How Much Does FTM Top Surgery Cost in London? (2026 Prices)

FTM top surgery — masculinising chest surgery — at Centre for Surgery in London costs from £7,500. This 2026 guide explains what the price covers, how it varies by surgical technique, the other costs to budget for, how the private route compares with the NHS, and the finance options available — so you can plan with a clear and complete picture.

FTM top surgery here is performed by GMC-registered plastic surgeons with experience in gender-affirming chest surgery, under TIVA as a day case at our CQC-regulated Baker Street clinic.

How much does FTM top surgery cost in London?

FTM top surgery at Centre for Surgery starts from £7,500. There isn’t a single flat price, because the cost depends on the surgical technique, which is matched to your chest size, skin elasticity, and goals. The more complex techniques — which involve more tissue and skin removal and nipple-areola repositioning — take longer in theatre and sit at the higher end.

The five techniques, broadly from least to most complex:

Pay in full or spread the cost, subject to status. See finance options

Your exact quote is confirmed in writing after a face-to-face consultation and examination, with no hidden charges. Any compression garment or prescribed medication you need is bought separately, and histology is charged separately where a sample is sent for analysis; your coordinator confirms these in advance. The £100 consultation fee is redeemable in full against your procedure cost if you proceed.

Cost is one part of the decision, and technique is another. Our FTM top surgery before and after photos show results by technique, and how to read these photos explains what to look at when comparing them.

Double incision with free nipple grafting — from £10,500

This is the technique the majority of our patients have, and the one we perform most often. It combines a bilateral double incision mastectomy, free nipple grafting, and power-assisted liposuction (PAL) to the lateral chest wall as a single planned operation rather than as add-ons.

Breast tissue is removed through horizontal incisions along the pectoral border. The nipple-areola complex on a larger chest sits too far from its final position to be moved on its own blood supply, so it is taken as a full-thickness graft, resized to masculine proportions, and grafted back at the correct point on the reshaped chest. Nipple sensation is permanently lost with this technique — an expected outcome of the operation rather than a complication, and one discussed in full before you consent.

Why liposuction to the lateral chest wall is part of the operation

This is the part that separates a good chest contour from an adequate one, and it is worth understanding before you compare quotes — because not every provider includes it.

The chest is not flat. It curves around towards the back, and breast tissue extends further laterally than most people expect — the axillary tail reaches up towards the armpit. When a horizontal incision closes across a curved surface, the tissue at each end has nowhere to go. It bunches into a fold of standing skin and fat at the outer edge of the scar: a dog ear, or standing cone deformity.

Dog ears after top surgery are one of the most common reasons patients seek revision, and they are visible in exactly the way that undermines the point of the surgery — a raised fold near the armpit that shows through a fitted t-shirt and catches in the sleeve. They are also frustrating because the chest itself may be well done.

PAL liposuction to the lateral chest wall addresses this at the time of the original operation. It removes the axillary tail of breast tissue that a straight excision leaves behind, thins the tissue at the lateral extent of the incision so the closure lies flat against the curve of the ribcage, and feathers the transition into the untreated skin of the back and flank so there is no visible step where treatment stops.

The alternative — extending the incision further round towards the back to excise the excess instead — trades a dog ear for a longer scar. Liposuction achieves the same flattening without that, which is why we build it into the technique as standard rather than offering it as an upgrade.

Where a dog ear does develop despite this, it is correctable — our guide to dog ears after surgery covers why they form, when to wait rather than operate, and how revision works.

What the £10,500 covers

The figure is for the complete operation — bilateral mastectomy, free nipple grafting, and lateral chest wall liposuction — not a base price with the contouring added afterwards. Larger chests, significant skin laxity, or a high BMI increase operating time and move the quote up; your written quotation follows examination at consultation.

What’s included in the price

An FTM top surgery quote at Centre for Surgery is a single, transparent package covering:

• Your consultation with your surgeon (£100, redeemable against the procedure)
• Pre-operative medical assessment
• The surgeon’s fee, the anaesthetist’s fee, and TIVA
• Day-case theatre time at our CQC-regulated Baker Street facility
• All post-operative follow-up appointments — wound check at 7–10 days, surgeon review at 6 weeks, and a 3-month assessment
• Your surgeon’s direct number for the first 24 hours

A few things to budget separately: the compression garment worn for six weeks after surgery, take-home medications, and your own travel and time off work. Everything that is included is set out in writing before you commit.

What affects the cost of FTM top surgery?

The surgical technique

This is the main driver. Keyhole and periareolar procedures (for smaller chests) are less complex than a double incision with free nipple grafting (for larger chests), which involves more tissue and skin removal plus detaching, resizing, and grafting the nipple-areola complex. More surgical time means a higher price.

Chest size and skin laxity

A larger chest, or significant loose skin (often after weight change), requires a more involved procedure and sometimes additional skin excision — which influences both the technique chosen and the cost.

Whether liposuction is needed for contouring

Liposuction is frequently incorporated to refine the pectoral contour and produce a smooth, masculine result. In double incision with free nipple grafting, PAL liposuction to the lateral chest wall is part of the standard technique rather than an extra — it removes the axillary tail of breast tissue and flattens the outer end of the incision, which is what prevents a dog ear forming near the armpit. Where more extensive contouring is required elsewhere on the chest, that adds to surgical time.

What does FTM top surgery involve?

FTM top surgery is performed under TIVA as a day case, taking around two to three hours. Breast tissue is removed, the chest is contoured (with liposuction where needed), and — depending on the technique — the nipple-areola complex is resized and repositioned. You go home the same day. A compression garment is worn for six weeks, and wound drains, if used, are removed at a follow-up. Most people return to desk-based work within about two weeks, with strenuous activity and the gym avoided for six weeks. Final chest contour is visible at around three months, and scars continue to fade for 12–18 months.

What anaesthetic is used?

All FTM top surgery at Centre for Surgery is performed under TIVA (Total Intravenous Anaesthesia), administered by a consultant anaesthetist. You’re fully asleep throughout. TIVA avoids the volatile gases used in conventional general anaesthesia and is associated with less post-operative nausea and a faster, clearer recovery — which suits same-day discharge.

Can I get FTM top surgery on the NHS?

Yes. Chest surgery is routinely commissioned by the NHS for eligible adults, under NHS England’s national service specification Gender identity services for adults: surgical interventions. It is fully funded, and the criteria are set nationally rather than varying by region the way most cosmetic procedures do.

The pathway runs: referral by your GP or another healthcare professional to the single national NHS waiting list for adult gender services (from 1 October 2026, referrals no longer go directly to individual clinics, and self-referral is ending), then assessment at an NHS Gender Dysphoria Clinic (GDC), then a surgical recommendation, then the surgical waiting list.

One point specific to chest surgery is worth knowing, because it is often misunderstood: chest surgery requires one surgical recommendation from a lead clinician, where genital surgery requires a second independent opinion. The chest pathway is the shorter of the two once you are in the system.

The waiting times, stated plainly

The obstacle is not eligibility — it is the queue for a first appointment.

• Over 40,000 people were waiting for a first assessment at an NHS adult GDC by the end of March 2025, and annual referrals have doubled since 2022/23.
• Individual clinics report first-assessment waits measured in years, not months. One NHS regional gender service reported an average wait of 82 months — six years and ten months — for patients attending initial assessment as of April 2026.
• That is the wait to be seen. Assessment, surgical recommendation, and the surgical list all follow afterwards.

Waits vary between clinics, and the position changes — check the current figures published by the individual clinic you would be referred to, as several publish them openly.

The two routes do not connect

This is the practical point most people ask about, and the answer is firm. NHS gender surgery services accept referrals only through an NHS Gender Dysphoria Clinic. You cannot be assessed privately and then join the NHS surgical list, and time spent on a private waiting list does not count toward the NHS one. Equally, having surgery privately does not affect your position for any other NHS treatment you may want later.

What you can do is join the NHS waiting list and continue to consider private surgery while you wait — being on the GDC list costs nothing and does not commit you. Many of our patients are referred to a GDC and decide, some years in, that they do not want to keep waiting.

The private route (from £7,500) is self-funded and does not require GIC involvement or a referral. Both are legitimate. If your circumstances allow you to wait, the NHS route is fully funded and worth joining now rather than later, because the clock starts at referral.

The private route is self-funded (from £7,500) and lets you be assessed and treated without going through the GIC pathway, usually with a consultation arranged promptly and a direct choice of surgeon and technique. Both are valid routes — the right one depends on your circumstances, how long you’re prepared to wait, and your budget. Your GP or GIC can advise on your current position in the NHS pathway.

What other costs should I budget for?

Beyond the surgical quote, plan for a few extras: the compression garment (worn for six weeks), take-home medications for pain relief and infection prevention, and travel and accommodation if you’re coming from outside London — staying near the Baker Street clinic for the first 24 hours is sensible. Factor in time off work too: typically around two weeks for desk-based roles, and four to six weeks if your job is physically demanding. Follow-up appointments are included in your package, so there’s no separate charge for those.

Can you pay for FTM top surgery on finance?

You can pay in full or spread the cost with finance through Chrysalis Finance, subject to status. Plans and a representative example are on our finance options page, and a patient coordinator can talk you through them on 020 7993 4849.

Why choose Centre for Surgery for FTM top surgery?

• Experienced surgeons — GMC-registered plastic surgeons with experience in gender-affirming chest surgery. The surgeon who sees you at consultation performs your procedure.
• All five techniques under one roof — keyhole, periareolar, nipple-sparing double incision, inverted T, and double incision with free nipple grafting — so the technique is matched to your anatomy, not to what’s available.
• TIVA, day case — administered by a consultant anaesthetist, with same-day discharge.
• CQC-regulated hospital at 95–97 Baker Street, rated Good overall by the Care Quality Commission, with structured aftercare: your surgeon’s direct number for the first 24 hours, a 7–10 day wound check, a 6-week surgeon review, and a 3-month assessment.
• Respectful, inclusive care for transgender men, non-binary, and gender-diverse patients, with a recommended two-week cooling-off period and no pressure at any stage.

Book your FTM top surgery consultation

• Phone: 020 7993 4849
• Email: contact@centreforsurgery.com
• Address: 95-97 Baker Street, Marylebone, London W1U 6RN
• Contact us to schedule your consultation

Your initial in-person consultation is £100, redeemable against the cost of treatment if you proceed.

FTM top surgery cost FAQs

Related reading

• FTM top surgery (overview)
• Double incision top surgery · keyhole top surgery
• FTM top surgery FAQs
• Recovery after FTM top surgery
• Dog ears after surgery — causes, symptoms and treatment
• NHS vs private FTM top surgery — routes, waiting times and costs compared
• NHS — how to find an NHS gender dysphoria clinic
• Gender affirmation surgery