Private dentist or NHS: what you pay and what you get

Is it worth paying more? That depends on what you need done, how long you can wait and what the NHS can offer you today. Here is the cost gap using real numbers, the differences that matter in the chair, and a short checklist for deciding.

All NHS prices are for England and were checked in October 2026. Private prices are examples taken from published price lists, because private dentistry has no standard tariff. Treat them as a guide to the range, and always ask for a written quote.

The real cost difference

NHS charges are fixed nationally. From 1 April 2026 a Band 1 course in England costs £27.90, Band 2 costs £76.60 and Band 3 costs £332.10, with urgent treatment at £27.90 (NHS Business Services Authority). The band covers the whole course, so one charge pays for every item in it. Our guide to NHS dental access lists what each band includes.

Private fees are set by each practice, treatment by treatment. A consumer survey by Which? in May 2026 collected prices from 41 practice websites and six large dental brands and concluded that private costs vary considerably from practice to practice, and the full table sits behind its members’ paywall. So we gathered published figures from practice price lists we could see in October 2026.

Treatment	NHS England	Private examples (from-prices)
New patient check-up	Band 1, £27.90	£55 to £65 (mydentist)
Scale and polish	Band 1, £27.90, when clinically needed	from £58 to £70 (mydentist)
White filling	Band 2, £76.60	from £148 (Bupa Dental Care, Hove)
Root canal, front tooth	Band 2, £76.60	from £645 to £805 (Bupa Dental Care)
Root canal, back tooth	Band 2, £76.60	from £786 to £1,168 (Bupa Dental Care)
Simple extraction	Band 2, £76.60	from £275 (Bupa Dental Care, Poundbury)
Surgical extraction	Band 2, £76.60	from £405 (Bupa Dental Care, Poundbury)
Metal crown, back tooth	Band 3, £332.10	from £800 to £885 (Bupa Dental Care)
Ceramic crown	Band 3, £332.10	from £1,225 to £1,591 (Bupa Dental Care)

Two caveats apply. The two mydentist pages we found disagree with each other and carry no date, so the check-up and polish rows show the spread. And these are “from” prices at specific practices, so a London practice or a specialist may charge a lot more.

The gap is largest on bigger work. A ceramic crown costs £332.10 on the NHS in Band 3 and from £1,225 privately in the examples above. A check-up differs by roughly £30 to £40 by comparison.

Wisdom teeth

On the NHS, extractions and other oral surgery sit in Band 2, so removing a wisdom tooth in a practice costs £76.60 in England. If your dentist refers you to a hospital dentist in an NHS hospital, the treatment itself is free, although dentures or bridges there may not be. Privately, the surgical extraction example above starts from £405 and the final price depends on how complicated the tooth is.

The cost tool

Pick what you need, and the tool adds up the NHS charge (one band, the highest) and the private examples side by side. Every price in it is editable in the page’s data, so you can replace our examples with the figures from your own quote.

What you get for your money on each side

Money buys time and choice, and not always better clinical care. Which? lists the main differences:

• Appointment time and hours. Private routine appointments usually run longer and may be offered in evenings or at weekends.
• Hygiene visits. The NHS covers a scale and polish when it is clinically necessary. A cosmetic clean is usually private.
• Materials. NHS crowns usually have a metal core with porcelain over it and a limited shade range. Private options may use more natural-looking materials. NHS dentures are usually solid acrylic, while private versions may use flexible acrylic or chrome.
• Fillings. Metal fillings are less common privately, and upgrading to white composite often costs little more.
• Bridges. The NHS sometimes refuses a bridge as cosmetic. A private practice may offer it.
• Emergencies. Out-of-hours care costs more privately.

All dentists in the UK, NHS or private, must be registered with the General Dental Council, and many practices offer both. If yours does, the main difference you will notice is how many options and how much time you are given.

Good to know: Whitening is not available on the NHS at all. Check our guide to whitening strips against dentist whitening before paying for either.

Waiting and availability

The NHS route can be slow to start. In the 24 months to 31 March 2026, only about 40% of adults in England were seen by an NHS dentist, so finding a place is often the real hurdle. Urgent care is quicker: the NHS says you should be offered urgent treatment within 24 hours or 7 days depending on your symptoms, and the April 2026 contract changes require practices to provide a baseline of urgent appointments.

Private practices can usually offer a first visit within days, at a price.

When the NHS makes sense

• You qualify for free care (under 18, pregnant, on certain benefits). Ask any NHS practice first.
• You need fillings, extractions or root canal treatment and can find an NHS place. Band 2 at £76.60 is far below the private examples.
• You need a crown or denture that works, and appearance matters less than cost.
• You can wait for a routine slot.

When private is the only option

• No NHS practice near you is taking patients, and the problem is not urgent enough for NHS 111.
• You want a treatment the NHS does not offer, such as whitening, or a specific material or appearance.
• Your practice has moved to private work and you want to stay with the dentist who knows your mouth.

Competition regulators are looking at the private side. The Competition and Markets Authority started a market study of private dentistry in March 2026, covering how easy it is to find a dentist, understand prices and know where to go for urgent care, with a final report due by March 2027.

Online consultations

Some online services let you send photos or hold a video call with a dentist. We have not priced these, and a remote look cannot replace an examination, X-rays or treatment. If you consider one, it may help with a second opinion on a treatment plan or a first question about a symptom. It will not fix a tooth, and you will still need a practice for anything that needs hands on.

A short checklist for deciding

1. Ask each practice for a written treatment plan with a price per item, and ask which items are NHS and which are private.
2. If you were offered an NHS plan, ask what the private option adds and what it costs.
3. Check whether you qualify for free care or help with costs.
4. Ask about the guarantee. NHS fillings and crowns have a 12-month guarantee at the same practice.
5. Compare two quotes before accepting private work above a few hundred pounds.
6. Decide what you would do if the price doubled, because complex plans can change once work begins.

Key takeaway: On the NHS you pay a fixed band charge once. Privately you pay per item, and the cost differences are biggest on crowns, root canals and extractions.