Secret RF vs Virtue RF: how the two RF microneedling systems differ
Medically reviewed by Dr Sin Yong · Last reviewed · 8 min read
Published 9 October 2026 · Reviewed by Dr Sin Yong
Secret RF and Virtue RF are both fractional microneedle radiofrequency systems from Korea. Secret RF is made by ILOODA; Virtue RF is made by ShenB and marketed in the US by Cartessa. Patients often ask how the two compare; the differences are frequency options, handpieces and the published evidence.
Short answerSecret RF files a single bipolar frequency, 2 MHz, with needle depth 0.5–3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps. Virtue RF files three frequencies (0.5, 1 and 2 MHz), 36-, 12- and 1-needle arrays and a single-needle monopolar handpiece; its Smart RF handpiece at 1 MHz carries FDA wording for facial wrinkles. One human trial, in active acne, is attributed to Secret RF in a later review; the published Virtue RF work found was preclinical. Neither is shown to outperform the other.
ILOODA, Korea; bipolar 2 MHz; 0.5–3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps
Virtue RF
ShenB, Korea; 0.5, 1 and 2 MHz; 36-, 12- and 1-needle arrays
Main difference
Virtue RF offers more frequency choices and a single-needle handpiece; Secret DUO adds a 1540 nm fractional laser
FDA wording
Both: electrocoagulation and haemostasis; Virtue Smart RF at 1 MHz also facial wrinkles (skin types I–V)
Evidence
Secret RF: split-face RCT in active acne, device identified in a later review (Kwon 2018). Virtue RF: preclinical study found (Cho 2024)
Used here
Secret DUO, by Dr Sin Yong
Why this site compares devices against Secret RF. Dr Sin Yong is a global Key Opinion Leader for ILOODA’s Secret RF platform and performs RF microneedling personally on the Secret DUO. He has been invited by the manufacturer to share his clinical expertise with doctors internationally. That is a disclosed relationship, so the comparisons on this site stick to what each manufacturer has filed with the US FDA and what published studies measured, and do not rank one device above another.
Secret RF and Virtue RF compared from their FDA 510(k) summaries
Secret RF / Secret DUO (used here)
Virtue RF
Maker
ILOODA Co., Ltd., Korea (US: Cutera)
ShenB Co., Ltd., Korea (US: Cartessa)
RF type and frequency
Bipolar, 2 MHz
Bipolar at 0.5, 1 and 2 MHz; ExactRF handpiece monopolar, single needle
Needle arrays
25- and 64-pin; DUO also 25PIN-S, 1PIN, 4PIN gold-plated cartridges
36-, 12- and 1-needle arrays across SmartRF, DeepRF and ExactRF handpieces
Depth range
0.5–3.5 mm, 0.1 mm steps
Not stated in the FDA summaries reviewed
Pulse features
I-STACK: up to 10 sub-pulses per needle position (manufacturer)
“Sub-Pulse Technology” and robotic delivery (US partner’s description)
Electrocoagulation and haemostasis; Smart RF 1 MHz also facial wrinkles, skin types I–V
Published studies found
Split-face RCT in active acne, n=25 (Kwon 2018; device named in a later review)
Preclinical animal study (Cho 2024)
At this practice
Performed by Dr Sin Yong
Not offered here
RF microneedling places heat inside the dermis at a depth the doctor sets; the surface is spared when insulated needles are used.Radiofrequency settings filed by each manufacturer. More frequencies give the operator more options; they are not a measure of result.
Is Virtue RF a different treatment from Secret RF?
No. Both place fine needles into the dermis and release radiofrequency heat through them, which is what RF microneedling is. The differences are engineering. Virtue RF’s filings describe three selectable frequencies, 0.5, 1 and 2 MHz, and three handpieces: SmartRF and DeepRF, which use multi-needle arrays, and ExactRF, a single-needle monopolar handpiece; the filing lists 36-, 12- and 1-needle arrays. Secret RF files one frequency, 2 MHz bipolar, with depth set in 0.1 mm increments, and its current platform, the Secret DUO, adds a 1540 nm fractional laser.
Does Virtue RF’s wrinkle clearance make it better for wrinkles?
It means one specific mode, the Smart RF handpiece at 1 MHz, carries US FDA wording for the percutaneous treatment of facial wrinkles in skin types I to V; its other modes are cleared for electrocoagulation and haemostasis and the filing states they are not intended to treat wrinkles. Secret RF’s filing carries the electrocoagulation and haemostasis wording. A regulatory label describes what a manufacturer submitted data for; it is not a head-to-head result. Fine wrinkles are also treated by several other means, and the plan depends on what is causing them.
What is the evidence for each?
For Secret RF, a split-face randomised trial in 25 Korean patients with active acne compared microneedle fractional RF with a 1450 nm diode laser and found greater improvement on the RF side at 12 weeks, with post-inflammatory darkening seen only on the laser side (Kwon, JEADV 2018); the device is identified in a later systematic review rather than in the abstract. For Virtue RF, the published work found was a preclinical study in a minipig model examining sequential 1 and 2 MHz treatment (Cho, Skin Res Technol 2024). Newer devices often have less published human data simply because they are newer; that is not evidence of a weaker device.
“Two devices that deliver the same treatment are separated by the plan, not the logo.”
Dr Sin YongOn choosing between RF microneedling devices
Scar type, depth and skin type decide the plan, whichever device is used.
Which one should you choose?
Choose the doctor and the plan rather than the brand. Both devices deliver fractional microneedle radiofrequency; neither has been shown in a head-to-head trial to outperform the other. Ask which tip will be used, whether its needles are insulated, what depth is planned for each area and why, how energy will be set for your skin type, and who sets those parameters. Ask what RF microneedling will not help, and what would be done for that instead. A tethered scar needs subcision; pigment needs a different tool entirely.
Only the Secret DUO is used at this practice. Dr Sin Yong examines the skin, performs the treatment himself and sets out the plan and fee in writing; how fees are quoted explains why fees are not published.
Frequently Asked Questions
Neither has been shown to outperform the other; no head-to-head trial was found. Virtue RF offers three frequencies and a single-needle handpiece; Secret RF files 2 MHz bipolar with 0.1 mm depth steps, and the Secret DUO adds a 1540 nm fractional laser.
ShenB Co., Ltd. of Korea holds the FDA 510(k) clearances (K202415 and K211562, 2021). Cartessa Aesthetics markets it in the US.
Its Smart RF handpiece at 1 MHz is FDA-cleared for the percutaneous treatment of facial wrinkles in skin types I to V. Its other modes are cleared for electrocoagulation and haemostasis and are stated not to be intended for wrinkles.
No. RF microneedling here is performed on the Secret DUO. Virtue RF is described because patients ask about it. Dr Sin Yong is a global Key Opinion Leader for the Secret RF platform.
Neither device’s FDA summary lists acne scars as a cleared indication; the evidence for scars sits at the level of RF microneedling as a technique. Scar type decides the plan: tethered scars need subcision first, deep ice-pick scars TCA CROSS.
References
US FDA 510(k) summary K170325 — Secret RF (ILOODA Co., Ltd.), 2017: bipolar 2 MHz, needle depth 0.5–3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps. source
US FDA 510(k) summary K202043 — Secret DUO (ILOODA Co., Ltd.), 2021. source
US FDA 510(k) summary K211562 — VirtueRF (ShenB Co., Ltd.), 2021: 0.5, 1 and 2 MHz; 36-, 12- and 1-needle arrays; Smart RF 1 MHz mode cleared for facial wrinkles, skin types I–V. source
US FDA 510(k) summary K202415 — VirtueRF (ShenB Co., Ltd.), 2021. source
Kwon HH, et al. Microneedle fractional radiofrequency in acne: a split-face randomised trial versus 1450 nm diode laser in Korean patients. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2018. doi:10.1111/jdv.14714 (PMID 29178495). source
Cho SB, et al. Sequential 1 MHz and 2 MHz microneedle radiofrequency in a minipig model. Skin Res Technol. 2024. doi:10.1111/srt.13898 (PMID 39213160). source
Kumar N, et al. Fractional microneedle radiofrequency: a systematic review of 41 studies with device-level tables. Aesthetic Plast Surg. 2026. doi:10.1007/s00266-026-05834-y (PMID 42047762). source
Syder NC, Chen A, Elbuluk N. Radiofrequency microneedling in skin of colour: a review of 35 studies. Dermatol Surg. 2023;49:489. doi:10.1097/DSS.0000000000003733 (PMID 36826381). source
