Choosing a facelift surgeon in the Twin Cities? We compare the metro's top options honestly, and show you what to look for before you book.
TLDR: The Twin Cities has a deep bench of facelift surgeons, and the right one for you depends on what you value. This guide covers Riverview Facial Plastic Surgery and four other well-regarded metro practices, Woodbury Plastic Surgery, Midwest Facial Plastic Surgery, Edina Plastic Surgery, and Rocheford Plastic Surgery, with honest notes on what each is known for and links so you can research every one of them yourself.
Let's address the obvious immediately. This roundup is published by Riverview Facial Plastic Surgery, one of the practices on the list, so you should read our inclusion with exactly the skepticism that deserves. We are writing it anyway, and naming and linking our competitors, because patients searching for the best facelift surgeon in Minneapolis and St. Paul deserve a page that actually helps them compare rather than another anonymous listicle. Every practice below is real, established, and worth your research time. Here is the honest lay of the land.
We will start with ourselves and hold ourselves to the same format as everyone else, what we are known for and why patients choose us. Riverview is a boutique facial specialty practice in St. Paul led by Dr. Daniel Schneider, who is board certified in head and neck surgery with subcertification from the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. His signature procedure is the deep plane facelift, the technique that lifts the face's deep support structure rather than pulling skin, and his stated philosophy is conservative, natural results that look like you on your best day.
What genuinely distinguishes the practice is the model. Dr. Schneider performs one surgery a day, four days a week. One. That means the facelift on his schedule is the only thing on his schedule, and patients are cared for by the same small team, including Sr. Aesthetics Consultant Alison McGilberry, from the complimentary consultation through every follow-up visit. The practice pairs facial surgery with supporting procedures like eyelid surgery, neck lifts, and chin liposuction, and even offers medically supervised weight loss for patients on the weight-loss-to-facelift journey, a combination no other practice on this list offers under one roof. Judge our claims against our before and after gallery, and read about Dr. Schneider's training at the University of Minnesota and OHSU. Patients who want a high-volume practice with multiple surgeons will be happier elsewhere on this list. Patients who want their surgeon's undivided attention tend to end up here.
Led by Dr. David Thao, Woodbury Plastic Surgery is one of the strongest and most established names in the east metro. Dr. Thao is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, has earned repeated Top Doctor recognition from Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine, and offers a genuinely full range of procedures from facelifts and eyelid surgery to breast and body work. His practice draws patients from across Minnesota and beyond, and his personal story and community involvement have earned wide respect. If you want a broad-scope, award-recognized general plastic surgeon, Dr. Thao belongs on your consultation list.
Midwest Facial Plastic Surgery is the practice most similar to ours in philosophy, a dedicated facial specialty group whose surgeons focus on face and neck lifts, blepharoplasty, and rhinoplasty, supported by an aesthetic skincare arm. With multiple double board certified surgeons and clinics across the east and south metro, they offer the facial specialist model at group-practice scale. Patients who want facial specialization plus the scheduling flexibility of a larger team should absolutely compare them alongside us. We consider them the metro's most credible facial competitor, and we mean that as a compliment.
Operating since 1977, Edina Plastic Surgery is one of the longest running plastic surgery groups in Minnesota, with a team of board certified surgeons repeatedly named to Top Doctors lists and an accredited on-site surgery center. Their scope spans the full body, facelifts included, and their longevity speaks to consistent patient trust across decades. Patients who value an established multi-surgeon institution in the southwest metro should have them on the list.
Dr. Heather Rocheford of Rocheford Plastic Surgery is a board certified plastic surgeon and St. Paul native who has led her own east metro practice for well over a decade. She offers facelifts and facial procedures within a broad cosmetic practice covering breast and body work, and patients consistently praise the comfortable, personal environment she has built. For patients who specifically prefer a female surgeon with deep local roots, Dr. Rocheford is a natural name to research.
Every practice above is legitimate, so the choice comes down to three questions. First, specialist or generalist. If the answer is specialist, that narrows the field quickly, and our guide to the facial plastic surgeon vs. general plastic surgeon distinction explains why we think it should. Second, which technique. Ask every consultation which facelift method they recommend for your anatomy and why, and read our comparison of deep plane, SMAS, and traditional facelifts first so you can follow the answer. Third, what experience do you want, a larger institution or a boutique where the surgeon knows your name and your case is the only one that day. There is no wrong answer, only a wrong fit.
Because you were going to find them anyway, and we would rather you compare all of us with clear eyes. Practices confident in their work do not need to hide the alternatives.
The best facelift surgeon in the Twin Cities is the one whose training matches your procedure, whose results you have personally examined, and whose answers at consultation earn your trust. We believe a facial specialist performing one surgery a day makes a very strong case, and we encourage you to test that case in person.
Yes. Consult with at least two. A good surgeon's recommendation survives a second opinion.
We opened by admitting our bias, so we will close by putting it to work. If a boutique facial specialty practice sounds like your fit, schedule your complimentary consultation at Riverview in St. Paul, bring this article, and ask Dr. Schneider why you should choose him over anyone on this list. He will give you a straight answer.
