Dispatch · June 4, 2026 · 6 min · By Kerensa Molyneux
PRP vs PRF: what is the difference?
Platelet-rich fibrin is the newer cousin of PRP. Here is how the two preparations actually differ, and when one has an edge.
If you have started shopping for regenerative treatments, you have probably seen PRF offered alongside PRP therapy and wondered whether it is a genuine upgrade or just a new label. Both come from your own blood, both concentrate platelets and growth factors, and both are used for hair, skin, and healing. The difference is in the preparation, and that difference is more meaningful than the marketing usually explains.
PRP, platelet-rich plasma, is spun at higher speed and typically uses an anticoagulant so the plasma stays liquid and injectable. PRF, platelet-rich fibrin, is spun slower and without anticoagulant, so the platelets are caught in a soft fibrin scaffold as the blood begins to clot. That scaffold is the key distinction: instead of releasing growth factors all at once, PRF releases them slowly over days as the fibrin breaks down, which some clinicians believe gives a longer, gentler healing signal.
PRF also tends to include more white blood cells and stem-cell-adjacent components, and because it can set into a firmer gel, it is sometimes layered into areas where a bit of structure helps, such as under-eye hollows. PRP, being liquid, spreads more evenly and is easy to combine with microneedling or to inject across a broad area like the scalp. Neither is universally superior; they are tuned for slightly different jobs.
The honest summary is that PRF is not a magic improvement on PRP so much as a variation with a different release curve and consistency. For many uses the real-world results are broadly similar, and the quality of the preparation, which we cover in how PRP is made, matters more than the two letters on the brochure. Ask your provider why they favor one for your specific concern rather than assuming the newer name automatically wins.
Related reading: PRP for under-eye circles and hollows.
Further reading: Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) versus injectable platelet-rich fibrin (i-PRF): A systematic review across all fields of medicine (Periodontol 2000 2025); Comparative effectiveness of hyaluronic acid, platelet-rich plasma, and platelet-rich fibrin in treating temporomandibular disorders: a systematic review and network meta-analysis (Head Face Med 2023); Classification of platelet concentrates: from pure platelet-rich plasma (P-PRP) to leucocyte- and platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF) (Trends Biotechnol 2009).