How much is a dermatologist visit for acne

Cost to see a dermatologist

How much is a dermatologist visit for acne

Dermatologists are specialist medical doctors. They are the experts in diagnosing and treating hair, skin, and nail conditions.

Dermatologists must undertake many years of education and training. They first do a medical degree at university, then they spend at least 2 years doing medical training in a hospital as a junior doctor. Then, to become a dermatologist they do at least 4 years of specialist dermatology training under the supervision of the Australasian College of Dermatologists (ACD).

How much does it cost to see a dermatologist?

If you see a dermatologist for a private appointment, you may have to pay a fee. This is called an out-of-pocket cost.

If you see a dermatologist in a public hospital or health service, you generally will not have to pay.

Dermatologists, like all other medical specialists, set their own fees. The ACD does not provide advice on or set dermatologists’ fees.

Tips

    • Make sure you have a valid referral before making an appointment.
    • Check fees and when you will have to pay by contacting the clinic or checking the dermatologist’s website before your appointment.
    • Check if a cancellation fee applies if you cannot attend your appointment.

The ACD worked with the Australian Medical Association and other organisations to develop a guide, Informed Financial Consent: a Collaboration between doctors and patients, to help you work with your doctor to understand health care and its costs.

Can I get a Medicare rebate when I see a dermatologist? 

If you are eligible for Medicare and have a valid referral, Medicare will refund part or all of your fee.

Can I use my private health insurance? 

This will depend on what type of health insurance cover you have and where you are seeing the dermatologist.

Private health insurance does not cover consultations and procedures done in a dermatologist’s private consulting rooms but may, depending on your insurance, cover some or all of your treatment undertaken in hospital.

You will need to check with your private health insurer.

How many times will I see my dermatologist? 

You may only need to see your dermatologist one or twice. In other cases, you may need regular appointments to manage a long-term condition.

I’m having trouble paying – what options do I have? 

Discuss options with your dermatologist. The Medicare safety nets are there to help you cover ongoing costs. More about Medicare Safety Nets 

  • Dermatologists are specialist medical doctors. They are experts in diagnosing and treating hair, skin and nail conditions.
  • Call the dermatologist's clinic to ask about fees before your first appointment.
  • Medicare will cover some of the costs of your dermatology appointment provided you have a valid referral.
  • If you are having trouble paying, speak to your dermatology clinic about the options available.

On this page

Most people make trips to the dermatologist far less often than visits to their general practitioner. So, many people may not be aware of the potential costs of dermatology appointments, or how much to budget for if you are paying out of pocket.

The costs of any kind of doctor’s appointment will be vastly different if you have insurance vs. if you do not have insurance.

Below, we will cover some of the basics of dermatology appointments and what sorts of price tags you might expect from seeing a dermatologist. This will include potential costs for people with insurance vs. those who are uninsured, what sorts of factors may contribute to one office being more or less expensive, and also vaguely what to expect cost-wise from any dermatology prescriptions you may need.

Potential dermatology appointment costs with insurance

If you have insurance, the best way to approximate how much your dermatology visit might cost is to review your insurance documentation or contact your insurance provider. 

Your insurance will often offer some guidance as far as your potential appointment copay for a dermatology appointment. The costs may even differ depending on if certain providers are within your network. If you are unsure where to start here, logging into your insurance portal, or talking with an insurance representative may help you narrow down dermatology offices in your area that work best with your specific plan.

Potential dermatology appointment costs without insurance

If you do not currently have insurance, you may find yourself needing to gauge the approximate fee for an out-of-pocket visit.

In general, an office visit at a dermatologist may run starting at around $100 up to $200 or more depending on the office you select. In order to help narrow this range down, you should be able to ask the office directly by calling or stopping by about what a visit will cost for someone with no insurance. You may also be able to ask if they offer payment plans to help out-of-pocket payers.

Keep in mind that the fee for the office visit itself will likely not factor in the cost for any tests that need to be performed, procedures needed, or medications required for treatment.

What factors may determine how much a dermatology appointment costs

If you are planning on paying out-of-pocket for your dermatology appointment, you may be able to approximate if an office visit will be on the lower or higher end of the pricing spectrum by considering a few factors.

Location

The cost of living in your area may be reflected in the prices you find at your local dermatology offices. In general, areas with a higher cost of living will be more expensive. Offices in larger cities will often also be pricier than offices in a small town. 

Local competition

Places that have a lot of dermatology offices competing for customers may have slightly lower prices due to the need to entice patients that have a lot of choices. However, if there is only one dermatology office in town, they may have less incentive to offer competitive rates.

Specialty

A general dermatology practice will often be less expensive than an office that deals with less common, difficult to treat, or niche skin conditions.

Required testing

At your first dermatology visit, the doctor will speak with you about the issue and may decide that some testing needs to be done to figure out the diagnosis and treatment plan. In this situation, you will often see the additional fees for any testing required on top of the visit cost.

Required treatments

If your skin issue requires a procedure or in-office treatment, this will also increase the cost of the overall care. Your doctor will likely review any additional costs of procedures with you beforehand.

Follow-up visits

Not all skincare issues can be taken care of in just one visit. You may require multiple follow-up visits for procedures, treatments, or periodic check-ups to see how any required medications are working. Follow-up visits tend to require an additional visit fee each time.

Dermatology medication costs with and without insurance

If you require a medication from a pharmacy to treat your skincare issue like a prescription retinoid, antibiotic, steroid, or other common dermatology medications, this will also be an additional fee on top of your office visit.

If you have insurance, the medication may be covered, it may require a copay, or it may not be covered by your insurance at all. Once you know the medication you need, your pharmacy or insurance should be able to let you know the price to expect.

If you do not have insurance, the medication costs may be much more expensive out-of-pocket. Ask your pharmacy what the price of the medication will be without insurance. Different pharmacies may have different prices for cash-paying customers.

Strut Health free online telemedicine visits for common skin concerns

Here at Strut, we understand the unknowns and unexpected costs that may come from getting dermatology treatments. Office visit costs, plus medication costs, as well as lost wages from taking time off work to attend the appointment can add up and quickly be more expensive than you expected.

To help make the full costs of common dermatology treatments more transparent, we offer an easy one-cost system where we display the exact prices for medications, while offering free online telemedicine visits, and free medication shipping.

At Strut, we do not treat more complicated or complex dermatology issues that require extensive testing or an in-person visit. But, we can help out with common and irritating skin situations like acne, scars, melasma, rosacea, cold sores, or fine lines and signs of skin aging.

If you are dealing with deepening forehead lines that you would like to get control of, rosacea flare-ups, or acne that isn’t responding to over-the-counter treatments, Strut Health may be a fast, easy, and affordable way to get professional dermatology care. 

If you are interested in trying out Strut for your skin concerns, you can browse our treatment categories and have a free online questionnaire and image-based telemedicine consultation today.

If you are a good candidate for treatment through our secure telemedicine platform, your medication will be shipped to your front door with our free shipping.

Is a dermatologist worth it for acne?

If you have severe acne, you'll need a dermatologist to help clear your skin. Acne products you can buy at the store won't clear severe acne. Give an acne treatment at least 4 weeks to work. Using a new acne product every few days may seem useful, but that approach can worsen acne.

How much does it cost to get rid of acne?

Topical acne gels and creams typically cost between $36-$336 a year; oral acne medications cost between $72.53-$1,304.09 for a normal prescription cycle and cost between $167-$2,509 for common acne procedures. There is also an additional cost for visiting the dermatologist, which on average, is around $221.

Can a dermatologist get rid of acne?

Enlist a dermatologist's help. If you still have acne after trying these tips, a dermatologist can help. With today's acne treatments and a dermatologist's expertise, virtually every case of acne can be cleared. A dermatologist can tailor a treatment plan to your unique needs.