Dental costs in Arkansas: how much a dentist costs

Observed negotiated prices across 41 treatments from 206 located dental practices in Arkansas.

Treatments priced

at or above threshold

Cities published

in this state

Largest sample

206

practices, best-covered treatment

Observed dataObserved negotiated rates. Every figure here is a real negotiated amount taken from payer files published under the federal Transparency in Coverage rule. These are what a dental plan pays a contracted practice - not a cash price.

Estimated self-payEstimated self-pay range, not an observation. We do not have observed cash prices, and we will not present a modelled number as though we did. This range is the upper half of the same observed negotiated distribution, shown because an uninsured patient generally pays at or above the highest negotiated tier. Treat it as a budgeting aid and ask any practice for a written quote.

Observed prices in Arkansas

Negotiated columns are observed. The self-pay column is an estimate derived from the upper half of the same distribution — see methodology. Column headings sort the table.
Treatment	Negotiated range Observed	Median	Practices (n)	Est. self-pay Estimated
Full braces, adult	$3,620 – $4,586	$3,923	170	$3,923 – $5,800
Full braces, teenager	$3,540 – $4,444	$3,777	167	$3,777 – $5,800
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,270 – $1,534	$1,433	184	$1,433 – $1,765
Partial upper denture with metal frame	$933 – $1,123	$1,036	193	$1,036 – $1,226
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$928 – $1,126	$1,015	196	$1,015 – $1,236
Ceramic crown attached to an implant	$854 – $1,076	$980	173	$980 – $1,276
Ceramic crown on an implant abutment	$850 – $1,036	$951	185	$951 – $1,216
Full upper denture	$790 – $1,000	$893	196	$893 – $1,138
Full lower denture	$758 – $977	$878	189	$878 – $1,135
All-ceramic crown	$701 – $860	$804	193	$804 – $942
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$675 – $925	$796	183	$796 – $1,019
Root canal, molar	$680 – $811	$753	195	$753 – $929
Porcelain-and-metal crown	$673 – $795	$746	198	$746 – $891
Gum surgery (per quadrant)	$664 – $810	$745	191	$745 – $883
Bridge, porcelain-and-metal span unit	$631 – $752	$700	196	$700 – $819
Root canal, premolar	$535 – $639	$595	202	$595 – $713
Root canal, front tooth	$461 – $554	$504	186	$504 – $592
Fully-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$292 – $344	$322	206	$322 – $374
Partly-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$254 – $300	$284	200	$284 – $338
Hard night guard for grinding	$240 – $350	$283	168	$283 – $401
Bone graft at an implant site	$211 – $326	$274	189	$274 – $403
Surgical tooth extraction	$160 – $198	$183	199	$183 – $235
Deep cleaning, four or more teeth per quadrant	$145 – $181	$170	194	$170 – $200
Core build-up under a crown	$140 – $176	$160	195	$160 – $192
White filling, back tooth, two surfaces	$131 – $156	$146	188	$146 – $177
White filling, back tooth	$100 – $122	$114	197	$114 – $133
Deep cleaning, one to three teeth per quadrant	$91 – $122	$108	200	$108 – $138
Silver filling, two surfaces	$89 – $112	$98	186	$98 – $128
White filling, front tooth	$89 – $106	$98	193	$98 – $123
Simple tooth extraction	$84 – $112	$96	194	$96 – $131
Full-mouth X-ray series	$86 – $103	$94	192	$94 – $112
Ongoing gum maintenance cleaning	$82 – $97	$91	192	$91 – $110
Silver filling, one surface	$74 – $92	$82	190	$82 – $104
Adult teeth cleaning	$56 – $67	$61	198	$61 – $75
Emergency visit for dental pain	$52 – $68	$59	198	$59 – $88
Comprehensive exam (new patient)	$48 – $59	$54	203	$54 – $67
Child teeth cleaning	$43 – $49	$46	188	$46 – $56
Four bitewing X-rays	$37 – $45	$42	195	$42 – $50
Dental sealant (per tooth)	$32 – $36	$34	194	$34 – $39
Routine check-up (returning patient)	$30 – $36	$33	192	$33 – $40
Fluoride varnish treatment	$25 – $32	$28	185	$28 – $38

How Arkansas compares nationally

Of the 41 treatments we can price in Arkansas, 2 sit above the national median and 39 below. The widest gap downward is Hard night guard for grinding at $283 against a national $336 (16% lower); the widest upward is Porcelain veneer (per tooth) at $796 against $750 (6% higher).

Comparisons use the national distribution on each treatment page, which lists every state side by side.

What shopping around is worth in Arkansas

Every figure on this site is a distribution, not an average, so the gap between the cheaper and dearer end of the local market can be stated in dollars. On Full braces, adult alone, the difference between a practice at the 25th percentile and one at the 75th is $966. Across the 6 treatments below it comes to $2,825.

Observed negotiated prices in Arkansas. The gap is what moving from an expensive practice to a cheaper one is worth for the same treatment.
Treatment	Lower end (25th)	Upper end (75th)	Gap	Practices (n)
Full braces, adult	$3,620	$4,586	$966	170
Full braces, teenager	$3,540	$4,444	$904	167
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,270	$1,534	$264	184
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$675	$925	$250	183
Ceramic crown attached to an implant	$854	$1,076	$222	173
Full lower denture	$758	$977	$219	189

This is an argument for collecting itemised written quotes rather than accepting the first, particularly on the larger items — see how to read a treatment plan.

Lower-cost care in Arkansas

Arkansas has 272 federally funded health centre sites that charge on a sliding scale based on income. For most uninsured patients these are the cheapest option available. The federal dataset does not record which sites provide dentistry, so call and ask about dental services before travelling. City pages below list the sites in each place.

Cities in Arkansas

City pages are published only where at least 8 practices in that city carried a rate. 6 cities met that bar.

Springdale (41 priced)Jonesboro (41 priced)Fort Smith (41 priced)Little Rock (41 priced)Rogers (40 priced)Fayetteville (39 priced)

Other states

All states · All treatments · Methodology

Common questions

Are these the prices I would pay in Arkansas without insurance?

No. These are negotiated rates between dental plans and contracted practices in Arkansas. Uninsured patients are generally quoted at or above the top of each range. The estimated self-pay column is labelled as an estimate for exactly that reason — see the methodology.

How many Arkansas practices is this based on?

Sample sizes are shown per treatment in the table above and range from 167 to 206 practices. We publish nothing below 15.

Why is a treatment missing from this page?

Because fewer than 15 located practices in Arkansas carried a negotiated rate for it in our source files. We leave it out rather than scale a national average to look local.