A crown exists to hold a weakened tooth together. It happens to also look like a tooth. Getting that order right is how you avoid paying for cosmetic work you did not need — and these ten practices publish their fees.
A crown covers the whole tooth, not just the front.
The tooth is reduced on every surface by one to two millimetres, and a cap is made to fit over what remains. That is a lot of tooth removed, which is why crowns are the right answer for a genuinely weak tooth — one that is cracked, root-treated, or held together by a filling larger than the tooth around it — and the wrong answer for a tooth you simply want to look different. For that, a veneer removes a fraction of the structure.
You need a crown if the tooth is cracked, root-canal treated, or more filling than tooth.
You probably do not if the tooth is sound and the complaint is only about colour or a small chip. A veneer or bonding removes far less.
Material matters more than brand. Zirconia is strongest, e.max is the most lifelike, and metal-fused is the cheapest and shows a dark line at the gum over time.
Ask whether they mill in-house. It turns two visits and two weeks in a temporary into a single appointment.
Clinically the steps are identical. The difference is whether the porcelain is cut in the building while you wait or posted to a laboratory.
01
Assessment & X-ray
Confirms the tooth is restorable and whether it needs root canal treatment first. That decision must come before preparation.
Visit 1 · 30 min
02
Preparation
The tooth is reduced by 1–2mm on every surface under local anaesthetic, leaving a shape the crown can seat on.
Same visit · 45 min
03
Scan or impression
A digital scan for in-house milling, or an impression posted to a laboratory.
Same visit · 15 min
04
Milling or lab work
In-house: milled and glazed while you wait, roughly 90 minutes. Lab: two to three weeks in a temporary crown.
90 min or 2–3 weeks
05
Fit & cement
Checked for fit, contact with neighbours and bite, adjusted, then cemented permanently.
Final visit · 45 min
Before & after
Crown cases from dentists on this list.
Submitted by listed practices, with the patient's written release and the fee they actually charged.
BeforeAfter
Cracked upper molar, same-day crown
Cracked on an olive stone. Scanned, milled and cemented in a single afternoon with no temporary.
Duration
1 visit, 3 hr
Fee charged
$1,340
BeforeAfter
Front crown remade to match whitening
An old metal-fused crown with a dark gum line, replaced with e.max after two weeks of whitening.
Duration
4 weeks
Fee charged
$1,890
BeforeAfter
Root canal then crown
Root treatment completed first, then a zirconia crown to hold the remaining structure together.
Duration
5 weeks
Fee charged
$2,760
Individual results vary with your diagnosis, anatomy and healing. Fees shown are what those specific patients paid at those specific practices and are not a quote. Photography on this page is licensed stock imagery, not photographs of the patients described.
Cost & insurance
What crowns cost in 2026.
Ranges below are the 25th–75th percentile of fees published by listed practices. Any dentist we match you with has agreed to give you a written quote before treatment.
Treatment
Typical range
With 0% plan
Porcelain crown, lab-madeTwo visits, temporary between
$1,100 – $2,300
$95/mo24 months
Same-day milled crownOne visit, no temporary
$1,200 – $2,400
$99/mo24 months
Zirconia crownStrongest, best for back teeth
$1,300 – $2,400
Add-on
E.max crownMost lifelike, best for front teeth
$1,400 – $2,600
Add-on
Metal-fused crownCheapest, dark line appears at the gum
$900 – $1,600
Budget option
Core build-upIf too little tooth remains to hold a crown
$250 – $500
Add-on
Crowns are among the best-covered treatments on a PPO plan — commonly 50% after your deductible — because they are classed as restorative rather than cosmetic. Where a crown is being replaced purely for appearance, that coverage usually disappears, so the reason recorded on the claim matters.
What insurance usually covers
Crowns are usually covered at 50% as a major restorative service, after your deductible.
Replacement crowns often have a time limit — many plans will not pay again within five to eight years of the last one.
A crown placed for appearance alone is normally excluded. The clinical reason on the claim decides this.
Core build-ups are billed separately and are frequently covered where the crown itself is.
FSA and HSA funds cover this in full — it is a qualified medical expense.
In-house 0% plans at 6–24 months, offered by roughly two-thirds of listed practices.
Third-party financing at 24–72 months, typically 9.9%–17.9% APR once the promotional window ends.
Dental school clinics run 40–60% below private fees, with longer timelines and supervised residents.
Get it itemised, in writing — every time
Every component on a separate line. It is the only way two quotes ever become comparable, and every practice on this list has agreed to give you one before you pay a deposit.
Payment calculator
Work out the monthly number before you walk in.
Drag the sliders to your situation. Nothing is submitted anywhere — this runs entirely in your browser.
Estimates only. Actual approval, APR and term depend on the practice, the lender and your credit. Promotional 0% offers are usually deferred-interest products — if the balance is not cleared inside the promotional window, interest may be charged retroactively from the purchase date. Always read the credit agreement.
Compare your options
Crown, veneer, or a large filling?
All three restore a damaged tooth. The right one depends almost entirely on how much sound tooth is left.
Ask to see every option planned. A dentist who only ever recommends one route, regardless of the scan, is worth a second opinion.
Porcelain crown
Porcelain veneer
Large composite filling
Cost per tooth
$1,100 – $2,300
$1,100 – $2,600
$180 – $450
Tooth structure removed
1 – 2 mm all round
0.3 – 0.7 mm at the front
Only the decay
Holds a weak tooth together
Yes — its main job
No
Can make it worse
Suits a root-treated tooth
Standard of care
Rarely enough
High fracture risk
Lifespan
10 – 20 years
10 – 20 years
5 – 10 years
Usually insured
Yes, ~50%
Rarely
Yes, 50–80%
Visits
1 – 2
3 – 4
1
Best when
The tooth is cracked, root-treated or mostly filling
The tooth is sound and you want to change how it looks
Decay is moderate and plenty of sound tooth remains
How to judge a practice
Four things that separate a good practice from an average one.
None of this is marketing gloss — each one measurably changes how predictable your result is. Ask the practices you shortlist which of the four they actually have.
Imaging
They show you the images
A practice that turns the monitor towards you and walks through what it is actually seeing is a practice that expects to be questioned.
Ask to see your own scan
Pricing
A written, itemised quote
Every fee on its own line, handed over before you pay a deposit. Every practice we list has agreed to provide one.
Non-negotiable on this list
Volume
They do this often
Skill compounds with repetition. Each listing shows how many cases of this type the practice has completed in the last two years.
Case counts shown on every card
Aftercare
Someone answers afterwards
A named contact for the week after treatment, and a written policy on what a redo costs if something is not right.
Checked at every renewal
Inside the network
What a listed practice looks like.
We visit or video-audit every practice before it goes on the list — the operatory, the sterilisation room, the imaging suite and the front desk that will handle your insurance claim.
The operatoryChair, imaging and delivery unitSecond surgerySo urgent cases aren't bumpedSterile protocolAudited at every renewalThe front deskFiles your claim, not youStreet levelParking and access checked
Free consultation
Tell us the situation. We'll do the calling around.
Send this once and up to three matched dentists near you come back with a written per-crown fee, the material they propose, and whether they can do it in one visit.
Our Austin care team — 11 people, none on commission
1. You send the details
Ninety seconds. Your ZIP, what you need, and your insurance if you have it.
2. We shortlist and forward
We pick the three strongest matches on distance, case volume and price transparency — then send them your case.
3. You compare in writing
Three written estimates in your inbox within two business days. Pick one, or none.
Care team hours (Eastern Time)
Monday – Friday7:00 AM – 11:00 PM
Saturday8:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Sunday9:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Open now — median callback time 41 minutes
Get up to 3 written estimates
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FAQ
Crown questions, answered straight.
Reviewed by our clinical advisory panel in January 2026. General information, not a diagnosis.
Still deciding?
Talk it through with a care coordinator before you book anything. They don't work on commission and they can tell you when this is the wrong call.
The rule of thumb dentists use is how much sound tooth is left holding the cusps together. If a filling would be wider than about half the distance between the cusp tips, the remaining walls flex when you chew and eventually split — that is a crown case. If plenty of solid tooth remains around the decay, a filling is genuinely better because it removes far less structure. Ask to see the X-ray and have the reasoning explained.
Zirconia is the strongest and best for back teeth taking heavy load; modern layered zirconia looks good but not quite as lifelike at the front. E.max is lithium disilicate — slightly less strong, considerably more translucent, and the usual choice for front teeth. Metal-fused-to-porcelain is the old standard: cheapest, very durable, but the metal substructure eventually shows as a dark line at the gum as gums recede.
For most teeth, yes. The milling ceramic is the same material and the fit from a digital scan is usually at least as accurate as an impression. Where a skilled technician still wins is on front teeth needing subtle internal staining and layering to match neighbouring teeth. For a molar, same-day is straightforwardly better because you avoid two weeks in a temporary.
The preparation is done under local anaesthetic and should be painless. Sensitivity to cold for a few weeks afterwards is common, particularly if the tooth was already inflamed, and it normally settles. Pain that builds rather than fades, or pain on biting weeks later, needs checking — occasionally a tooth that was borderline before the crown goes on to need root canal treatment.
Ten to twenty years is the usual span, and the crown itself rarely fails first. What fails is the tooth or the cement seal underneath, usually because decay creeps in at the margin where crown meets tooth. That margin is why flossing around a crown matters more than flossing anywhere else in your mouth.
Usually around 50% after your deductible, because crowns are classed as major restorative rather than cosmetic. Two things commonly reduce that: your annual maximum, which many plans cap at $1,000 to $2,000, and replacement clauses that refuse to pay again within five to eight years of the last crown on the same tooth. Ask the practice to pre-authorise.
No. Porcelain does not respond to peroxide. If you plan to whiten, do it first, wait two weeks for the shade to stabilise, then have the crown made to match. Otherwise you will end up with a crown that is noticeably darker than everything around it and the only fix is remaking it.
It is usually the cement that has failed rather than the crown, and in many cases it can simply be re-cemented — keep the crown, do not throw it away, and see a dentist within a few days. If it fell off because decay has undermined the tooth beneath, the crown may need remaking. Do not attempt to glue it back yourself; household adhesives are toxic and will contaminate the fitting surface.
Imaging
Pricing
Volume
Aftercare
