Crow's Feet & Wrinkles Around the Eyes
What Are Crow's Feet? Crow's feet are the small, fan-shaped lines that spread from the outer corners of the eyes towards the temples. They usually begin as dynamic lines, visible only when you smile, squint or laugh, and gradually become static lines that stay visible even when your face is relaxed.
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Last reviewed: July 28, 2026
What Are Crow's Feet?
Why the Eye Area Ages First
A Doctor-Led Approach to Eye Wrinkles
Who Experiences This Condition?
Common in
- •Adults from their mid-twenties onwards, when the first dynamic lines typically appear
- •People who spend a lot of time outdoors without sunglasses or SPF
- •Smokers and ex-smokers
- •Those with naturally expressive faces
- •People with fair or thin skin, which shows creasing earlier
Factors Affecting Severity
- •Cumulative sun exposure without eye protection
- •Genetics and natural skin thickness
- •Sleep position and pillow pressure on the outer eye area
- •Skincare habits, particularly SPF and retinoid use
- •Smoking, stress and sleep quality
How to Get Rid of Crow's Feet
How much crow's feet can improve depends on whether they are dynamic or static, but the honest ladder looks like this:
- Protect first: Daily SPF 50 and sunglasses stop existing lines deepening. No treatment result lasts if UV keeps degrading the collagen beneath.
- Build a night routine: A retinoid designed for the eye area is the best-evidenced home step for softening fine lines over three to six months.
- Treat the skin quality: If the skin beside your eyes is crepey or dehydrated, regenerative treatments such as polynucleotides or skin boosters restore bounce and soften static creasing.
- Stimulate collagen: Sylfirm X and similar collagen-stimulating treatments firm the outer eye area and soften etched lines.
- Address the movement: For lines driven mainly by expression, injectable and device options exist that your doctor can discuss at a consultation, with suitability always confirmed medically first.
Book a consultation for lines and wrinkles and our doctors will map your lines and build the right ladder for you.
Wrinkles Around the Eyes vs Under the Eyes
'Wrinkles around the eyes' covers two different problems that are often confused:
- Crow's feet sit at the outer corners of the eyes and are driven mostly by expression movement and sun exposure.
- Under-eye lines and hollowing sit below the eye and are usually driven by volume loss, thin skin and pigmentation rather than muscle movement.
The distinction matters because the treatments differ. Crow's feet respond to the ladder above, while under-eye concerns are more often treated with tear trough treatment, PRP under-eye rejuvenation or polynucleotides. If your main concern is dark circles or hollowing rather than expression lines, start with our guide to under-eye hollowing and tear trough deformity. For expression lines across the whole face, see our guide to dynamic wrinkles and expression lines, and if your lines sit across the forehead or between the brows, see forehead and frown lines.
When to See a Doctor
Crow's feet are a normal part of facial ageing, not a medical problem. That said, a doctor-led assessment is worthwhile if:
- Lines have become static and no longer fade when your face relaxes
- Home skincare has plateaued after six months of consistent use
- You are noticing crepey texture alongside the lines
- You want an honest map of your options before committing to anything
A consultation does not commit you to treatment: it establishes what is actually driving your lines, which rungs of the ladder are worth your money, and which are not. Book a consultation for lines and wrinkles at our central London clinic.
Treatment Process
There is no single fix for crow's feet; the right plan depends on whether your lines are dynamic or static and on the quality of the surrounding skin:
1. Skincare foundations: Daily SPF, an eye-appropriate retinoid and good hydration slow further creasing and soften fine lines.
2. Skin-quality treatments: Polynucleotides, skin boosters and PRP improve the thickness, hydration and elasticity of thin eye-area skin, softening crepey texture and fine static lines.
3. Energy-based options: Sylfirm X RF microneedling stimulates collagen in the outer eye area to firm the skin and soften etched lines.
4. Options for movement-driven lines: Where expression movement is the main driver, your doctor may discuss prescription anti-wrinkle options at your consultation. Suitability is always confirmed face to face with a doctor first.
Diagnosis & Assessment
Your consultation starts with an assessment of how your eye-area lines behave: we look at the skin at rest and during expression to establish whether your crow's feet are dynamic, static or a mixture of both. We also assess skin quality, hydration, sun damage and the under-eye area, because the right plan for etched static lines is different from the right plan for early dynamic creasing.
Prevention & Management
Lifestyle Tips
- •Wear SPF 50 daily and take it right up to the eye area, which is often missed
- •Wear good-quality sunglasses outdoors to block UV and stop squinting
- •Do not smoke, smoking measurably accelerates eye-area wrinkling
- •Try to sleep on your back to avoid pressing creases into the skin
Home Care
- •Use a retinoid formulated for the eye area at night, introduced gradually
- •Apply a peptide or hyaluronic acid eye cream morning and evening
- •Remove eye makeup gently, rubbing stretches this delicate skin
- •Use a vitamin C serum in the morning for antioxidant protection
Symptoms & Causes
Common Symptoms
- Fan-shaped lines spreading from the outer corners of the eyes
- Lines that appear when smiling, laughing or squinting (dynamic lines)
- Creases that remain visible when the face is relaxed (static lines)
- Crepey or finely wrinkled skin texture at the outer eye area
- Makeup or concealer gathering in lines beside the eyes
- Lines becoming deeper after sun exposure or a period of poor sleep
Potential Causes
- Repeated contraction of the orbicularis oculi muscle when smiling and squinting
- UV exposure, which breaks down collagen and elastin in the thin eye-area skin
- Natural collagen decline, which starts in the late twenties
- Smoking, which restricts blood supply to the skin and speeds up wrinkle formation
- Sleeping on your side or front, which presses creases into the outer eye area
- Dehydration and a weakened skin barrier, which make fine lines look deeper
Treatment Options at PRP London
Anti-Wrinkle Treatment (Upper Face)
Prescription treatment for expression-driven lines in the upper face. Options, dosing and suitability are always confirmed at a doctor-led consultation.
Learn morePolynucleotides Under-Eye Treatment
Regenerative injectable that thickens and hydrates the thin skin around the eyes, softening crepey texture and fine lines.
Learn moreSkin Boosters
Deep hydration for the eye and cheek area that improves elasticity and softens fine static lines.
Learn morePRP Under-Eye Rejuvenation
Uses your own platelet-rich plasma to improve skin quality, tone and fine lines around the eyes.
Learn moreSylfirm X RF Microneedling
Collagen-stimulating radiofrequency microneedling that firms thin eye-area skin and softens etched lines.
Learn moreFrequently Asked Questions
Start with daily SPF and an eye-appropriate retinoid, which soften fine lines and stop them deepening. For lines that persist, professional options range from skin-quality treatments such as polynucleotides and skin boosters to collagen-stimulating devices, and, for expression-driven lines, prescription options your doctor can discuss at a consultation. The right combination depends on whether your lines are dynamic or static.
Crow's feet are the fine, fan-shaped lines that radiate from the outer corners of the eyes. They form because the skin there is very thin and creases every time you smile or squint. Early on they only show during expression (dynamic lines); over time they can settle in permanently (static lines).
The main drivers are the thousands of daily contractions of the muscle that circles the eye, UV damage to collagen, and the natural decline in collagen production with age. Smoking, squinting without sunglasses and sleeping face-down all speed the process up.
Most people notice their first dynamic crow's feet in their mid-to-late twenties or early thirties, though genetics, sun exposure and smoking shift this considerably. Static lines that remain visible at rest more commonly appear from the late thirties onwards.
Yes, completely normal. Fine dynamic lines at 25 simply reflect an expressive face and thin eye-area skin. At this age prevention is usually all that is needed: daily SPF, sunglasses and a gently introduced retinoid.
Fine, early lines can genuinely improve with consistent SPF, a retinoid and good hydration, and stopping smoking makes a measurable difference. Deeper static lines cannot be fully reversed by skincare alone, though professional treatments can soften them significantly. The honest answer is that prevention works far better than reversal.
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