe on your appointment day, what their credential actually is, or whether they’ll be the same person you see six months later when your Botox is wearing off unevenly and you need it corrected.
The more useful frame isn’t “which spa is best.” It’s “which practitioner is right for me — and can I verify that before I book?”
What Actually Matters When Choosing an Injector
Credentials That Match the Treatment
In New York State, injectables like Botox and dermal fillers must be administered by a licensed medical professional a registered nurse (RN), nurse practitioner (NP), physician assistant (PA), or physician operating under appropriate medical supervision. This is the law, and it exists for a reason. You can verify any practitioner’s license directly on the New York State Education Department’s website before you book.
The question to ask isn’t “is this a reputable medspa?” It’s: “Who is physically performing my treatment, and what is their clinical license?” Not the practice’s license. The individual’s.
Injector Continuity
This is the factor almost no “best of” list mentions, and it’s the one I care about most: will you see the same person every time?
Injectables aren’t a one-time transaction. They’re a cumulative relationship with your face. How you metabolize neuromodulators, which muscle groups dominate your expression, where you hold tension, how your face has changed since your last appointment this knowledge builds over years, and it only builds if the same clinical brain is carrying it.
A practice where you see whoever is available that day is starting from scratch at every appointment. At my studio, I am the practitioner. The Botox Club membership I offer is built around this principle: prepaid units, same clinician, across a year of treatments — so the person seeing you in January knows exactly what happened in August, and is building toward something, not just reacting to whatever they see that day.
The Consultation Comes Before the Needle
If a practice is ready to schedule your first treatment before you’ve had a real clinical conversation, that’s a signal. Not necessarily a dealbreaker but a signal.
A proper consultation isn’t a soft close. It’s a bilateral assessment. I should be learning about your anatomy, your history, your goals, and the results you’ve been unhappy with before. You should be learning about my approach, my product preferences, what I would and wouldn’t do for your specific face and why.
You should leave a consultation feeling like you understand the plan. Not just that you liked the vibe of the space.
Transparent Pricing Without Upsell Pressure
I’ve heard from patients who went in for one treatment and came out having signed up for four. That’s not personalized care; that’s commission-based selling in clinical clothing.
My menu is on my website with real prices, because I think you should be able to evaluate the financial decision before you’re in the room. The honest range for Botox in New York City is wide you’ll find prices from $10 to $24+ per unit, and the factors that explain that range are worth understanding. I’ve written a full breakdown with my actual menu and what drives the difference. Here’s the short version: prices significantly below market well under $12/unit usually reflect either diluted product or a provider whose operating costs are low for a reason. The January 2026 NY Department of State investigation was partly triggered by practices that undercut market rates while substituting counterfeit or diluted neurotoxin.
Browse the full treatment menu if you’d like to see my pricing before we meet.
What the Space Tells You
Before you book, try to get a sense of whether the practice looks like a clinical environment. Not in terms of décor in terms of hygiene and professional infrastructure. When you arrive, is the environment clean in the way a clinical space should be? Does the practitioner draw up product in front of you, or does it arrive in an unlabeled syringe?
You have the right to ask to see the vial before your treatment begins. A practitioner confident in their product will show you without hesitation.
Red Flags I’ve Heard About From My Own Patients
These patterns come from patients who arrived at my practice after an experience somewhere else:
Pressure to book the same day. A first consultation should end with information, not urgency. “This offer is only available today” is a retail tactic. You’re making a medical decision.
Vague answers about the product. “We use the best” is not an answer. “I use Botox, Dysport, Jeauveau, or Xeomin here’s which I’d recommend for your anatomy and why” is.
Injector substitution without disclosure. You booked with a specific practitioner. You arrived and were treated by someone else. That should have been disclosed before your appointment, not at check-in.
Results framed as guaranteed. Injectables are not uniform across patients. Anyone who promises you’ll look exactly like a specific reference photo either doesn’t understand how this works or is telling you what you want to hear.
Before/after photos that look filtered or edited. Ask whether you can see unedited images. Practitioners who do excellent work are generally proud to show it in its actual form.
Questions to Ask Before You Book
Regardless of where you’re considering, these are the questions worth asking:
- Who will be performing my treatment, and can I speak with them specifically before booking?
- What is their clinical license, and is there an active medical director overseeing the practice?
- What product will you use, and can I see the vial before injection?
- What is your protocol if I have concerns or a complication after my appointment?
- Do you have hyaluronidase on hand and training to use it in a filler emergency?
None of these questions should make a reputable practice uncomfortable. If they do, that’s important information.
What I Offer at Dr. Cris Studio
Before founding Dr. Cris Studio, I trained and practiced as a licensed physician and maxillofacial surgeon in Brazil a foundation in facial anatomy, proportion, and clinical medicine that shapes how I approach every patient. I bring that depth of training to every consultation and treatment at the studio, practicing aesthetic medicine in New York under medical oversight.
My studio is small and intentionally so. I see one patient at a time. I am the practitioner performing or directly overseeing every treatment. I approach each face as a structural assessment before it’s a cosmetic one looking at proportion, balance, and what will read as natural when you’re in motion, not just what photographs well.
If you’d like a real clinical conversation not a booking conversion I’d welcome the opportunity to meet you.
Dr. Cris Studio · 455 Madison Avenue, Spa Level, New York, NY 10022 · (212) 347-4708
Frequently Asked Questions
What credentials should an injector have at a med spa in New York?
In New York State, Botox and filler injections must be performed by a licensed registered nurse (RN), nurse practitioner (NP), physician assistant (PA), or physician working under appropriate medical supervision. You can verify any practitioner’s license through the NY State Education Department’s website. Ask specifically who will be injecting you — and confirm that individual’s credential, not just the practice name.
How do I know if a med spa in NYC is operating legally?
A legitimate medical spa will have a named, licensed medical director whose credentials are publicly verifiable, will provide written HIPAA-compliant consent forms and post-treatment instructions, will disclose who is performing your treatment before you agree to it, and will not substitute an unlisted provider at the time of your appointment.
Are Yelp or Google reviews reliable for choosing a med spa?
Reviews are one signal, not a decision framework. High review volume reflects marketing and operations not clinical skill or product quality. Use reviews to filter out genuine red flags; then ask clinical questions directly before booking.
What is the difference between a med spa and a dermatologist’s office for injectables?
The credential of the person actually injecting you matters more than the facility category. A clinician who performs injectables daily under physician oversight may have significantly more relevant hands-on experience than a dermatologist who injects occasionally as a small part of a larger dermatology practice.
What should I expect to pay for Botox in NYC in 2026?
The range is approximately $10–$24+ per unit, which translates to roughly $300–$900+ for a standard upper-face treatment. Prices significantly below $12/unit often reflect diluted product, less experienced providers, or overhead structures that cut corners elsewhere. I’ve published a full breakdown of NYC Botox pricing with my actual menu.
What is injector continuity and why does it matter?
Injector continuity means seeing the same practitioner at every appointment. Injectables accumulate knowledge your clinician learns how you metabolize product, which muscle groups need more or less, and what results you’ve been happy with or not. Look for a provider who will function as a long-term clinical partner, not a rotating chair.
Dr. Cris Andrade · Founder, Dr. Cris Studio
455 Madison Avenue, Spa Level, New York, NY 10022 · (212) 347-4708 · drcrisstudio.com