It’s finally happened—what started as a little softness under your chin has now turned into a noticeable sagging jawline, often called “turkey neck.” This condition involves the skin, fat, or muscles around the neck—or sometimes all three—and is commonly linked to aging, though younger people can experience it too.
There are several ways to address turkey neck, ranging from non-surgical treatments to surgical options, depending on the underlying cause and the results you’re looking for.
While “turkey neck” isn’t an official medical term, most people recognize it right away. It refers to the appearance of excess skin, soft tissue, and loose neck muscles that affect how your neck looks.
These changes can alter the cervicomental angle—the natural angle where your jawline meets your neck—making the neck appear droopy and less defined.
Several factors can contribute to the development of a turkey neck:
For some people, losing weight can improve the appearance of their neck, but results vary depending on the skin’s condition.
If you’re younger with healthy, elastic skin, it may naturally tighten and retract after weight loss. However, if your skin is older, wrinkled, or has lost elasticity—often due to factors like smoking—you might not see significant improvement in the neck area despite losing weight.
There are several products and minimally invasive procedures available in the UK that can help improve skin elasticity and reduce neck fat, including:
Other more advanced options include:
To improve the tone and strength of the neck muscles, you can also try:
A word of caution: While many nonsurgical treatments promise great results, they typically produce subtle improvements and often require multiple sessions plus ongoing maintenance. Though these options can enhance your skin’s quality, surgical procedures usually offer the most dramatic and long-lasting results. That said, many people are pleased with the changes nonsurgical treatments provide.
Surgical options for treating turkey neck include facelifts (rhytidectomy) and neck lifts (platysmaplasty). These procedures involve removing excess skin and fat from the face or neck while tightening the remaining skin, muscles, and underlying tissue.
Facelifts and neck lifts can go by different names—such as feather lift, short scar facelift, or J lift—but all are variations designed to improve facial and neck contours.
While surgery comes with more risks and a longer recovery time compared to nonsurgical treatments, the results are typically more dramatic and long-lasting. By physically removing loose skin and fat—and tightening the muscles if necessary—surgical lifts offer a more immediate and noticeable improvement in the appearance of the neck and jawline.
A Neck Lift or Platysmaplasty, removes loose skin along the jawline and on the neck itself, resulting in a smoother, wrinkle-free neck and jawline. This procedure is often combined with a facelift to dramatically rejuvenate one’s overall appearance.
Incisions are made in the hairline and are typically quite short to reduce scarring. The resulting scars are very discreet, hidden behind the hairline. Your surgeon will tighten your loose skin to create a more uplifted and youthful appearance to the neck.
This procedure is typically performed under general anaesthesia and requires a moderate recovery time. Neck lift surgery starts from £7,622 at Kat & Co.
