When your cheekbones look unusually prominent in the mirror, it's natural to start searching for a way to slim them down. But prominent cheekbones aren't always about bone. For the same complaint, the cause might be bone for one person, the fat layer sitting over it for another, or shadows from sagging for someone else.

That's why the order of steps matters when you want to reduce your cheekbones. The first question isn't which treatment to look into, but whether your cheekbones are the "bone type" or the "soft-tissue type." Once you know the cause, the right approach and the results you can realistically expect change completely.

Three reasons cheekbones look prominent

Cheekbones usually look larger for a mix of three reasons.

• Bone: The cheekbone* itself juts out to the front or side. If the hard part you feel with your fingers is exactly what stands out, bone is likely the bigger factor.

• Fat and soft tissue: The tissue covering the cheekbone is thick or bunched toward the front. If it bulges more when you smile, soft tissue is playing a role.

• Sagging: As you age, the cheek below the cheekbone deflates and droops, so the cheekbone alone seems to pop out by comparison. If it looks more prominent standing up than lying down, that's a sign of sagging.

* Cheekbone: the firm bone you can feel on the side of your face, just below the eye and above the cheek. It shapes the width and contour of your face.

These three rarely show up alone — they usually overlap. Even in one person, it's common for bone to drive the upper cheekbone while sagging adds to the area below. So before settling on a single "cheekbone reduction" method, it helps to figure out which factor weighs most in your case. Knowing that lets you avoid unnecessary procedures and focus on what will actually make a difference.

If the bone is genuinely large, non-surgical options have limits

To be honest, if your cheekbone itself is large and protruding — the "bone type" — no in-office treatment can shave the bone down to narrow your face. Working directly on bone belongs to surgery like cheekbone reduction surgery*.

* Cheekbone reduction surgery: a procedure that cuts the cheekbone and moves it inward to reduce width or protrusion. It involves recovery time and risk, so it's a different category from non-surgical treatments.

So if you feel hard bone directly under your fingers and the width is unusually wide from the side rather than the front, it's best not to set your expectations too high for non-surgical treatments. In a case like this, rather than pushing hard with non-surgical options, it may make more sense to steer toward a surgical consultation.

If it's not bone, you can soften it

On the other hand, if your cheekbones stand out because of fat or sagging rather than bone, non-surgical treatments can make them far less noticeable. The key isn't to look at the cheekbones alone, but to balance them with the surrounding areas.

• If sagging is the cause: lifting raises the cheek that has dropped, supporting the area below the cheekbone. Treatments that heat deep layers to lift, like Shurink Universe or Ultherapy PRIME, are used here.

• If fat is the cause: reducing the fat bunched around the cheekbone smooths the side profile. But rather than removing it all, the amount is adjusted carefully, since over-deflating can actually make you look older.

• If hollows nearby make it stand out: gently filling the sunken areas below or in front of the cheekbone reduces the step-down, so the look of a lone, jutting cheekbone softens.

In other words, the approach is less about "shaving the cheekbone" and more about making it "less noticeable." Since the goal is different, sorting out whether you want to reduce the width itself or simply soften your overall look makes the consultation go faster.

If two or more causes overlap, order matters too. Usually, lifting the sagging part first and then reducing leftover fat or filling hollows gives a smoother result from the same treatments. Do it out of order, and fixing one side can make the other look more prominent. That's why it helps to map out "what to do first" together right at the initial consultation.

A few checks before your consultation make a difference

Checking three things yourself before a consultation makes the conversation much smoother. First, does hard bone stand out directly when you press on it? Second, does your cheekbone look different lying down versus standing up? Third, gently pinch the cheekbone area. If the tissue you pinch is thin, there isn't much soft tissue* to reduce, which points more toward bone being the bigger factor; if it pinches up thick, there's room to work with the fat and soft tissue. In short, if bone is felt directly or the pinch is thin, surgery is more likely the path; if your look changes with posture or the tissue pinches up thick, there's a good chance non-surgical treatment can help.

* Soft tissue: the soft layers covering the bone — skin, fat, and muscle. This is mainly what non-surgical treatments can reduce or lift.

Cheekbones are more often resolved through "balance" than by shaving them down. So before choosing which treatment to get, the first step is figuring out where your concern actually comes from. Sorting out that one thing alone helps you skip unnecessary procedures and find the right direction for you faster.

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Frequently asked questions

Q. My cheekbones look big — can non-surgical treatments reduce the bone too?

Non-surgical treatments can't shave the bone itself. If bone is the cause, that's the realm of surgery like cheekbone reduction; if fat or sagging is the cause, non-surgical treatments can make it less noticeable.

Q. How do I know if my cheekbones are about bone?

If the hard part stands out directly when you press on it and the width is wide from the side, bone is likely the bigger factor. If your look changes with posture, sagging and soft tissue play a larger role. We'll figure out the exact distinction together at your consultation.

Q. Does lifting actually reduce cheekbones?

It's less that the cheekbone width shrinks, and more that lifting the sagging cheek softens the look of a lone, jutting cheekbone. It's a helpful direction when sagging is the cause.

Q. Will removing just the fat beside the cheekbone slim my face?

If fat is the cause, it helps — but remove too much and the hollow can actually make you look older. So we adjust the amount and placement, and fill any hollows if needed to keep things balanced.

Further reading

• Slim lying down but collapsing standing up? Lift, don't remove

• Cheekbone filler for nasolabial folds — does it really work?

• Droopy eyelids: did you think it was just a skin issue?

• Pore reduction: why won't skincare alone fix it?