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A transplant or PRP: the question comes up often, and the answer hinges on one simple thing. Is your hair still there, just finer than before, or is the area bare? In the first case, PRP makes sense. In the second, it's a transplant, and that's not a treatment we offer.
We'd rather say so right away than leave you comparing two things that don't answer the same situation.
The question behind "transplant or PRP"
A transplant and PRP don't do the same job. One moves follicles. The other supports the ones already in place.
| Transplant | PRP | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Moves follicles from one area to another | Supports follicles already present |
| Bare area | Can be an answer | Won't regrow hair there |
| How long it lasts | Permanent, per the AAD | Not permanent, needs upkeep (AAD) |
| Who handles it | A medical assessment, elsewhere | A nurse, at the clinic |
We found no study that compares the two head to head. So we won't tell you which one "wins": they serve different moments.
What a transplant does
According to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), a transplant gives permanent, natural-looking results. It takes follicles from one spot and places them where there are too few.
It doesn't create more hair: it redistributes what you have. It's surgery, and it belongs to a medical assessment. We don't offer it, and we won't speak ill of it: for a bare area, it's often the right direction.
What PRP does
Hair PRP starts with your own blood. A nurse draws a small amount, we spin it to concentrate the platelets, then the plasma is injected into the scalp.
It targets follicles that still respond. The AAD states that PRP isn't permanent and that upkeep is needed. For budgeting, one hair PRP session is $625, plus taxes.
What studies say about PRP
The best recent summary is a 2024 meta-analysis by Kieling and colleagues in Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia. It pools 13 randomized clinical trials.
- Average difference: 27.55 more hairs per cm² than placebo.
- Certainty of the evidence: low.
- The studies differ a lot from one another, and publication bias is possible.
PRP supports the follicles that are still there. It doesn't replace a bare area.
A measurable gain, then, but a modest one, and it varies with the protocol. It doesn't promise regrowth, and we don't either.
When a transplant is the right answer
If an area has been bare for a long time, there's no active follicle left to support. PRP has nothing to work on, and a transplant becomes the only answer that moves anything.
In that case, it's not our treatment. We tell you at the assessment, and we send you to a physician. The criteria for whether a transplant is appropriate, such as age or how stable the loss is, belong to that physician: we don't set them for them.
When it's both
The two aren't mutually exclusive. The AAD says PRP can come before a transplant. A 2025 systematic review of PRP as an add-on to a transplant reports encouraging results, still to be confirmed.
If you've already had a transplant, or you're considering one, PRP may have a place before or around it. We talk it through at the assessment, with your physician if needed.
What we tell you up front at the assessment
Here's what we tell you without your having to ask:
- Whether your area still responds or a transplant is the better fit. If so, we say it plainly.
- That the PRP result is gradual, variable and not guaranteed.
- That upkeep is needed to hold the gain.
- That your lab work (iron, thyroid) is taken into account.
- That finasteride and minoxidil are a matter for your doctor: we don't suggest them, and we say nothing against them.
To know whether PRP suits you, read who is a candidate for hair PRP. For your own case, the hair page lays out our options.
Frequently asked questions
Can PRP replace a transplant?
No, not on a bare area. PRP works on the follicles that are there, whereas a transplant brings them in from another area.
Can you do PRP after a transplant?
Yes, it's one avenue. The AAD says PRP can come before a transplant, and a 2025 review reports encouraging results, to be confirmed. We discuss it at the assessment.
Is a transplant permanent?
According to the AAD, yes. It doesn't create more hair: it moves what you have.
At what age can a transplant be considered?
That decision belongs to the physician who does the assessment, not to us. We don't set an age here.
Does PRP regrow hair on a bald area?
No. It works on the follicles that are present. On a bare area, it's not the right treatment.
Sources
- Kieling L. et al. Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials on autologous platelet-rich plasma and hair density. Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia, 2024. PMC11551241
- American Academy of Dermatology. What is male pattern hair loss, and can it be treated? aad.org
- Efficacy of Platelet-Rich Plasma as an Adjunct to Hair Transplantation. Systematic review, 2025. PMC12506585
