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Fees charged by cosmetic dentists

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First, I must say this is the most information I have ever read on a dentist web site. Great that you have taken the time to do this and helpful to a patient. Thank you and continue to provide this great service to all patients who are considering comestic dentistry. I was struggling with my decision to go to my general dentist but I found a comestic dentist in my area whom you recommend.

I have a question. Should a comestic dentist cost more than my general dentist? I have read your cost survey and agree it should but by how much?
Thank you
Greg from California

Greg,
Thank you for the compliments. It makes me feel good that you appreciate the service we’re providing. We really do try to steer people in the right direction so they can get quality cosmetic dentistry.

It’s hard to compare the prices of dentists, but I’ll try. There are some general dentists that are just as expensive, even more expensive sometimes, than cosmetic dentists. So it’s hard to pin down an amount for a difference. Plus, fees for dentistry vary widely across the country. Here’s how I would put it – if crowns in your community typically cost $900 to $1000, a typical cosmetic dentist may charge somewhere around $1200. I hope that gives you a good idea. But there are some cosmetic dentists, and general dentists too, that may charge as much as $2000 or more for a crown.
– Dr. Hall

Other links:
Read more about the costs of cosmetic dentistry.
Click here to find a cosmetic dentist.

We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

A positive experience with Snap-On Smile

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I have used “Snap-On Smile” for 4 years. They are a fantastic addition for me because of discoloration and missing/crooked teeth. The problem is that they affect my speech (I love to read to children and so this is a hard to overcome problem) and are so dry in my mouth. My dentist has seen the same type of appliances at a dental conference, but cannot locate the information about them. What other companies make such devices?? If any, would you please give me web references for them? Thank you for your time and consideration!
– Peggy from North Carolina

Peggy,
I’m posting your comment because it gives a nice “review” of the Snap-On Smile.

As far as what company makes them, this product started out as the invention of a private practice dentist, if my memory serves me well he was in New York. Then very recently the rights to the product were purchased by DenMat, a dental materials and laboratory company in California, and they are now making it available to other dentists and will be making a big marketing push.

The Snap-On smile snaps on top of your teeth, so it is going to make your teeth feel bulkier and it could cause problems with your speech, as you are experiencing. If you want something different, you’ll need to upgrade to porcelain veneers. When porcelain veneers are done right, they don’t cause any of these problems.

Dr. Hall

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

How much would porcelain veneers cost for me?

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I would like to get porcelain venners on the top maybe 4 teeth. I have very small teeth. Could you give me a close estimate what it would cost me.
– Teresa in Hibbing, Minnesota

Teresa,
I would not recommend that you get porcelain veneers in Hibbing. You will be very disappointed in the results. 98% of dentists are not artistic at all, and especially in a smaller city like Hibbing, you will find only general dentists and no one who has taken extra time and effort to be expert in cosmetic dentistry.

There is an excellent cosmetic dentist in Duluth, however – Dr. Greg Kaake. I know him very well, and he does excellent work and his fees are very reasonable. People come to him from all over the state.

I’m guessing that four veneers would cost about $4000.
– Dr. Hall

Other links: Read about porcelain veneer costs.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Can I get a new smile for a reasonable price?

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Dr. Hall,
I just want to improve my smile. I have straight teeth. The problems that I want to correct are:

1) My teeth are kind of yellow—I’ve tried whitening through dental offices, not getting results I want
2) I would like to file down some of my teeth to make them look staighter, especially my fangs.
3) My two upper front teeth I’d like to put a little porcelain on the top because those teeth are thinning.

What do you suggest I do to improve:
a) the whiteness to the fullest
b) the filing of some teeth
c) the upper front teeth (pertaining problem #3)

I was considering Lumineers, but after considering the cost and the problems, I don’t think it would be to my best interest to do this. Are there any other options to do what I want to correct and get the best results of what I am looking for?

What I’m finding is that people are not saying how much. I thought approx. $1000 – $2000 for a group of teeth, not per tooth. …that’s insane…..

Hopefully, as I meet with dentists who proclaim they do cosmetic dentistry, they can do what I want at a reasonable price.

Any advice you can give me, would be greatly appreciated!!!!!!

Thank you sooo….much, in advance.
Diana in San Francisco

Dear Diana,
Wanting a new smile when you have the appearance issues that you have sounds reasonable. And your solution would be porcelain veneers. But a couple of things you said make me think you’re headed for trouble, and maybe you should wait and not do anything.

First of all, if you want this new smile done right, you should plan on $1000 to $2000 per tooth. That is what it costs. What worries me is that you’ll find someone who will do it for less. Only 1-2% of dentists are artistic enough and trained enough in cosmetic dentistry to create a beautiful smile, and they are all going to be up in that price range, maybe higher.

The second thing that worries me is that you said, “I meet with dentists who proclaim they do cosmetic dentistry…” If you don’t understand the difference between an artistic dentist who can create a beautiful smile and a dentist who simply proclaims that he or she does cosmetic dentistry, then you should hold off on this until you do understand. We get so much mail from people who learn this lesson the hard way. Cosmetic dentistry isn’t a legally recognized specialty, and this means that it is totally unregulated. Any dentist can proclaim they do this without any accreditation or certification. Often they are genuinely nice people who simply have no artistic sense and in their own minds they do beautiful work. That is the whole reason I run this website—to keep people out of this kind of trouble. Click here to read about this difference between a cosmetic dentist an a general dentist.

My advice is to save up your money until you can get this done right. Or, if you really don’t want to spend that much, then just adjust to the way your teeth are. They don’t sound like they really look that bad. Otherwise you may be writing to me after this is over and asking how you can get your own smile back because it was better than the new one.

Good luck,
Dr. Hall

Related links:
Read about the cost of cosmetic dentistry
Read about the cost of porcelain veneers
Click here to ask Dr. Hall a question
Click here for referral to a cosmetic dentist

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

A question about fees and dental insurance

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Dr. Hall
I’m seeing a dentist covered by my dental insurance and need 3 crowns. I asked for a bill and see that I’m being charged the insurance rate $328 for each of the crowns but additionally I’m being charged $350 per crown for ‘Zirconia Upgrade’ and for tooth number 14 I’m being charged an additional $275 for ‘Upgrad Porc. on Molar’. What are these upgrades. Money is tight for me and I’m wondering if I need to pay $1325 additionally for upgrades. If it makes a significant difference I will take loans and do it, but I don’t want to unless it is necessary.
Thank you,
Ira in Maryland

Ira,
Whether these charges are “necessary” or not depends on you. You need to have a discussion with your dentist about this. Do you want porcelain on the dental crown for tooth #14, or will a metal crown do? And do you want zirconia crowns on the other teeth, or will the crown the insurance pays for be all right? That part I can’t answer, but I can help you know what is going on here. In the eyes of your dental insurance plan, these extras aren’t necessary, but keep in mind that they only have their bottom line in mind.

Your dental insurance plan is trying to save money to stay within a certain budget that your employer wants to pay for. And this dental insurance plan appears to me to be extra cheap. They have allotted a certain payment for a certain type of crown, and it appears to me that the dentist feels squeezed either in the costs allotted or in the types of crowns your insurance is willing to pay for, and is looking for a little leeway. (I have to admit that I’m going on sketchy information here, so I’m guessing at some things to fill in the blanks.)  I don’t fault the dentist for this. When I was dealing with a chintzy insurance company, I would give my patients the option of choosing the more expensive all porcelain crowns for front teeth because they looked so much better. But I gave them a handout that explained their options, the amount of the extra cost, and all the pros and cons of the different choices. It looks, from your confusion, like your dentist left out this step.

You are entitled to complete information from your dentist, including all of the options available and the pros and cons of each choice, to help you make an intelligent choice about these options. So ask for that.
– Dr. Hall

Related information: Read about the costs of porcelain crowns.

We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

Looking for inexpensive porcelain veneers

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Dr. Hall
I had porcelain veneers put on my teeth over 10 years ago. They have shifted a bit and I would like to get them redone as well as adding some on my bottom teeth. However, as this is not covered by my insurance I was wondering if I could find a less expensive way to accomplish this by serving as a patient to a graduate student. Do you know if this is possible? I am willing to travel if the price difference is significant. Any information you could provide would be appreciated. Thank you.
– Jennifer in Pennsylvania

Jennifer,
The idea of traveling to find a lower fee for porcelain veneers is a possibility. When you get into smaller cities or different states you can get into lower fee areas and still have beautiful cosmetic dentistry. But be sure you go to an expert cosmetic dentist. Most of the dentists who advertise as cosmetic dentists aren’t really what I would call cosmetic dentists. They don’t have the artistic talent to be able to create a beautiful smile. But the idea of getting a new smile done for a lesser cost at a dental school is a very bad idea and won’t work, and I’ll explain why.

You need to understand that dentistry and cosmetic dentistry are two different things. Dentistry is a profession that fixes broken teeth. Cosmetic dentistry is a profession that creates beautiful smiles. They are two very different fields. Only one or two percent of dentists have the artistic inclinations to be cosmetic dentists. I would no sooner go to a dental school and ask them to create a beautiful set of porcelain veneers than I would pay my plumber to decorate the inside of my house. Even if he’s a really good plumber.

What’s the point of doing new porcelain veneers if they aren’t beautiful? If you don’t have the money, then I’d leave things alone. Your teeth probably work okay and this is something that can wait.
– Dr. Hall

Related links:
Read more about the cost of porcelain veneers, the cost of Lumineers, and the cost of cosmetic dentistry in general.
GlamSmile is offered as a low-cost option for porcelain veneers. But Dr. Hall has some grave reservations about the results.
Click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.
Click here to find a cosmetic dentist.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

A snap-on smile

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I have some spacing between my teeth but I cannot afford expensive cosmetic dentistry. Is there anything I can put over my teeth to give the illusion that they are straight? Something that is a quick fix–something in the realm of dentures?
– Carissa from Massachusetts

Carissa,
Something inexpensive and temporary to fix the spaces between your teeth would be a “Snap-On-Smile.” And I believe almost any dentist, without special training in cosmetic dentistry, could help you get one of these. It requires a simple impression, a choice of shade and smile design, and then your dentist sends it to a laboratory in New York where they make it.

As its name implies, you can put it in and take it out when you want to. Expect it to last 3-5 years, if you wear it all the time. And expect it to cost about $1000 to $1500, which is about the cost of one porcelain veneer.

Another alternative, which may not be too expensive, depending on how many spaces you have, would be direct tooth bonding. You can read more about this on our tooth bonding page. This involves just adding tooth-colored composite to the sides of the teeth. But you need to go to an expert cosmetic dentist to have this done, because it takes artistic talent. This will last longer than the Snap-On-Smile.
– Dr. Hall

Read more about the Snap-On Smile.

We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

I don’t have that much money.

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Dr. Hall,
I live in a small town in Georgia and have an appointment this afternoon for a consultation for Lumineers. I’ve read some of the information on your web site and quite frankly I’m apprehensive about the dentist I’m going to see. I’ve never had good teeth and long for a pretty smile. However I don’t have a lot of money. Is there anything a person who doesn’t have a lot of money but still wants a pretty smile can do. Are there any programs available to help?
– Dorothy

Dorothy,
This is a question I get asked a lot in one form or another. Here’s what you need to understand about this issue of getting a pretty smile and the cost of cosmetic dentistry.

A general dentist is trained to fix your teeth. And the reason almost all dentists are attracted to dentistry is because they like to fix things. It’s a technician mentality that they have. A cosmetic dentist is an artist and has a different personality and an entirely different approach to his or her work.

Now if what you want is a work of beauty, in my opinion there’s no point in going to someone who’s going to do a mediocre job. Your teeth maybe already look mediocre, so why pay good money to end up with something that’s really not a lot better than what you have? And from having been immersed in cosmetic dentistry, I can tell you that after a dentist goes through all the training and travel required to master this field, they are all inclined to want to charge extra for their work, not less, to compensate them for that. Many of them have strong charitable inclinations, but if you want a gorgeous smile, they feel you should pay for it–they don’t feel that qualifies as a charity case.

I can’t even count the number of people who have written to me and had a new smile and are so disappointed with the results that they’re paying to have it done over. Now THAT’s expensive!

If you can’t afford this, my advice is to take the money you would have spent on this and put it somewhere where it will earn some interest. Then add to it as you can. When you have enough to do it right, then hire a true artist/dentist, such as we recommend on this web site, to do it.

I hope that’s helpful.
Dr. Hall

We thank our advertisers who help fund this site.

About David A. Hall

Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.

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