Dental costs in Illinois: how much a dentist costs

Observed negotiated prices across 41 treatments from 1,015 located dental practices in Illinois.

Treatments priced

at or above threshold

Cities published

in this state

Largest sample

1,015

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 Illinois

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	$3,800 – $4,732	$4,200	707	$4,200 – $5,401
Full braces, teenager	$3,697 – $4,444	$4,062	674	$4,062 – $5,248
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,320 – $1,625	$1,446	905	$1,446 – $1,919
Partial upper denture with metal frame	$926 – $1,190	$1,063	935	$1,063 – $1,388
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$920 – $1,199	$1,061	940	$1,061 – $1,382
Ceramic crown attached to an implant	$882 – $1,154	$1,019	857	$1,019 – $1,469
Full upper denture	$834 – $1,131	$975	948	$975 – $1,307
Full lower denture	$801 – $1,120	$971	951	$971 – $1,307
Ceramic crown on an implant abutment	$848 – $1,096	$956	866	$956 – $1,270
All-ceramic crown	$677 – $916	$850	973	$850 – $1,004
Porcelain-and-metal crown	$670 – $884	$799	974	$799 – $969
Root canal, molar	$684 – $882	$774	960	$774 – $984
Gum surgery (per quadrant)	$678 – $868	$758	980	$758 – $1,011
Bridge, porcelain-and-metal span unit	$624 – $836	$746	952	$746 – $911
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$636 – $855	$725	926	$725 – $971
Root canal, premolar	$541 – $707	$622	971	$622 – $784
Root canal, front tooth	$459 – $613	$536	950	$536 – $673
Bone graft at an implant site	$262 – $432	$342	800	$342 – $488
Hard night guard for grinding	$285 – $372	$332	856	$332 – $406
Fully-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$277 – $363	$327	977	$327 – $418
Partly-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$233 – $315	$280	979	$280 – $356
Surgical tooth extraction	$160 – $220	$191	976	$191 – $248
Core build-up under a crown	$143 – $202	$178	1,015	$178 – $227
Deep cleaning, four or more teeth per quadrant	$138 – $194	$169	959	$169 – $213
White filling, back tooth, two surfaces	$125 – $175	$152	958	$152 – $193
White filling, back tooth	$97 – $140	$116	963	$116 – $160
Deep cleaning, one to three teeth per quadrant	$89 – $128	$107	963	$107 – $148
Simple tooth extraction	$89 – $127	$107	961	$107 – $147
Silver filling, two surfaces	$94 – $127	$106	994	$106 – $142
White filling, front tooth	$91 – $122	$105	980	$105 – $133
Full-mouth X-ray series	$85 – $106	$94	958	$94 – $116
Ongoing gum maintenance cleaning	$82 – $108	$94	967	$94 – $119
Silver filling, one surface	$76 – $102	$86	988	$86 – $114
Adult teeth cleaning	$57 – $74	$68	947	$68 – $79
Emergency visit for dental pain	$58 – $80	$66	977	$66 – $93
Comprehensive exam (new patient)	$48 – $64	$56	970	$56 – $72
Child teeth cleaning	$44 – $56	$50	950	$50 – $61
Four bitewing X-rays	$39 – $50	$45	930	$45 – $54
Routine check-up (returning patient)	$31 – $42	$36	950	$36 – $47
Dental sealant (per tooth)	$33 – $41	$36	981	$36 – $45
Fluoride varnish treatment	$24 – $32	$28	920	$28 – $37

How Illinois compares nationally

Of the 41 treatments we can price in Illinois, 8 sit above the national median and 33 below. The widest gap downward is Emergency visit for dental pain at $66 against a national $69 (4% lower); the widest upward is Bone graft at an implant site at $342 against $317 (8% higher).

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

What shopping around is worth in Illinois

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 $932. Across the 6 treatments below it comes to $2,879.

Observed negotiated prices in Illinois. 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	$3,800	$4,732	$932	707
Full braces, teenager	$3,697	$4,444	$747	674
Full lower denture	$801	$1,120	$319	951
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,320	$1,625	$305	905
Full upper denture	$834	$1,131	$297	948
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$920	$1,199	$279	940

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 Illinois

Illinois has 512 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 Illinois

City pages are published only where at least 8 practices in that city carried a rate. 28 cities met that bar.

Other states

All states · All treatments · Methodology

Common questions

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

No. These are negotiated rates between dental plans and contracted practices in Illinois. 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 Illinois practices is this based on?

Sample sizes are shown per treatment in the table above and range from 674 to 1,015 practices. We publish nothing below 15.

Why is a treatment missing from this page?

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