# What Are the Advertising Rules for Med Spas and Aesthetic Clinics on Meta and Google?

Reviewed October 24, 2026 · By Michael Borgia, MedScale Health

## Short answer

As of October 2026, med spa and aesthetic clinic ads are open on Google with realistic claims and open on Meta with limits: cosmetic procedure ads must target adults and may show before-and-after results, including Botox and filler since July 22, 2026. MedScale Health, a paid ads agency for US telehealth brands and clinics, pre-clears med spa creative against Meta's health and personal attributes standards before spend. Inferiority statements and second-person lines about the viewer's looks still fail, and TikTok may allow US cosmetic clinic ads for adults.

## What does this mean for a med spa or aesthetic clinic?

- Every cosmetic-procedure ad set targets adults only. That is a hard requirement on Meta, not a best practice.
- Meta allows cosmetic before-and-after transformation in adults-only ads, and since July 22, 2026 that includes skin-aging and wrinkle treatments such as Botox and fillers. The claims around the image are what get reviewed, and MedScale's own ads skip the format; that is MedScale's rule, not Meta's.
- "Look 10 years younger" and "ready to fix your skin?" are personal-attribute and inferiority violations. Describe the treatment; do not describe the viewer.
- Adding GLP-1 injections to the menu brings Meta's prescription-drug rules and Google's drug-keyword rule into play. Keep them on separate pages and in separate campaigns.
- Testimonials and result imagery have to reflect what a typical client can expect under FTC rules, and AI-generated mock-ups draw FTC scrutiny.

MedScale Health, a paid acquisition agency for telehealth brands and clinics, runs aesthetics as a visual category where the claims around the visuals are what the platforms review, and where a weight-loss add-on quietly changes which rules apply. This answer covers each platform and the add-on trap. A med spa can see where its own account stands in [MedScale's free Growth Audit](https://medscale.health/audit): which channels it can run, and what in its ads and pages would get flagged. MedScale's answers are marketing guidance for healthcare operators, not medical or legal advice, and platform policies change: check the sources listed at the end before acting on any specific rule.

## What does Meta allow in med spa and cosmetic procedure ads?

Meta's health and wellness standard requires ads for cosmetic products, procedures and surgeries to be targeted to people 18 or older and prohibits statements of inferiority about physical appearance, specific body parts or hygiene, and clickbait such as sensational claims or timed promises without qualifiers. It lists cosmetic procedures, [from fillers and injectables to laser treatments](https://medscale.health/answers/how-to-run-meta-ads-for-a-med-spa), as allowed for adults, including ads depicting before-and-after transformation, and since July 22, 2026 the before-and-after can also show skin-aging and wrinkle treatments such as Botox and fillers, which the earlier version carved out. Meta's before-and-after allowance is why a med spa sees competitors running the format. MedScale's own house rule is stricter and leaves the format out of the ads it builds; that is MedScale's choice, not Meta's rule.

Meta's personal attributes standard is the second collision for med spa ads. Copy that implies the viewer has wrinkles, unwanted fat or a problem to fix asserts a physical characteristic. Meta's own examples draw the line: a product that fights wrinkles can be described; asking the viewer whether they are ready to look younger cannot. The subject of the sentence is the treatment, never the reader.

## What does Google allow in med spa ads?

Google's healthcare and medicines policy leaves cosmetic procedures open, subject to the general rules against unrealistic and unsubstantiated claims. Local search on treatment intent ("lip filler near me", "laser hair removal clinic") is the most reliable direct-response channel in the category. The exposure on Google comes from two directions: unrealistic outcome claims in ad text, and prescription drug terms used as keywords. Since October 29, 2025, Google's US restricted drug terms policy lets an advertiser name a prescription drug in ads and landing pages without certification, but keyword-targeting those terms still needs certification. MedScale reads every med spa ad's claims against those rules before it runs.

## What changes when a med spa adds GLP-1 weight loss?

Adding GLP-1 weight loss brings prescription-drug rules to every page and ad that mentions it. The moment a med spa adds prescription weight loss to the menu, the pages and ads that mention it fall under Meta's drugs and pharmaceuticals standard and Google's prescription drug rules. On Meta, promoting the medication [requires LegitScript certification and Meta's authorization](https://medscale.health/answers/meta-prescription-drug-authorization-steps), which Meta grants only to online pharmacies, telehealth providers and manufacturers, so an in-person-only med spa cannot promote it there. On Google, an in-person med spa may name it in ad text and on the page, but keyword-targeting it needs certification, and prescribing by telehealth or shipping it makes the med spa a telemedicine provider or pharmacy that must be certified first. A page that lists compounded semaglutide with a price next to the injectables menu [reads as an online pharmacy to a reviewer](https://medscale.health/answers/online-pharmacy-advertising-rules), and the restriction lands on the whole account, cosmetic campaigns included.

The structure that survives is separation: the weight-loss program gets its own landing pages, its own campaigns and its own ad sets, built under the [rules described for medical weight loss clinics](https://medscale.health/answers/medical-weight-loss-clinic-ads-rules), with the compounded status stated plainly wherever a compounded product is named. The aesthetics creative stays exactly as it was, and MedScale runs the weight-loss program in its own campaigns for that reason. Wellness add-ons such as [IV therapy, NAD+ and hyperbaric oxygen](https://medscale.health/answers/can-you-advertise-iv-therapy-nad-and-hyperbaric) follow their own claim rules on Meta and Google.

## Can a med spa advertise on TikTok?

Yes, for adults in the United States. [TikTok's Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals policy](https://medscale.health/answers/can-you-advertise-trt-on-tiktok), last updated September 2026, sets rules market by market. In the United States, cosmetic clinic and cosmetic surgery ads may be allowed if they comply with local law and target people 18 or older, and fillers and microdermabrasion are listed as examples. Prescription medicine ads need proof of FDA approval, so a compounded weight-loss add-on cannot qualify. TikTok suits provider-led treatment content for adults better than a direct booking offer. MedScale targets every med spa TikTok ad to people 18 or older.

## What do FTC rules say about med spa testimonials and results?

The FTC's Endorsement Guides require that a testimonial reflect the honest experience of a real client and that any result shown be what a typical client can expect, or be accompanied by a clear statement of what is typical. Paid or incentivized reviews have to be disclosed. LegitScript's telehealth advertising guidance also flags the risk of AI-generated mock-ups of results. In a category where the result is visual, the practical rule is that any image presented as a result must be [a real client, consented](https://medscale.health/answers/patient-before-and-after-photo-consent-for-ads), with the treatment and timeframe stated, and that the ad itself does not rely on it. MedScale's own med spa ads do not rely on result imagery.

## What does med spa creative need to clear review?

- Treatment explainers: what the procedure is, how long it takes, what recovery looks like, who performs it.
- Provider credibility: credentials, training, the studio, the consultation.
- Offer structure that does not violate pricing rules: a consultation or a first-visit offer rather than a discount on a medical procedure framed as urgency.
- Adults-only targeting on every cosmetic ad set, confirmed on MedScale's launch checklist.
- Booked treatments tied to the campaign through the booking platform, with compliant tracking if the menu includes any prescription service.

## How should a med spa run Google Search ads?

Aesthetics is a local category, and [the most predictable bookings come from treatment-intent search](https://medscale.health/clinics/med-spa-aesthetics/marketing) rather than from social discovery. MedScale builds med spa search campaigns per treatment family (injectables, laser, body contouring, skin) with location-level budgets, ad copy that names the treatment and the provider's credentials, and landing pages that explain the procedure, the recovery and the consultation rather than promising an outcome. Offer structure is where Google's realistic-claims rules bite: a consultation offer or a first-visit price passes; a discount framed as urgency on a medical procedure, or a price that turns out to exclude the consultation, draws the misleading-claims finding. Call tracking and the booking platform tie each booked treatment back to the campaign.

## How should a med spa use Meta ads?

A med spa uses Meta for discovery rather than intent, and the creative that survives review is the creative that shows the studio, the provider and the treatment process. Provider-to-camera explainers of what a procedure involves, short walkthroughs of the consultation, and client testimonials about the experience of care rather than the result all pass the health and wellness standard and the personal attributes standard. The pattern to avoid is building an ad on the viewer: any sentence whose subject is the person watching, and any image that invites comparison of bodies or faces, is the one the reviewer rejects and the one that, repeated, restricts the account. Adults-only targeting is set on every cosmetic ad set and confirmed in the launch checklist, because a mis-set audience fails without any creative problem. MedScale writes med spa Meta copy with the treatment, never the viewer, as the subject.

## How should a med spa count bookings from ads?

A med spa should count bookings from its booking platform, not from the ad platforms. Aesthetics bookings happen in the clinic's booking platform, often after a phone call, and the platform's own conversion counts rarely agree with the ad platforms'. The reliable read ties each booked treatment back to the campaign through the booking tool and call tracking, reconciled weekly against what the ad platform claims, and MedScale reports med spa results on that basis. Where the menu includes any prescription service, the events that leave the site are generic and server-side, and no names, emails, phone numbers, IP addresses or browser IDs go to the ad platforms, so a weight-loss add-on never turns the cosmetic account's pixel into a health-associated data source.

## Can med spa ads show prices and offers?

Yes, when the offer is simple and complete. Aesthetics is one of the few healthcare categories where price is part of the ad, and it is also where the misleading-claims rules are most often tripped. A price that excludes the consultation, a unit price for injectables that does not say how many units a typical treatment takes, or a limited-time discount framed as medical urgency all draw findings on Google and Meta and complaints under FTC guidance. The offers that survive are simple and complete: a consultation price, a first-visit price that states what it includes, or a package price for a named treatment course. Membership and financing terms belong on the page, not in the ad, which is where MedScale puts them.

## How does MedScale run Meta and Google ads for med spas?

MedScale Health runs [med spa and aesthetics acquisition](https://medscale.health/clinics/med-spa-aesthetics) as set out on medscale.health/clinics/med-spa-aesthetics: creative pre-cleared against the health and personal attributes standards before spend, local paid search and Meta in one plan with offer structures that respect the pricing rules, and booked-treatment attribution through the clinic's booking platform. Where the menu includes prescription weight loss, the program is separated into its own pages and campaigns and run under the medical weight loss rules, so a restriction on one side can never reach the other.

## Next step

**Check your ad before Meta does.** Paste your ad copy into the free pre-check. It flags the lines a reviewer reads as personal attributes, outcome promises or drug claims.

- [Run the free pre-check](https://medscale.health/pre-check)
- [Already restricted? Start a rescue](https://medscale.health/rescue)
- [Telehealth marketing agency](https://medscale.health/telehealth)
- [Get a free Growth Audit](https://medscale.health/audit): a written read of your ads, pages and eligibility, with a plan

## FAQ

**Can a med spa use before-and-after photos in Meta ads?**

Yes, with adults-only targeting. Meta's health and wellness standard allows cosmetic ads depicting before-and-after transformation, and since July 22, 2026 that includes Botox and filler results, as long as they make no statement of inferiority about appearance and no timed promise without a qualifier. MedScale's own ads leave the format out; that is MedScale's rule, not Meta's.

**We added GLP-1 injections to our med spa menu. Does that change our ads?**

Yes, materially. Prescription weight loss moves the relevant pages and ads under the prescription-drug rules on Meta and Google. The med spa creative can stay as it is; the weight-loss program needs its own pages, its own campaigns and the certification path, and any compounded product is described as compounded, not FDA-approved.

**Why was our aesthetics ad rejected for personal attributes?**

Second-person copy about the viewer's appearance. "Ready to look younger?" or "tired of fine lines?" implies the advertiser knows something about the viewer's physical characteristics. Describe the treatment and who performs it, and leave the viewer out of the sentence.

**Can we run Google Ads for injectables without any certification?**

Yes. Cosmetic procedures are open on Google subject to realistic-claims rules. Certification becomes relevant when the campaign keyword-targets a prescription drug term, or when the business prescribes by telehealth or ships medication. Naming a prescription product in US ad text or on the page no longer needs it.

## Sources

- [Meta Advertising Standards: Health and wellness](https://transparency.meta.com/policies/ad-standards/restricted-goods-services/health-wellness/) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [Meta Advertising Standards: Privacy violations and personal attributes](https://transparency.meta.com/policies/ad-standards/objectionable-content/privacy-violations-personal-attributes) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [Meta Advertising Standards: Drugs and pharmaceuticals](https://transparency.meta.com/policies/ad-standards/restricted-goods-services/drugs-pharmaceuticals/) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [Google Ads policy: Healthcare and medicines](https://support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/176031?hl=en) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [Google Ads policy: Restricted drug terms](https://support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/15595717?hl=en) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [TikTok Ads policy: Healthcare and pharmaceuticals](https://ads.tiktok.com/resources/help/article/tiktok-ads-policy-healthcare-pharmaceuticals) (checked November 3, 2026)
- [FTC: Endorsement Guides, what people are asking](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking) (checked October 5, 2026)
- [LegitScript: Certified but still getting disapproved, telehealth advertising webinar takeaways](https://www.legitscript.com/healthcare/certified-but-still-getting-disapproved-key-takeaways-from-our-telehealth-advertising-webinar/) (checked October 5, 2026)

## Related

- [Can You Use Before and After Photos in GLP-1 Ads?](https://medscale.health/answers/before-and-after-imagery-glp-1-ads)
- [What Is Meta's Personal Attributes Policy and Why Does It Block Weight Loss Ads?](https://medscale.health/answers/meta-personal-attributes-policy-weight-loss)
- [What Are the Rules for Medical Weight Loss Clinic Ads on Meta and Google?](https://medscale.health/answers/medical-weight-loss-clinic-ads-rules)
- [GLP-1 Ad Examples That Pass Meta Review](https://medscale.health/answers/glp-1-ad-creative-that-survives-review)

Canonical page: https://medscale.health/answers/aesthetic-clinic-advertising-rules