Surgery that reshapes the nose, and the most technically demanding operation in facial plastic surgery, where surgeon selection matters more than in any other procedure.
Also called: nose job, nose surgery, nasal surgery, septorhinoplasty, nose reshaping, ethnic rhinoplasty
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Rhinoplasty has the widest quality gap of any procedure in aesthetic surgery. Two surgeons with identical credentials can produce results that are not remotely comparable, because this operation depends on judgment, artistry, and thousands of repetitions in a way that few other procedures do. Everything below is secondary to that one fact.
What the operation involves
The surgeon reshapes bone, cartilage, and sometimes soft tissue to change the nose’s size, profile, tip shape, or nostril width. Common goals include reducing a dorsal hump, refining a bulbous or drooping tip, narrowing the bridge, correcting asymmetry from injury, and improving airflow through a deviated septum.
It runs two to four hours under general anesthesia. Most patients go home the same day with an external splint, which stays on for about a week.
Two approaches exist. Closed rhinoplasty works entirely through incisions inside the nostrils. Open rhinoplasty adds a small incision between the nostrils to give the surgeon direct visibility of the structure underneath. Complex cases, revisions, and significant tip work usually favor the open approach.
The revision reality
Roughly 5 to 15 percent of rhinoplasty patients eventually seek a revision. That number is worth sitting with, because it is far higher than for most cosmetic operations, and it is the strongest argument for spending your energy on surgeon selection rather than on price shopping.
Revision surgery is meaningfully harder than the original. Scar tissue has replaced normal planes, cartilage may have been removed that now needs replacing with grafts taken from the septum, ear, or rib, and the skin behaves differently. Costs run higher and results are less predictable. The best protection against needing one is choosing well the first time.
What it costs
Nationally, expect $7,000 to $16,000 for primary rhinoplasty including surgeon, anesthesia, and facility fees. Revisions commonly run $12,000 to $25,000. Geography matters enormously here. Manhattan, Beverly Hills, and Newport Beach surgeons with strong reputations sit at the top of that range and above, while equally well-trained surgeons in Midwestern and Southern markets often charge 30 to 40 percent less. See local ranges on our city pages.
Do not price shop this operation. The gap between a good result and a poor one is permanent, sits in the center of your face, and costs far more to attempt to fix than the original difference in fee.
Recovery timeline
Week 1: splint in place, congestion, swelling and bruising around the eyes peak around day three
Week 2: splint off, bruising fading, most people return to desk work
Weeks 3 to 6: looking normal to others, no contact sport or anything risking a bump
Month 3: roughly 80 percent of swelling resolved, the shape is recognizable
Months 6 to 12: tip refinement continues, particularly in thicker skin
Month 12: the honest before and after moment
How to choose
Ask how many rhinoplasties the surgeon performs each year. High-volume rhinoplasty surgeons often do several hundred; a general plastic surgeon may do a handful. For this specific operation, that difference matters more than it would for most procedures.
Look at before and after galleries and find noses that started like yours, not noses that ended up how you want. Ask what percentage of their practice is rhinoplasty, and ask about their revision rate directly. A confident answer to that question is a good sign.
Verify certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, or for facial plastic surgeons, the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Both are legitimate paths to this operation.
Addresses structural features that no filler or makeup can change
Can correct breathing obstruction and appearance in the same operation
Permanent result once healing completes
Small changes in nasal proportion measurably affect overall facial balance
Are you a good candidate?
People bothered by a specific structural feature of the nose, with realistic expectations and a fully grown facial skeleton, generally 16 and older
By location
Find Rhinoplasty near you
1,729 practices across 328 cities list Rhinoplasty on ClinicCompass. 1,055 of them (61%) say on their own websites that they offer financing or payment plans;
ask about approval and interest before you book.
Nationally, rhinoplasty typically runs $7,000 to $16,000 all in, meaning surgeon fee, anesthesia, and facility. Revision rhinoplasty costs more, often $12,000 to $25,000, because it is harder surgery. High-demand surgeons in New York, Los Angeles, and Beverly Hills routinely charge above these ranges, and waiting lists at that tier can run a year. If a quote comes in dramatically below the local market, understand exactly what is excluded before treating it as a bargain.
Will insurance pay for any of it?
Insurance may cover the functional portion when there is documented breathing obstruction, most often a deviated septum, which is repaired in an operation called a septoplasty. The cosmetic reshaping is not covered. In practice many patients have both done together and pay the cosmetic portion out of pocket while insurance contributes to the functional part. Get the surgeon's office to verify benefits in writing before surgery.
What is the difference between open and closed rhinoplasty?
Closed rhinoplasty places all incisions inside the nostrils, leaving no external scar. Open rhinoplasty adds a small incision across the columella, the strip of skin between the nostrils, which lets the surgeon lift the skin and see the structure directly. The columellar scar typically fades to near invisibility. Neither approach is universally better. Experienced surgeons choose based on what the specific nose requires, and a surgeon who only ever performs one approach is worth asking about.
How long until I look normal?
The splint comes off around day seven, and most people feel presentable at two weeks with makeup covering residual bruising. That is when you look normal to other people. The nose itself keeps refining for much longer. Roughly 80 percent of swelling resolves in the first three months, but the tip in particular can take a full year or longer to settle, and thicker skin takes longest. Judge the result at twelve months, not at two.
What about liquid rhinoplasty instead?
Filler placed along the bridge can camouflage a dorsal hump or improve a slight asymmetry, and it costs a fraction of surgery with no downtime. It has real limits. It can only add volume, never reduce size, so it cannot make a large nose smaller, and it carries a genuine vascular risk in an area with dense blood supply. It lasts 9 to 18 months. For the right narrow problem it is an excellent option, and for most people seeking rhinoplasty it is not a substitute.
Sources
Where this information comes from
Clinical facts on this page are checked against these primary sources.
1.Rhinoplasty Overview, American Society of Plastic SurgeonsConfirms rhinoplasty can change the nose's size, bridge, tip, and nostril appearance, and can correct impaired breathing from a deviated septum in the same operation.
2.Rhinoplasty Candidates, American Society of Plastic SurgeonsConfirms good candidates have completed facial growth, are physically healthy, do not smoke, and have realistic expectations, matching the page's candidacy guidance.
3.Rhinoplasty Recovery, American Society of Plastic SurgeonsConfirms a splint is placed after surgery, initial swelling subsides within a few weeks, and full nasal contour refinement can take up to a year, matching the page's recovery timeline.
4.Rhinoplasty Risks and Safety Information, American Society of Plastic SurgeonsLists anesthesia complications, altered sensation, nasal septal perforation, and the possibility of needing revision surgery as recognized rhinoplasty risks.
5.Rhinoplasty, StatPearls, National Library of Medicine (National Institutes of Health)Describes the open approach exposing the full cartilaginous framework with a columellar scar versus the closed/endonasal approach having less postoperative swelling, general anesthesia as standard, and revision and complication rates reported up to 15% and 3% respectively, matching the page's 5 to 15 percent revision figure.
6.About the American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Board of Plastic SurgeryConfirms the American Board of Plastic Surgery certifies plastic surgeons through examinations and ongoing continuous certification, supporting the page's advice to verify certification through this board.
7.About ABFPRS, American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeryConfirms the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery certifies surgeons specifically in facial plastic surgery against rigorous standards, supporting the page's advice to verify certification through this board for facial plastic surgeons.
