Vanity or Vice · Spa Intelligence
See the room
before you book it.
Before the Botox, the filler, the laser or the facial: read the quote, check the license and the product, and see what they have not told you yet.
01
Name the service and the setting.
02
See what the spa has not told you.
03
Print the card for your consult.
Example reading
$99 lip flip · Arizona med spa
2 of 13 answered · 3 half-answered
Not enough to decide on
- What kind of place this isHalf-answered
- Who treats you, and their licenseHalf-answered
- The exact product or deviceNot answered yet
- Who supervises, and whether they’re thereNot answered yet
- How needles, tips and packaging are handledNot answered yet
Ask first
What is the brand name printed on the box, vial, or device panel?
What a booking should answer
What a booking should answer.
Thirteen questions every place should be able to answer. Each one is marked by what you actually know — never rounded up into a “probably”.
- Answered
- Half-answered
- Not answered yet
- Declined
The treatment01
What you’re actually buying
What exactly is being sold
A named line item can be quoted back. “Signature glow” cannot.
The person02
Who does it, under whose license
Who treats you, and their license
A title is marketing. A license type and number can be checked with a state board.
Who supervises, and whether they’re there
On site and “available by phone” are different answers to the same question.
The product02
What goes on or in you
The exact product or device
Brand names can be looked up — maker, FDA status, what it’s cleared for. Tiers can’t.
How needles, tips and packaging are handled
Single-use, opened in front of you, is a practice. “Spotless” is decor.
The place & the plan07
Paper, oversight, and the night after
What kind of place this is
Day spa, med spa and medical practice carry different oversight.
Which state’s rules apply
Who may inject, who must supervise, and which board to search all depend on the state.
The consent form, before you pay
Consent read on the treatment table is consent under pressure.
Who answers at 2 a.m.
A voicemail box or a DM inbox is a queue, not a person.
The written plan if something goes wrong
Who treats it, how fast, and who pays — decided before anyone needs it.
Written aftercare
Downtime happens on your time and at your expense. Instructions beat reassurance.
The follow-up check
A dated, priced review means someone other than the seller looks at the result.
The money01
Totals, deposits, expiry
The real total, and the terms
A per-unit or per-session price is a rate. The total, deposit and expiry are the commitment.
- Before-you-book checkFive taps to see what’s answeredOpen
- Document readerQuotes, DMs, consent forms, reviewsOpen
- Quote calculatorPer unit, per session, the real yearOpen
- Financing & prepayDeferred interest and expiring creditsOpen
- Commitment IntelligenceMoney, time, lock-in and exit termsOpen
- Credential checkWhich board, and what to look forOpen
- Product identityWhat it is and what FDA saysOpen
- The 2 a.m. testWho answers when something goes wrongOpen
- Compare placesSide by side, no rankingsOpen
- Compare treatmentsGoals, tradeoffs, downtime, maintenanceOpen
- Decision WorkspaceOne place’s whole file, and what to ask nextOpen
- Consult prepThe questions still worth askingOpen
- Decision RecordPrint it, share it, keep itOpen
- Learning pathsBeginner to checking it yourselfOpen
Learn
From “what do I even ask?” to checking it yourself.
Three short paths through the pages here, in an order that builds. Tick steps off as you go — your progress stays in this browser.
See the pathsStart here · about 31 min
Before you book anything
The few things to establish before you hand over a card.
6 steps · progress stays in this browser
Open the pathGo deeper · about 50 min
The paperwork and the price
Read the quote, the consent form and the payment terms before you sign.
8 steps · progress stays in this browser
Open the pathCheck it yourself · about 53 min
Verify it yourself
Check the license, the product and the plan at the source.
8 steps · progress stays in this browser
Open the path
Treatment guides
What the menu name doesn’t tell you.
State rules
Who may do what depends on the state.
License lookups for every state and DC, and plain summaries of official rules — each with its source and the date we checked.
Browse all state rules if you want the full index first.
How this stays honest
How this stays honest.
No rankings, ever.
We compare what places have told you, not which one is better.
Unknowns stay unknown.
A vague answer is marked half-answered; a declined question counts for less than silence.
Sources with dates.
Every state rule and product fact names where it came from and when we checked.
Education, not advice.
We don’t diagnose, assess candidacy, or give legal or financial advice. How this works