Dental costs in Iowa: how much a dentist costs

Observed negotiated prices across 41 treatments from 224 located dental practices in Iowa.

Treatments priced

at or above threshold

Cities published

in this state

Largest sample

224

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 Iowa

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	$3,716 – $4,501	$4,086	145	$4,086 – $5,401
Full braces, teenager	$3,544 – $4,290	$3,868	142	$3,868 – $5,145
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,249 – $1,510	$1,400	216	$1,400 – $1,636
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$910 – $1,195	$1,050	190	$1,050 – $1,298
Partial upper denture with metal frame	$935 – $1,157	$1,042	190	$1,042 – $1,282
Ceramic crown attached to an implant	$874 – $1,086	$960	204	$960 – $1,200
Full upper denture	$820 – $1,064	$919	187	$919 – $1,205
Full lower denture	$819 – $1,045	$910	185	$910 – $1,198
Ceramic crown on an implant abutment	$802 – $1,026	$881	211	$881 – $1,116
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$654 – $886	$783	179	$783 – $976
All-ceramic crown	$653 – $857	$756	215	$756 – $938
Gum surgery (per quadrant)	$688 – $839	$747	190	$747 – $904
Porcelain-and-metal crown	$612 – $798	$720	224	$720 – $886
Root canal, molar	$642 – $811	$714	206	$714 – $888
Bridge, porcelain-and-metal span unit	$601 – $765	$688	212	$688 – $838
Root canal, premolar	$501 – $659	$573	202	$573 – $719
Root canal, front tooth	$419 – $568	$486	204	$486 – $618
Fully-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$269 – $350	$310	224	$310 – $383
Bone graft at an implant site	$240 – $380	$292	204	$292 – $428
Hard night guard for grinding	$245 – $339	$290	176	$290 – $386
Partly-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$239 – $302	$280	220	$280 – $325
Surgical tooth extraction	$147 – $196	$176	218	$176 – $226
Deep cleaning, four or more teeth per quadrant	$138 – $188	$166	206	$166 – $207
Core build-up under a crown	$133 – $184	$159	217	$159 – $197
White filling, back tooth, two surfaces	$126 – $169	$146	190	$146 – $181
White filling, back tooth	$99 – $130	$113	188	$113 – $139
Deep cleaning, one to three teeth per quadrant	$82 – $128	$108	203	$108 – $140
Silver filling, two surfaces	$85 – $113	$99	221	$99 – $130
White filling, front tooth	$85 – $116	$98	199	$98 – $123
Simple tooth extraction	$81 – $118	$97	218	$97 – $130
Full-mouth X-ray series	$82 – $104	$92	197	$92 – $116
Ongoing gum maintenance cleaning	$76 – $102	$88	221	$88 – $110
Silver filling, one surface	$72 – $92	$82	205	$82 – $103
Emergency visit for dental pain	$55 – $75	$67	218	$67 – $88
Adult teeth cleaning	$52 – $70	$60	220	$60 – $76
Comprehensive exam (new patient)	$45 – $61	$54	195	$54 – $65
Child teeth cleaning	$40 – $51	$44	217	$44 – $56
Four bitewing X-rays	$39 – $49	$43	188	$43 – $52
Dental sealant (per tooth)	$30 – $38	$33	218	$33 – $41
Routine check-up (returning patient)	$28 – $38	$32	204	$32 – $41
Fluoride varnish treatment	$24 – $31	$28	211	$28 – $35

How Iowa compares nationally

Of the 41 treatments we can price in Iowa, 1 sit above the national median and 40 below. The widest gap downward is Hard night guard for grinding at $290 against a national $336 (14% lower); the widest upward is Porcelain veneer (per tooth) at $783 against $750 (4% higher).

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

What shopping around is worth in Iowa

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 $785. Across the 6 treatments below it comes to $2,553.

Observed negotiated prices in Iowa. 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	$3,716	$4,501	$785	145
Full braces, teenager	$3,544	$4,290	$746	142
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$910	$1,195	$285	190
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,249	$1,510	$261	216
Full upper denture	$820	$1,064	$244	187
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$654	$886	$232	179

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 Iowa

Iowa has 119 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 Iowa

City pages are published only where at least 8 practices in that city carried a rate. 10 cities met that bar.

Davenport (41 priced)Des Moines (41 priced)Cedar Falls (41 priced)Iowa City (40 priced)West Des Moines (40 priced)Sioux City (39 priced)Waterloo (18 priced)Council Bluffs (18 priced)Cedar Rapids (2 priced)Ankeny (1 priced)

Other states

All states · All treatments · Methodology

Common questions

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

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

Sample sizes are shown per treatment in the table above and range from 142 to 224 practices. We publish nothing below 15.

Why is a treatment missing from this page?

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