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Reading the Reddit Threads About My Own Practice

Black and white photograph of a packed carry-on bag and a folded compression garment on a hotel bed. Commentary by Frank Agullo, MD, FACS.

There is a subreddit where people who have had tummy tucks post their twelve-day photos, their twelve-week photos, and exactly what they paid. Some of those posts are about my practice. I did not ask for them and I cannot edit them.

The number that travels is $17,600, all in, for an abdominoplasty with liposuction 360, a hernia repair, oblique plication, mons work, and a new belly button. I was asked whether it is accurate.

“This article is talking about a certain patient’s experience, so that figure would be correct for her and for her particular combination of procedures.

“As of this writing, our published range for a tummy tuck is $16,000 to $26,000, depending on the combination. For the most updated figures, readers should go to agulloplasticsurgery.com/fees, which is the page we keep updated.”

A hernia repair is not a line item everybody needs. Neither is oblique plication.

What I like about the thread it appeared in is that nobody let it sit there. “That’s extremely expensive just for a tummy tuck,” came the reply from u/Yelenablanka1987 in Who in the US can give me results like this?. “Respectfully for Texas too.”

The patient answered: “A coworker of mine went more local last year, only paid 6k and unfortunately her results are not pleasing. I wasn’t going to let that happen. You get what you pay for.”

I am not going to referee that. It is my fee they are arguing about, which disqualifies me. I will say the argument itself is the right one, and I would rather a prospective patient read those two strangers going back and forth than scroll my before-and-afters.

She also flagged something I should have said louder myself: “He usually does BBLs with his TTs, so if that’s not want you want, make sure you tell him. Most of his patients do. When I got my quote, it included the BBL, so had to ask for a new quote without it.” Her first number was $25,000 with a BBL in it. Ask for a quote for your operation, not the popular one.

What my quoted fee covers: the surgeon’s fee, the operating room, anesthesia, garments, and the pre-op and post-op supplements, which means SinEcch for bruising and swelling, Skinuva scar cream, a moisturizer, and Exparel for long-acting pain control. Every lymphatic drainage massage and every post-op visit is included. The patient pays for prescriptions at the pharmacy and nothing else.

I told Yahoo Finance something this year about patients flying overseas that applies to anyone driving in from Phoenix. Two quotes are often not measuring the same service. One covers the operation. The other covers the operation, the facility, the anesthesia and the follow-up.

On travel, in his words: “So for this one, we need you seven days minimum. Some people stay two weeks, but seven days is the usual.” And: “You can fly after seven days, that’s not a problem.” Day seven is when the sutures come out; the drain usually comes out on day fourteen, so a patient flying at a week often travels with it still in. Two weeks to easy activity, six weeks to unrestricted exercise, and lymphatic drainage “two or three per week for four weeks.”

I was asked whether the threads got anything wrong that I wanted corrected.

“I don’t think so. This is all a patient’s opinion.”

Those posts are unsolicited. They are not testimonials, I did not commission them and I cannot edit them. What I have quoted is excerpted and linked back to the original threads, disagreements included. Read them, then check the fees page for the current number rather than a post from last spring.

Call (915) 590-7900, text 1-866-814-0038, or book at agulloplasticsurgery.com. #StayBeautiful

Title alternatives (title PICKED 2026-09-09 by blog-publish-driver under the 2026-09-05 standing default; option kept is above)

  1. Reading the Reddit Threads About My Own Practice
  2. That $17,600 Number Is Real. It Is Also Hers.
  3. What Patients Say When the Surgeon Is Not in the Room
  4. Sixty Percent of My Patients Get on a Plane
Posted on

The Tummy Tuck Quote That’s Half of Ours: What You’re Actually Paying For

Greyscale editorial photograph for a tummy tuck cost essay by Frank Agullo, MD, FACS.

I received a quote from a surgeon in Mexico less than half of ours from a patient this week. She was not haggling; she simply wanted to know where the difference lay. She was right to ask, however, and deserved a real answer, not a defensive one.

The Numbers and the Content

Our price for a tummy tuck begins at $16,000 and extends to $26,000, genuinely all-inclusive: surgeon’s fee, facility fee, anesthesia, garments, and the preoperative and postoperative package, SinEcch for bruising, Skinuva scar cream, a skin moisturizer, and Exparel for extended pain relief, among other items. In addition to every session of drainage therapy and postoperative examination, we include, if necessary, even a BBL cushion. The sole exception is that you must claim your prescriptions.

When you see a quote that is half of that price, something in that list is lacking. It is time to ask what is there. How do all these quotes vary so much?

Why the Number Isn’t the Same Everywhere

Location differs, and overhead in one city versus another. One factor is how much a surgeon is in demand and indeed how complicated the specific case is; this takes into account combinations and expected time. There is a wide difference.

The Type of Tuck Changes the Math

The calculation changes with the kind of tuck. Mini tummy tuck patients do not have as much loose skin. It is a quicker operation and involves a C-section or equivalent incision length being determined, while the excision of surplus tissue within a standard abdominoplasty requires more effort and skill. The incision of an extended tummy tuck extends as far as the hips where the abdominal fold begins to extend over the buttocks. The full circumferential procedure, however, for overall looseness with a sag, is the longest and most comprehensive of the four, adding an increasingly large charge depending on the duration.

Where the Real Savings Show Up

These actual savings can be gained during an abdominal tuck with liposuction combined with a mommy makeover. In this particular case, each operation is included under a single fee in one cost-effective payment; this also allows for just one dosage of anesthesia.

The tummy tuck alone dictates the time for recovery whether combined with other procedures or not. From the time of surgery to return to activity takes up to two weeks and up to six weeks before the patient, as shown above, resumes heavy exercise, even with an additional procedure combined.

How Patients Actually Pay for This

PatientFi, AlphaEon, Cherry, CareCredit, or financing directly through the practice, as well as the major credit cards, cash, or financing through an outside bank, are all accepted, so terms of payment for the surgery ahead can work around whatever schedule you need.

The Part I Actually Want to Warn You About

However, this one piece of warning will suffice to warn you of a risk. I perform abdominoplasty revisions on numerous patients every year, after operations previously completed elsewhere, at times across borders in countries such as Mexico which charge less than what it takes. The price of rectifying a botched abdominoplasty can go beyond anything the original surgery charged, while the outcome usually cannot surpass what could have been achieved if it were done correctly the first time.

Check what has been cut in a quote that seems too good to be true: the surgeon’s training, the facility’s certifications, or the anesthesia used. A deal that demands a revision later, on top of the financial and health cost of that revision, is not a bargain at all.

Why I Price It This Way

As a Mayo Clinic fellowship-trained, double board-certified plastic surgeon and a Castle Connolly Top Doctor for thirteen consecutive years, I would rather be transparent about what’s in the number than let a patient find out what’s missing after the fact. An exact quote can only be given after a consultation, but the starting range and what’s included in it are not a secret. For the complete breakdown, see the full guide on agulloplasticsurgery.com.

Ready to Talk?

Bring your quote. I’ll tell you exactly what’s different about ours.

Call (915) 590-7900, text 1-866-814-0038, or book online at agulloplasticsurgery.com/appointments. #StayBeautiful

@RealDrWorldWide on Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, @Agullo on X, or @AgulloPlasticSurgery on Facebook.

  • Full guide on agulloplasticsurgery.com: “What a Tummy Tuck Actually Costs in El Paso (And What Moves the Number)” (canonical)
  • Med spa side on swplasticsurgery.com: “What a Tummy Tuck Costs at Southwest Plastic Surgery” (link once live)