At Home Microcurrent Facial Device, How to Get Salon Results
Medically reviewed by
4 independent reviewers
Andrew Conrad Barile, PT, DPT
Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) | Licensed Physical Therapist (PT) | CEO and Founder, Xtreem Pulse LLC
Read bio
Dr. Andrew Conrad Barile is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and the CEO and Founder of Xtreem Pulse LLC, the engineering company behind PureLift. He earned his Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Daemen College and is a licensed physical therapist.
He brings over two decades of clinical and entrepreneurial experience across physical therapy, craniosacral therapy and medical device innovation, built on a working knowledge of human anatomy and muscle physiology.
For PureLift LAB he reviews how current is delivered across all ten levels, from sub-sensory nanocurrent and skin-level microcurrent to motor-level EMS, and how the Infuse pass fits into the same ten-minute routine.
Bertica M. Rubio, M.D.
Board-Certified Physician, Dartmouth Medical School | Medical Director, Antiaging Regenerative Medicine Clinic
Read bio
Dr. Bertica M. Rubio is a board-certified physician and Medical Director of the Antiaging Regenerative Medicine Clinic in Redlands, California. She earned her Doctor of Medicine from Dartmouth Medical School and completed her pediatrics residency at UC Irvine Medical Center.
With decades of clinical experience, she specialises in age management medicine, regenerative medicine, wound healing and growth factor therapies, and her practice integrates evidence-based medical science with advanced aesthetic treatment.
For PureLift LAB she reviews articles for medical accuracy across the whole dial, from the gentle nanocurrent and microcurrent settings through to muscle-level EMS and the Infuse pass.
Daniel Grinberg, MD, FACS
Board-Certified Otolaryngologist | Head and Neck Surgeon | Fellow, American College of Surgeons | Mount Sinai
Read bio
Daniel Grinberg, MD, FACS is a board-certified otolaryngologist and head and neck surgeon at ENT and Allergy Associates in West Nyack, New York. He earned his medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.
He completed his otolaryngology residency at New York University Medical Center, serves as Assistant Clinical Professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and is a Fellow of both the American College of Surgeons and the American Academy of Otolaryngology.
For PureLift LAB he brings a wider clinical lens, connecting at-home facial stimulation from microcurrent to EMS to the anatomy underneath, with the same rigour we apply to every device specification.
Prof. Dr. med. Ivo Buschmann
Chair of Angiology, Medizinische Hochschule Brandenburg | Clinic Director, University Clinic for Angiology
Read bio
Prof. Dr. med. Ivo Buschmann is Chair of Angiology at the Medizinische Hochschule Brandenburg Theodor Fontane and Clinic Director of the University Clinic for Angiology at the Brandenburg University Hospital.
He trained at the University of Hamburg, was a Max Planck Society Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, and held senior consultant posts at the Charite Universitatsmedizin Berlin before his appointment as Chair in 2016.
One of Europe's leading authorities on arteriogenesis, with over 150 peer-reviewed publications and US and EU patents, he reviews for PureLift LAB how the evidence on electrical stimulation is read and where its limits lie.
Share
To get salon-level results from an at home microcurrent facial device, use it four or five times a week for twelve weeks, keep the conductive layer wet, glide upward and outward slowly, and then maintain with two or three sessions a week.
This guide covers the full home routine, such as:
- how to prepare your skin
- the conductive layer and why it matters
- the technique a salon uses
- a twelve week schedule
- the mistakes that hold results back
and many more!
Frequency is the one advantage home use has over a salon, and the routine below is built around it.
Key Points:
A salon session gives more control, but a home device makes the frequent sessions results depend on practical.
Clean, makeup-free skin and a generous wet conductive layer are the two biggest factors in how well the current reaches the muscle.
Slow upward and outward glides with a one or two second hold at the end point mirror salon technique.
Four or five sessions a week for the first eight to twelve weeks, then two or three a week, is the schedule most routines follow.
The most common mistakes are a dry conductive layer, rushing the glides and stopping too soon.
Why home use can match a salon
A salon esthetician has more control over the settings and placement, but a series of salon sessions is weeks apart.
A randomized controlled trial by Kavanagh and colleagues, published in 2012, ran its study over twelve weeks of regular sessions, a schedule only home use makes practical. The comparison is in our home vs salon article.
Step one, prepare your skin
Cleanse to remove makeup, sunscreen and oil, which block the current.
Pat the skin dry, pull your hair back and remove jewelry near the face.
Step two, apply a generous conductive layer
Apply a thick, even layer of water-based conductive gel or serum to one zone at a time.
If the layer dries, the current weakens and can sting, so reapply as you go. Our devices work with any water-based conductive serum. See our gel and serum guide.
Why a device can feel weaker is in our article on a device feeling weaker.
Step three, use salon technique
Keep both contact points on the skin and glide slowly upward and outward.
Hold for one or two seconds at the end of each glide, and repeat three to five times per path.
Work the jaw, cheeks, forehead, brows and sides of the neck. The zones are in our microcurrent on face zone guide.
Our devices run nanocurrent at level 1, microcurrent at level 2 and EMS from level 3 to 10, plus an Infuse pass, on one dial, with a ten minute session and no more than three minutes per side of the face.
Step four, follow a twelve week schedule
Weeks one to four
Five sessions a week. Start on a comfortable level.
Weeks five to twelve
Four or five sessions a week. Take before photos on day one and compare at eight and twelve weeks.
After week twelve
Two or three sessions a week to maintain. More in our week by week results article.
Mistakes that hold results back
Letting the conductive layer dry out.
Rushing the glides.
Skipping sessions, since the result depends on frequency.
Stopping after a few weeks, before the lasting change has had time to build.
Expecting the device to tighten loose skin. See our article on whether microcurrent devices work.
Fitting a session into your routine
Morning sessions give the short-lived lifted look for the day ahead, while evening sessions fit around a skincare routine. See our morning versus evening article.
Use the device after cleansing and before the rest of your skincare, then wipe off the conductive layer or press it in if it is a serum you want to keep on.
Keep the device charged and next to your skincare so it becomes part of the routine rather than a separate task.
Track sessions on a calendar for the first twelve weeks, since frequency is the factor that decides the result.
Choosing an at home device
Look for an FDA clearance you can look up, a published output with a stated load and no required branded gel.
See our guide to choosing a toning device and our best microcurrent device for face article.
Do not use any facial current device if you have a pacemaker or other implanted electronic device, if you are pregnant or if you have epilepsy, and skip broken or irritated skin. The full list is in our safety article.
Frequently asked questions
Do at home microcurrent devices work
Yes, with regular use over weeks they can give a firmer, more lifted look. They do not tighten loose skin.
Can an at home device give salon results
A salon gives more control, but home use allows the frequent sessions results depend on.
How often should I use an at home microcurrent device
Four or five times a week for eight to twelve weeks, then two or three times a week to maintain.
What do I put on my face before using a microcurrent device
A generous layer of water-based conductive gel or serum on clean, makeup-free skin.
How long is an at home microcurrent session
On our devices about ten minutes, with no more than three minutes per side.
This article sits inside our full map of the category, where we set out all 33 devices we track, what each one carries and what each brand publishes: Nine Technologies on One Dial, What the Rest of the Market Actually Carries.