Laser resurfacing: how results, downtime, pain and cost change by treatment type

Key takeaways

• Laser resurfacing uses controlled healing to remodel collagen and improve texture and tone.

• Ablative treatment generally means greater results, longer recovery and potentially more severe side effects.

• Ablative fractional treatment carries more scarring and pigment risk than nonablative fractional treatment, especially in darker skin types.

Laser resurfacing changes skin through controlled healing

Laser resurfacing works by making a controlled skin injury that starts healing and collagen remodelling. As the skin heals, its collagen can change. This can help improve skin texture and tone. So the word "resurfacing" means more than a polish on the top of the skin.

Laser platforms work on the skin's upper layers to different degrees and can improve lentigines, wrinkles, sun-damaged skin, scars and uneven colour. The amount of change varies by laser and treatment type, so a machine name alone doesn't tell you how much tissue the treatment affects.

Start by asking whether the treatment is ablative or nonablative, then ask if its coverage is fractional or full-field. The first term tells you what happens to the tissue, while the second tells you how much of the planned area receives treatment.

The resurfacing tradeoffs start with action and coverage

A laser's name may not tell you how it acts on tissue or how much skin it covers. Those two features lead to very different plans.

Resurfacing tradeoff map

These features can be mixed. "Fractional" does not always mean nonablative because it describes coverage, while "ablative" does not tell you if the whole area is treated. You need both terms to make sense of the result, time off and possible number of visits.

A series of fractional treatments may come close to the results of fully ablative care while allowing a shorter recovery. The tradeoff is more visits spread across the treatment series.

Does laser resurfacing actually work?

Yes, laser resurfacing can improve texture, tone and several visible skin concerns, but the treatment type sets the pace and kind of change. "It works" does not mean the same result for each laser or concern.

With nonablative laser care, change comes step by step. The full effect can take several months, and you may need a set of treatments. This type tends to improve texture and colour more than it smooths wrinkles. If wrinkles are your main concern, that difference can guide your choice.

Fractional nonablative and fractional ablative care may take two to four treatments. The visits are often spread over weeks or months. This can mean more than one round of planning for time, pain control and healing.

Ask how many visits are planned and when a visible change may appear. Also name the change you care about most. Nonablative care is more likely to help texture and colour than smooth wrinkles, so a broad wish for "better skin" is not very useful here.

Once the treated area heals, the skin may look and feel better. The effect may last for years. That is not a promise of full or lasting removal of a scar, spot or wrinkle. It also does not set the amount of change for one person.

For acne scars, our laser treatment guide looks at that concern in more detail. Scar type and skin type can affect which route makes sense.

Is laser resurfacing painful?

Laser resurfacing can hurt, and deeper treatment causes more pain. This makes pain control a real part of the choice between a shallow treatment and a deeper one.

Ways to control pain during laser resurfacing include numbing cream, cold-based anesthesia and injected anesthesia. The list also includes monitored anesthesia care and general anesthesia.

Numbing cream has worked for shallow resurfacing. A deeper procedure causes more pain, so ask a direct question: "How deep is the treatment, and what pain control is being considered?" This is more useful than a yes-or-no question about pain.

The answer should name both the depth and the type of pain control. Topical and cold-based options are not the same as injected anesthesia, monitored care or general anesthesia. Knowing the exact method makes the word "comfortable" less vague.

Pain is only one part of the burden. Healing time may shape your plans just as much.

How much downtime follows laser resurfacing?

Time off can change a lot between ablative and nonablative care. After ablative resurfacing, new skin usually covers the treated area in seven to 10 days, but full recovery takes at least one month.

After nonablative resurfacing, you can often return to your usual day and skin routine right away. It is not simply ablative care with a shorter break. It acts on the skin in a different way and tends to bring a more moderate result.

With nonablative care, your normal day and skin routine can often start at once, while the result can keep taking shape for months. A quick return to your day does not mean an instant final result.

Time is not the only concern. Your past response to tanning, wounds and scars may also affect the risk.

Pigment and healing risks vary with skin history and treatment type

Your skin history can make strong resurfacing a poor fit. Past slow wound healing, keloids or thick raised scars may be reasons to avoid it. If you tan with ease, you may be at risk of dark marks after laser care.

Skin type matters too. Ablative fractional lasers carry more risk of scars and dark marks after inflammation than nonablative fractional lasers. The gap is a key concern for darker skin types. It needs to be weighed with the hoped-for result.

Even the word "fractional" does not tell the whole story. Devices can vary, settings can vary and your own skin matters. These shifts can make the treatment hard to control with great precision.

Ask: "Is this ablative or nonablative? Is it fractional or full-field? How do my skin type, tanning response and scar history affect the plan?" Each answer can change how you view the balance of results and risk.

It also helps to use plain words about your own past. A keloid, a thick raised scar, slow healing or easy tanning is more useful to the decision than saying only that your skin is sensitive. These are the history points tied to the known risks of strong resurfacing.

If uneven colour is part of your concern, our guide to melasma and hyperpigmentation in Toronto looks more closely at dark marks. Laser resurfacing still needs its own review of skin type and pigment risk.

What are the downsides and warning signs?

Problems can occur with full-field and fractional laser care. Fractional treatment tends to make them less common and less severe. Fractional CO2 also has a lower rate of problems than full-field ablative laser care, but side effects can still occur.

With nonablative laser care, risks include red or swollen skin and short-term light or dark marks. Infection and scars can also occur. The skin stays intact during this type of care, but that does not make it free from risk.

Healing that runs late can be a sign of a hidden infection. After fractional care, this means more than three or four days with a nonablative device. For ablative care, it means more than one month.

Ask which risks go with the treatment type and what healing time applies. Also ask how the device, settings and your own skin affect the plan. The word "fractional" on its own is not enough.

How much does CO2 laser resurfacing cost in the GTA?

Mid-2026 estimates for Oakville and the Greater Toronto Area put full-face lighter fractional CO2 treatment at about CAD $600 to $1,500 per session. Deeper fractional CO2 was about $1,500 to $4,000. Fully ablative full-face CO2 was about $3,500 to $8,500.

These are CO2 market estimates, not prices for every type of laser care. Cost can change with depth, area size, number of visits and clinic setting, while sedation or an operating room can add to it. Numbing, care products and follow-up may or may not be part of the price.

The treatment type gives the price its meaning. Lighter fractional, deeper fractional and fully ablative full-face CO2 care sit in different price bands. Area size, visit count, anesthesia, care products and follow-up can shift the total too.

A useful quote question names each cost driver: "What depth and area does this cover, how many visits are planned, and are numbing, aftercare and follow-up included?" Sedation and operating-room needs can also change the cost.

For acne scars, price is just one part of the choice. Scar features, skin type and the risk of dark marks matter too.

How do fractional CO2 and microneedling differ for facial atrophic acne scars?

Microneedling and CO2 laser care act in different ways. Microneedling makes small, controlled injuries that prompt collagen, while CO2 laser care removes scar tissue. Both can improve acne scars, but each has its own risks.

The choice can depend on scar type, how severe the scars are, your skin type and what you prefer. A broad ranking does not account for those facts.

One study compared both methods in 30 adults aged 20 to 40 with facial atrophic acne scars. After four monthly visits, fractional CO2 led to more measured and self-rated change than microneedling, but dark marks after inflammation occurred in 30% of the fractional CO2 group and 6.67% of the microneedling group. The result applies to that 30-person group and does not make fractional CO2 the best choice for every scar or skin type.

Our guide to microneedling for acne scars takes a closer look at that option. Your scar type, scar severity, skin type and wishes still shape the choice.

Acne-scar choices start with scar type and skin type

For acne scars, CO2 reaches deeper and may bring more change in severe scars, while Er:YAG is gentler and has a lower risk of dark marks after inflammation. One may offer more change, but the other may lower a key pigment risk. Neither fact makes one laser best for every person.

If acne scars or dark marks are your concern, our North York acne and acne-scar program offers a custom consultation and care plan. Options in the program include PicoSure Pro laser care, microneedling, medical-grade peels and care for dark marks, all within our acne and acne-scar program.

You can also read our acne-scar treatment guide for more on scar types, results, risks and cost. If scars or dark marks brought you here, book an acne and acne-scar consultation with us.