How Much Does Invisalign Cost?
So, How Much Does Invisalign Cost?
First, if you don’t know what invisalign braces are, then let us tell you. Basically, they are a type of teeth aligners similar in a way to regular braces except that the Invisalign braces are almost transparent and cannot be easily seen by a naked eye from distance. They were invented in 1990s by the company Align Technology and have attained great popularity since then.
The teeth aligning procedure with the use of Invisalign braces differs from the way teeth are realigned using regular traditional brackets and wires. For example, one notable difference is that the Invisalign braces do not press as hard on teeth as traditional braces. Also, it is not uncommon for dentists to use X-Ray 3D CT scans before actually commencing the Invisalign treatment. In order to apply Invisalign with precision, dentists use special computer software and communicate with other dental centers over network. A pretty complicated technology, in other words.
In this article, we will answer the commonly asked “how much does invisalign cost?” question and also provide you with some tips on how to make the treatment process less pricey (also some brief information on how to decide if they are for you or not, and something more, as well).
How Much Does Invisalign Cost Without Insurance?
Well, the price of Invisalign varies greatly and is influenced by many factors. For example, the severity of your teeth problem is one of those factors. Think about it – the more crooked your teeth are, the more aligners you need and the longer your treatment is, which makes the procedure more expensive. The level of qualification and the amount of expertise of the orthodontist also influences the cost of Invisalign treatment, as the better a specialist is the more he is likely to charge for his services. The location where you get the treatment also matters, for sure – the more expensive the city (Los Angeles Dentists, Newport Beach dentists), the higher the prices.
If you are interested not in vague answers to the “how much does Invisalign cost” question but more in exact numbers, then we apologize and will bring these numbers to the table right now. Basically, the cost of Invisalign braces ranges from $3500 to $8000 with the national average being around $5000, as stated on the official website, but there are also the so called Express cases that cost between $1500 and $4000. The difference between the standard cases and the Express ones is the amount of aligners they have. Express kits have fewer aligners and are geared towards fixing milder teeth irregularities, and so they are also less expensive.
The huge discrepancy between the lowest and the highest price for dental service is not a rare phenomenon, as other dental services also fluctuate in their prices a lot, including the cost of dentures and many other dental operations. If you fly to certain Asian countries, like India and Thailand, the cost of invisible braces will be much lower, but the topic of dental tourism is not something we will cover in this article.
How Much Does Invisalign Cost With Insurance?
That above was the cost of invisalign without insurance, of course, but you can obtain some financial aid from the insurance provider, if you pass their terms. Usually, in order to get the money from them, the “Adult orthodontics” has to be listed in the list of coverage. The cost of invisalign braces with insurance is approximately 500-1000 dollars less, although sometimes insurance companies offer full financial aid. Dental insurance does not deal with the cosmetic dentistry costs so if the only reasons for fixing your teeth with Invisalign are all of cosmetic nature, it may get a bit difficult to convince the insurance company to provide you with help (getting tooth pain relief is not the field of expertise of cosmetic dentistry, for example, while teeth whitening is certainly always for cosmetic purposes) .
When asking the “how much is Invisalign” question, you probably didn’t expect such high prices, but don’t worry. Even if you think that the cost of these braces is too high for you, there are many other ways to reduce the costs, or at least make it easier to pay for them. For example, you can ask your dentists if they are willing to provide you with some kind of monthly payment plans. These do exist, and if they agree to your proposal, they will prescribe you one of those plans, sometimes with no growing interest. Well, we would all be rejoiced if dental services were free, but payment plans are fine, too (even the so called free dental implants are not free).
Another way would be to use the FSA – flexible spending account. This is a type of account where you can store a certain amount of money each month. To be more specific, if you choose to use FSA, a certain amount of money from your monthly payroll will be deducted regularly and put into FSA. The point of FSA is that the money you put there will not be subject to taxes. If you are interested then ask your job provider if they are able to provide you with FSA (they are the ones who can do that). When you get the medical bills, you should just seek the FSA company, and they will reimburse all the costs. The Invisalign braces do qualify as a type of medical treatment that FSA can pay for so there should be no problems.
Does Invisalign Cost More Than Braces?
Short answer – the cost of invisalign braces is only slightly higher than the prices of regular braces. Does that affect the quality and efficiency of the work?
Well, the opinions on whether the classical braces or the invisible ones, of which Invisalign is one of the types of, are better vary, but the statistics show that in 97% patients are more than happy with the results that they get from Invisalign aligners. The best part about the Invisalign invisible braces is that they are transparent, and the treatment of teeth with them tends to take much less time, too. 12 or even 6 months are not very rare timelines for full Invisalign treatment processes. And again, the cost of invisalign braces is only slightly higher than the prices of regular braces, too.
Well, the only reason why traditional braces are still used is because they provide more pressure to the teeth and can deal with teeth problems of more severe degrees. Yes, that means Invisalign, despite how glorified they are, are not appropriate for extremely bad teeth (speak to your orthodontist, so that he can inspect you for eligibility for the Invisalign treatment).
Some Last Words Before Purchasing Invisalign
Again, a consultation with a dental specialist is needed in order to estimate whether these braces can treat your problems or not, as they might not be suitable for certain cases, such as in cases of severe tooth crowding or when the teeth have not been fully erupted. In fact, consult with 2 or 3 orthodontists just to make sure that you get the whole picture, and only aim for those who offer consultations for free. Also, if you are curious about the answers to the “does Invisalign work” question, then we have an article on that topic, too.