How Much Does a Crown Cost a Dentist?
Uncover the true financial outlays for dentists providing a dental crown. Gain insight into the economic realities behind direct expenses and practice overheads.
Dental crowns are a common restorative treatment that caps a damaged or weakened tooth, restoring its shape, size, strength, and appearance. They are custom-fitted coverings placed over the entire visible portion of a tooth. This article focuses on the financial outlay a dental practice incurs when providing a crown, offering insight into the underlying costs involved in this routine dental procedure.
Direct Expenses
The primary direct cost for a dentist providing a crown is the lab fee. This fee covers the custom fabrication of the crown by a dental laboratory, varying by lab quality, location, and services. For example, lab fees for full contour zirconia crowns can be $30 to $50, PFM crowns $65 to $130, and E.max crowns, known for aesthetics, $119 to $140.
Beyond the lab fee, material costs at the dental office contribute to direct expenses. For practices using chairside CAD/CAM technology, restorative block material, like a zirconia block, costs $22 to $47 per block. Consumable supplies are also used during crown preparation and seating. These include impression materials, which can cost around $7 per impression.
Other ancillary supplies also contribute to direct costs. Temporary crown materials protect the prepared tooth while the permanent crown is fabricated. Bonding agents and dental cements securely attach the crown to the tooth. Local anesthetics ensure patient comfort during the procedure. Dental burs, necessary for tooth preparation, range from $0.50 to $15 per bur, depending on material and quality.
Influencing Factors
The choice of crown material significantly impacts direct expenses, especially the lab fee. Zirconia and E.max are popular for strength and aesthetics, often having higher lab costs than traditional PFM or metal crowns. Gold crowns, though durable, can also incur substantial material costs due to gold’s fluctuating price.
The selection of a dental laboratory also plays an important role in determining costs. Labs vary in pricing structures, reflecting differences in material quality, technical expertise, and technology. Some labs offer lower prices using affordable materials or simpler processes, while others charge more for premium materials and advanced CAD/CAM technology. Domestic labs have different pricing than offshore labs, with some offshore options offering lower costs.
Case complexity can further influence the total cost to the dentist. Challenging clinical cases, requiring extensive tooth preparation, custom staining for a precise shade match, or specialized techniques, may lead to higher lab fees. These complexities demand more time and specialized skills from the dental team and laboratory technicians. Such cases might necessitate additional materials or a more involved fabrication process, contributing to increased expenses.
Practice Overheads
Beyond direct expenses tied to each crown, dental practices incur various overhead costs necessary for their operation. These include fixed and semi-fixed expenses like staff salaries, rent or mortgage payments, and utility bills. Equipment depreciation, the gradual reduction in value of dental chairs, X-ray machines, and other specialized tools, also represents a notable cost.
Insurance premiums, including malpractice and property insurance, are regular expenditures for practice operation. Administrative expenses, encompassing scheduling software, office supplies, and billing services, are also required for daily operations. These overheads are not directly attributable to a single crown but must be covered by revenue from all services provided by the practice.