Smile Lines Around the Eyes (Crow’s Feet): Causes & Treatments

Smile lines around eyes, often called crow’s feet, are fan-shaped creases at the outer corners that form when the ring-shaped eye muscle contracts as you smile or squint. Sun damage and thinning skin make them stay at rest. Daily sunscreen and a retinoid help prevent them, while toxin injections relax the muscle and laser smooths the skin.

This guide is part of our smile lines overview, which focuses mainly on the folds beside the mouth.

Causes

These lines come from muscle movement, sun damage and age-related loss of collagen in thin eyelid skin.

Mayo Clinic explains that repeated squinting and smiling create grooves that become lasting lines as skin loses flexibility, and that ultraviolet light breaks down collagen and elastin. The skin by the eyes is thin, so smile lines eyes show early, often in the twenties when smiling.

Interestingly, a 2013 study of 79 identical twin pairs found that smoking made little difference to the upper face, including crow’s feet, while it clearly worsened folds beside the mouth and lower-lid bags. Sun and expression seem to matter more for lines near eyes. In my practice, regular squinting in bright light without sunglasses is the most common pattern I see in patients with early crow’s feet.

Treatments

Treat smile lines by eyes in steps: prevention first, then toxin for movement lines and laser for lines that stay at rest.

1. Protect daily: broad-spectrum SPF 30 or more and sunglasses, as Mayo Clinic advises for wrinkle prevention.
2. Add a retinoid: start slowly; eye-area skin irritates easily. Mayo Clinic notes results take weeks to months.
3. Consider toxin: Botox Cosmetic is approved in the US for lateral canthal lines, the medical name for crow’s feet. Effects in trials typically lasted three to four months.
4. Consider laser: the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS, US) says laser resurfacing reduces facial wrinkles; healing takes about one to two weeks.
5. See a surgeon if loose upper-lid skin or under-eye bags are the main issue; see our eye lift overview.

The 2023 ASPS average fee was $435 for a neuromodulator treatment and $1,829 for skin resurfacing. Toxin can cause a drooping eyelid in a small number of people, so choose an experienced injector.

Under-eye lines

Smile lines under eyes are often fine creases from smiling, or shadows from an under-eye hollow, and each needs a different approach.

Fine lines that appear only when you smile are normal. Lines that stay at rest may improve with moisturiser, a gentle retinoid or laser. A hollow or groove between the lower lid and cheek is a volume problem. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lists the area around the eyes among places most fillers aren’t approved for, though one hyaluronic acid filler was approved for under-eye hollows in adults 21 and over in 2023. When people search for smile lines on eyes or in eyes, they usually mean these same outer-corner or lower-lid lines.

For folds beside the mouth, see how to get rid of smile lines.

If you’d like to discuss lines around your eyes, you can book a consultation with Metropole Clinic by ABmedi. For other types of smile lines, return to the smile lines hub.

This article is for general education and does not replace a personal medical consultation.

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