Dental costs in Minnesota: how much a dentist costs

Observed negotiated prices across 41 treatments from 318 located dental practices in Minnesota.

Treatments priced

at or above threshold

Cities published

in this state

Largest sample

318

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 Minnesota

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, teenager	$3,802 – $5,310	$4,671	178	$4,671 – $5,844
Full braces, adult	$4,095 – $5,293	$4,640	204	$4,640 – $5,692
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,369 – $1,869	$1,565	296	$1,565 – $2,194
Partial upper denture with metal frame	$923 – $1,283	$1,116	295	$1,116 – $1,545
Partial lower denture with metal frame	$938 – $1,273	$1,100	282	$1,100 – $1,504
Ceramic crown attached to an implant	$926 – $1,188	$1,079	290	$1,079 – $1,377
Full upper denture	$880 – $1,273	$1,041	313	$1,041 – $1,598
Ceramic crown on an implant abutment	$889 – $1,170	$1,014	280	$1,014 – $1,294
Full lower denture	$863 – $1,240	$1,012	301	$1,012 – $1,428
All-ceramic crown	$761 – $976	$871	307	$871 – $1,061
Porcelain-and-metal crown	$703 – $922	$838	279	$838 – $1,030
Porcelain veneer (per tooth)	$693 – $935	$838	274	$838 – $1,029
Gum surgery (per quadrant)	$662 – $961	$804	311	$804 – $1,174
Root canal, molar	$702 – $925	$802	311	$802 – $1,046
Bridge, porcelain-and-metal span unit	$640 – $885	$776	309	$776 – $1,010
Root canal, premolar	$553 – $757	$667	306	$667 – $850
Root canal, front tooth	$472 – $660	$570	309	$570 – $728
Bone graft at an implant site	$291 – $428	$354	252	$354 – $500
Hard night guard for grinding	$276 – $378	$346	264	$346 – $416
Fully-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$279 – $376	$324	266	$324 – $456
Partly-impacted wisdom tooth removal	$248 – $337	$286	302	$286 – $405
Surgical tooth extraction	$167 – $238	$200	302	$200 – $270
Core build-up under a crown	$154 – $212	$186	299	$186 – $232
Deep cleaning, four or more teeth per quadrant	$156 – $210	$186	306	$186 – $262
White filling, back tooth, two surfaces	$138 – $181	$162	275	$162 – $205
White filling, back tooth	$109 – $152	$128	297	$128 – $166
Deep cleaning, one to three teeth per quadrant	$87 – $145	$120	308	$120 – $178
Simple tooth extraction	$91 – $148	$118	301	$118 – $165
White filling, front tooth	$98 – $132	$115	301	$115 – $155
Silver filling, two surfaces	$97 – $136	$114	288	$114 – $165
Full-mouth X-ray series	$92 – $112	$102	278	$102 – $126
Ongoing gum maintenance cleaning	$85 – $118	$101	282	$101 – $141
Silver filling, one surface	$80 – $108	$93	301	$93 – $129
Emergency visit for dental pain	$66 – $94	$78	295	$78 – $112
Adult teeth cleaning	$66 – $81	$73	279	$73 – $88
Comprehensive exam (new patient)	$53 – $72	$61	299	$61 – $75
Child teeth cleaning	$48 – $60	$54	290	$54 – $62
Four bitewing X-rays	$44 – $55	$49	280	$49 – $58
Routine check-up (returning patient)	$36 – $45	$39	281	$39 – $48
Dental sealant (per tooth)	$32 – $44	$37	318	$37 – $49
Fluoride varnish treatment	$26 – $36	$30	296	$30 – $42

How Minnesota compares nationally

Of the 41 treatments we can price in Minnesota, 40 sit above the national median and 1 below. The widest gap downward is Fully-impacted wisdom tooth removal at $324 against a national $327 (1% lower); the widest upward is Emergency visit for dental pain at $78 against $69 (13% higher).

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

What shopping around is worth in Minnesota

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, teenager alone, the difference between a practice at the 25th percentile and one at the 75th is $1,508. Across the 6 treatments below it comes to $4,336.

Observed negotiated prices in Minnesota. 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, teenager	$3,802	$5,310	$1,508	178
Full braces, adult	$4,095	$5,293	$1,198	204
Implant post placed in the jaw	$1,369	$1,869	$500	296
Full upper denture	$880	$1,273	$393	313
Full lower denture	$863	$1,240	$377	301
Partial upper denture with metal frame	$923	$1,283	$360	295

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 Minnesota

Minnesota has 94 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 Minnesota

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

Eagan (41 priced)Minneapolis (41 priced)Rochester (41 priced)Edina (40 priced)Saint Paul (39 priced)St Louis Park (38 priced)Bloomington (37 priced)Burnsville (30 priced)Woodbury (13 priced)Plymouth (4 priced)

Other states

All states · All treatments · Methodology

Common questions

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

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

Sample sizes are shown per treatment in the table above and range from 178 to 318 practices. We publish nothing below 15.

Why is a treatment missing from this page?

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