Medical esthetician vs skin therapist

The differences between medical estheticians and skin therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a medical esthetician has an average salary of $39,890, which is higher than the $29,682 average annual salary of a skin therapist.

The top three skills for a medical esthetician include patients, laser hair removal and product sales. The most important skills for a skin therapist are booking, product knowledge, and skin care products.

Medical esthetician vs skin therapist overview

	Medical Esthetician	Skin Therapist
Yearly salary	$39,890	$29,682
Hourly rate	$19.18	$14.27
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	47,667	17,683
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Associate Degree, 32%
Average age	35	35
Years of experience	-	-

What does a medical esthetician do?

A medical esthetician specializes in skincare and works mostly within the field of dermatology. They are required to offer a number of services, including recommending procedures, providing consultations, diagnosing skin conditions, providing treatments, and reducing aging effects. They are responsible for developing treatment plans to suit a variety of clients' needs.

What does a skin therapist do?

A skin therapist is a licensed professional who specializes in recommending and implementing treatments to improve skin health. Their responsibilities revolve around meeting with clients to identify their needs and skin conditions, conduct assessments and evaluations, suggest skincare products, and perform treatments such as hair removal, facial cleansing, and other techniques, ensuring client satisfaction. There are also instances where they may refer clients to dermatologists and other specialists. Moreover, a skin therapist must establish rapport with clients to have a strong customer base.

Medical esthetician vs skin therapist salary

Medical estheticians and skin therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Medical Esthetician	Skin Therapist
Average salary	$39,890	$29,682
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $61,000	Between $20,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between medical esthetician and skin therapist education

There are a few differences between a medical esthetician and a skin therapist in terms of educational background:

	Medical Esthetician	Skin Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Associate Degree, 32%
Most common major	Cosmetology	Cosmetology
Most common college	-	-

Medical esthetician vs skin therapist demographics

Here are the differences between medical estheticians' and skin therapists' demographics:

	Medical Esthetician	Skin Therapist
Average age	35	35
Gender ratio	Male, 4.0% Female, 96.0%	Male, 7.4% Female, 92.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 63.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.7% White, 63.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between medical esthetician and skin therapist duties and responsibilities

Medical esthetician example responsibilities.

Manage the aesthetics department and perform consultations with patients regarding aesthetic and facial surgery procedures.
Assist the physician in daily dermatology medical practice involving surgery, Botox, laser, biopsies, and patient care.
Assist surgeon in administering collagen and botox.
Deliver informative education to patients regarding multiple skincare product lines and treatments/procedures offer within the medical practice.
Assist in the execution of special events, seasonal gift with purchase within Nordstrom and holiday programs.

Skin therapist example responsibilities.

Provide direct assistance to patients in residential and intensive outpatient eating disorder programs.
Evaluate skin condition, budget, nutrition, possible allergies, and concerns to craft ideal plan for each customer.
Complete client record forms for each client including information such as treatments, procedures used, particular problems and or allergies.
Promote for companies that include Chanel, Donna Karan, Vera Wang, and Calvin Klein.

Medical esthetician vs skin therapist skills

Common medical esthetician skills

Patients, 16%
Laser Hair Removal, 10%
Product Sales, 8%
Skin Care Products, 6%
IPL, 5%
Eyelash Extensions, 5%

Common skin therapist skills

Booking, 38%
Product Knowledge, 29%
Skin Care Products, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
Facial Treatments, 6%
Hair Removal, 2%

Medical Esthetician vs. similar jobs

Medical Esthetician related careers

Medical Esthetician related jobs

What similar roles do

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse personal care and attendants jobs

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z