Price Guide

Why there is no price list on this page

Because a price list without a diagnosis is misleading, and misleading advertising of a regulated health service is an offence under section 133 of the National Law — including misleading by omission.

The reason is not evasion. It is that "a filling" is not one thing. A single-surface composite on an accessible front tooth and a three-surface composite on a back tooth in a patient who grinds are different procedures, different item numbers, different times and different prices. The same is true of every category of dental treatment.

What this page does instead is show you how dental pricing works in Australia, so you can read any quote — from here or anywhere — and compare it properly.

For an actual figure: phone 13 13 96 and ask for an estimate, or attend for an examination and ask for a written itemised quote. Fixed-price new-patient and whitening packages are published in full at Packages & Offers.

The one thing to know: ASDS item numbers

The Australian Schedule of Dental Services and Glossary (ASDS) is the standard code set used across Australian dentistry. Every procedure has an item number.

Ask for every quote itemised with item numbers. With them you can:

• Compare the same treatment between practices — without them, you are comparing two different things and cannot know it
• Check your health fund rebate before you commit, by phoning the fund with the item numbers
• See exactly what is included and what is not

A quote that is a single lump sum is not a quote you can check. How a plan is assembled and presented is set out at Understanding Your Treatment.

What a complete quote must include

This is where most surprises come from. Ask specifically whether each of these is in the figure:

For a root canal: the endodontic treatment and the crown or onlay afterwards. A root canal quoted without the restoration is half a quote — and a root-filled back tooth left without cuspal coverage is likely to fail.

For an implant: the surgery, the abutment, and the crown — three separate items. Plus any bone graft or sinus lift, and any extraction and socket preservation beforehand. How much do dental implants cost? works through a worked example.

For a crown: the crown, and any core build-up or post, and any preparatory work.

For orthodontics: the full course, the retainers, and the retention period. Retention is lifelong, retainers break and are replaced, and a quote without retention is not a quote for the treatment. See What is the cost of braces?.

For anything under sedation or general anaesthetic: the anaesthetist's fee and the hospital or day-surgery facility fee are separate, are charged by separate providers, and are frequently substantial. A treatment fee quoted without them is not the cost of your day. Sleep Dentistry Costs: What Does Sedation Add to Your Dental Bill? sets out the components.

For dentures: the denture, and any subsequent adjustments and relines.

For veneers: the veneers, and the replacement cycle — they do not last forever, and each replacement removes a little more tooth.

Why dental fees vary so much

Fees are not regulated in Australia. The same treatment genuinely differs in price between practices in the same suburb. Some of that difference is real and some is not.

Differences that reflect something:

• Laboratory work. A crown made by a skilled ceramist, layered by hand, costs more than a milled monolithic unit — the in-house laboratory is described at Smile Solutions Laboratory. For a front tooth, that is the difference between looking like a tooth and looking like a piano key.
• Appointment length. Longer appointments cost more to provide and produce better isolation, better margins and fewer errors.
• Practitioner experience and specialist registration. Specialist fees are higher — that reflects three years of additional approved training and the fact that they receive the difficult cases. See Specialist Care.
• Materials.

Differences that reflect nothing about your treatment: the fit-out, the address, the marketing budget.

And the structural reason the whole thing feels expensive: dental care sits largely outside Medicare. There is no general Medicare rebate for adult dental treatment, so you see the entire cost. A GP appointment costs real money to deliver too; most of it is simply paid before you reach the counter. Where a dental fee actually goes is set out at The Great Resignation in the Health Sector.

Health funds

• Dental extras are capped, usually well below the cost of major treatment, and annual limits typically reset each calendar year. Staging treatment across two benefit years is a legitimate and common way to manage a large plan.
• Waiting periods apply to major dental on most policies.
• Preferred provider arrangements reduce your out-of-pocket cost at particular clinics. They are a commercial arrangement between the fund and the practice, not an indicator of clinical quality. See Bupa Platinum Dental Provider.
• Check your rebate with item numbers, before treatment. Funds will quote against item numbers over the phone.

Government funding you may be entitled to

Check rather than assume. Both are under-used.

• The Child Dental Benefits Schedule — Medicare-funded basic dental treatment for eligible children, capped over a two-year period, covering examinations, cleans, fissure sealants, fillings, extractions and radiographs. Eligibility depends on the family receiving certain government payments. Check through Services Australia or myGov. It is significantly under-claimed.
• Public dental services in Victoria — through community dental agencies and the Royal Dental Hospital of Melbourne. Eligibility is broader than most people assume: concession and health care card holders and their dependants. Emergency care is triaged separately from general care, with a far shorter wait — see Emergency Dentistry for what counts as urgent.

If the cost is a problem

Say so. It is the most useful sentence in the appointment, and it changes the plan.

• Ask what is urgent, what can wait, and what is optional. Very often the urgent portion is a fraction of the total.
• Ask about staging — over months or years, and across benefit years.
• Ask what happens if you do nothing, for each item.
• Payment options are discussed honestly, including their real costs, at Payment Plans.
• Early release of superannuation is covered — including the tax and the long-run cost — at Explosive uplift in Australians tapping into their super for dental treatment.
• Free, independent financial counselling: National Debt Helpline, 1800 007 007.

And get a second opinion before anything extensive or irreversible. You are entitled to your records and radiographs to take with you. A cheaper quote for the wrong treatment is not cheaper — and the same logic applies to treatment abroad, as Overseas dental work could cost you more in the long-term sets out.

How to get a figure from us

Phone 13 13 96 and describe what you need, or use the details on Contact Us. For anything beyond a routine item, an accurate figure requires an examination — and you are entitled to know what the examination itself costs before you attend.

After the examination, ask for the plan and quote in writing, itemised, with ASDS item numbers. That is a normal request.

Common questions

Are any prices actually published?

Yes — the fixed-price packages, in full, at Packages & Offers. A new-patient examination is $260; examination with an extended clean is $495; check-up, clean and in-chair whitening is $860; check-up, clean and take-home whitening is $800; and the complete whitening package is $770. An OPG, if needed, is $130 within a package against $195 standalone.

Those are packages, not a price list for treatment. Anything the examination finds is quoted separately — which is the honest position, not a catch.

Why won't you quote my treatment over the phone?

Because nobody can diagnose down a telephone line. A quote given without an examination is either a guess or a lead-generation figure designed to get you through the door, and the second one is worse for you than no figure at all — it anchors your expectations to a number that will change.

What you can get on the phone is the cost of the examination itself. Ask for that, and you will know what your first appointment costs before you attend.

How do I find out what I will actually be out of pocket?

Three steps, and it takes about ten minutes:

1. Get the treatment plan in writing, itemised, with ASDS item numbers.
2. Phone your health fund and read them the item numbers. They will tell you the benefit payable on each.
3. Subtract. The remainder is your gap.

There is no shortcut, and any practice that resists step 1 is the problem.

A different practice quoted much less. Are they better value?

Not necessarily, and you cannot tell without the item numbers. The usual explanations for a large gap between two quotes are: a different procedure entirely (an onlay versus a crown, a direct filling versus an indirect restoration), a missing second half (a root canal without the crown; an implant without the abutment and crown), different laboratory work, or a shorter appointment.

Compare item number against item number. If the item numbers match and the price differs, that is a genuine price difference and a fair thing to weigh. If they do not match, you are comparing two different treatments.

Does Medicare pay for any of this?

Not for general adult dental treatment. The two main exceptions are the Child Dental Benefits Schedule for eligible children and Victorian public dental services for eligible concession card holders — both covered above, and both significantly under-claimed. Check rather than assume you are ineligible. Children's Dentistry sets out what is covered for children.

Why do specialists cost more?

Three years of approved postgraduate training after dental school, and a caseload weighted towards the difficult end. A specialist typically sees the retreatment, the complication and the case another clinician declined.

That does not mean a specialist is always the right choice. For straightforward treatment a general dentist may be entirely appropriate and cheaper. The judgement that matters is whether your case is straightforward — and a clinician who refers rather than attempts is doing the right thing. See Dentists & Registered Specialists and Why would I need to see a dental specialist?.

Should I use my superannuation to pay for dental treatment?

Consider it carefully and get independent advice first. Early release on compassionate grounds is possible for certain dental treatment, but the money is taxed on release, and the long-run cost is the compounding you give up — which for a younger person can be several times the amount withdrawn.

Free, independent financial counselling is available on the National Debt Helpline, 1800 007 007. The full picture is at Explosive uplift in Australians tapping into their super for dental treatment. This page is not financial advice.

Can I ask for a treatment plan in stages?

Yes, and you should. Ask for the plan split into urgent, important and elective, with a cost against each. Very often the genuinely urgent portion is a small fraction of the total, and the rest can be sequenced over months or across two benefit years.

Ask what happens if you do nothing, item by item. For some items the honest answer is ‘nothing, for now’ — and a clinician willing to say that is worth keeping.

Related pages: Packages & Offers, Payment Plans, Bupa Platinum Dental Provider, Dentists & Registered Specialists, The Great Resignation in the Health Sector, Understanding Your Treatment.

Practical details

Smile Solutions, Level 1, 220 Collins Street, Manchester Unity Building, Melbourne VIC 3000 — see Location. Phone 13 13 96, or theteam@smilesolutions.com.au. Monday–Friday 8.00am–6.00pm, Saturday 8.30am–1.30pm, Sunday by appointment.

Every practitioner's registration and any specialist entry can be verified free on the AHPRA public register at ahpra.gov.au.

No treatment fees are quoted on this page. Package prices are those published at the time of writing and are subject to change. Costs for treatment depend on the individual case and are provided as a written estimate after examination. This page contains general information; it is not a diagnosis, a treatment plan or financial advice. Eligibility for government dental programs is determined by the relevant body and changes; confirm with them.

Smile Solutions trades under ABN 28 193 514 103.