10 Smart Tips To Finance Expensive Dental Work
If you need expensive dental work, you’re likely wondering how to pay for it. After getting a quote from your dentist and learning how little your insurance will cover, you may be thinking, I must be missing a way to afford this.
There’s good news and bad news when it comes to how to finance expensive dental work. Bad news first: Despite insurance, dental work can cost a lot out-of-pocket. The good news: While there’s probably not an easy solution to covering the whole bill, there are many tricks you can use to make your dollar stretch farther (and possibly even get a tax break while you’re at it).
Here, learn smart strategies about how to pay for dental work. Altogether, these ideas can add up to quite a discount off your dentist’s quote.
Key Points
• Dental care can be very expensive, but there are strategies to help you pay for large bills.
• Dental insurance can significantly lower costs when using in-network providers.
• Payment plans from dentists or third parties help manage large payments over time, and some dentists will negotiate their fees.
• FSAs and HSAs can provide tax-free savings for dental expenses, enhancing affordability.
• Other sources of funding for dental bills include credit cards, emergency funds, and personal loans.
10 Ways to Pay for Dental Work
Many people cover their dental work by combining several of the strategies below. It’s tough to avoid paying out-of-pocket entirely, but you can often get a hefty discount off the original quote. Here, how to pay for dental work:
1. Dental Insurance
You should know that there’s a difference between a dental office that takes your insurance and a dental office that is in-network. A dentist may take your insurance even though they are out-of-network.
When a dentist says that they take your insurance, that likely means that they will file an insurance claim for you. But if your insurance doesn’t cover a procedure or service, the price will generally be set at your dentist’s discretion — and you’ll typically be responsible for paying the costs out-of-pocket.
Generally, using an out-of-network dentist means your insurance will cover less so you’ll pay more. Being in-network, on the other hand, usually means that your insurance company has prenegotiated the fees with the dentist, and they generally can’t charge more than that. So you’ll usually pay less with an in-network dentist.
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2. Medical Insurance
Dental work isn’t typically covered by medical insurance, but certain procedures may be covered if they’re deemed medically necessary. For instance, some kinds of oral surgery potentially can be billed as a medical procedure. Before you move forward with any dental work, it’s a smart idea to talk to your medical insurance company to find out what may be covered. This could help you afford a major dental bill.
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3. Payment Plans
Paying a bill on a weekly or monthly basis can be much more manageable than paying it in a lump sum. That’s why many dental offices offer payment plans for procedures not covered by insurance.
Payment plans can be offered directly through your dentist’s office, or by third-party services like CareCredit. Ask about the specific terms of any payment plan offered. For example:
• What procedures qualify for a payment plan?
• Will they charge interest? And if so, how much?
• Are other fees involved?
• Do they have to check your credit first? If so, will it be a hard or soft inquiry?
Asking these questions beforehand can help keep you from getting blindsided by unexpected costs.
4. Flexible Spending Account
A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is a special savings account offered through some employer benefit plans. FSAs allow employees to pay for certain out-of-pocket medical and dental costs with tax-free money.
The typical taxpayer saves about 30% in federal, state, Social Security, Medicare, and Unemployment taxes. That translates to a 30% discount off all eligible medical and dental expenses, which could be an idea for how to pay for expensive dental work.
FSA rules cap the amount of money that can be placed in the account each year ($3,300 for 2025 per the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS) and also dictate which types of expenses are FSA-eligible. Most routine dental work and orthodontia qualify: cleanings, X-rays, fillings, crowns, extractions, implants, and Invisalign.
FSAs can’t be used for any procedure that is considered cosmetic, including teeth whitening and veneers. But in some instances, if a typically cosmetic procedure is deemed medically necessary — as with some veneers — you may be able to use your FSA. Talk to your dental insurance company for more information.
One drawback of FSAs is that any funds that are unused at the end of the plan year are forfeited — so make sure you don’t leave any money on the table. In the plus column, because FSAs are funded with pretax dollars, they reduce your taxable income, which is always nice.
5. Health Savings Account
A Health Savings Account (HSA) is similar to an FSA in several ways:
• Both are funded with pretax dollars
• Both are used to cover health care expenses
• Both can be established through your employer, and funded with payroll deductions
But there are also key differences between an FSA and HSA:
• HSAs must be used with a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP)
• The 2025 HSA funding cap is $4,300 for individuals, $8,550 for families
• HSA funds roll over from year to year
• You can set up an HSA through some health insurance companies and banks, making them a good option for the self-employed
If you don’t have access to an FSA — and you are currently covered by a high-deductible health plan — you can open an HSA at any time.
6. Negotiate With Your Dentist
The cost of dental work can actually be negotiable, depending on your dentist and your situation. First, have your dentist walk you through the treatment plan. Ask lots of questions, including:
• Are all the procedures they’re suggesting equally urgent? Can some be postponed?
• Can you get a discount by paying cash or the entire cost upfront? Some dentists give a percentage off for this.
• If you don’t have insurance, ask if you can score an uninsured rate.
Some dentists will be flexible, and the worst that can happen is they say no. Another thing you can do is to have an honest conversation with your dentist about your financial situation. If your budget has no breathing room, see if they are open to giving you a discount or if they are willing to push out your bill for a few months.
If the planned dental work is important but not super urgent, you may be able to schedule your appointments so they straddle two plan years. For example, if your plan year is January-December, you might schedule half the appointments for December, and half for the following January. That way, you can take advantage of two annual benefit maximums for insurance and two years’ worth of FSA or HSA funds.
7. Get Work Done at a Dental School
Having work done at a well-regarded dental school may be an option to make expensive dental work more affordable. Search online to see if you live within easy distance of a dental school that offers discounted services. Some schools may provide lower-cost exams and procedures as a way of training their students and giving them real-world experience, under the supervision of skilled, highly trained dentists. The cost can be up to 50% lower than what you might find elsewhere.
If you have access to this and want to go this route, it can be wise to carefully check online reviews to hear how others’ experiences went and feel confident in your decision.
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8. Credit Card
In some circumstances, a credit card can be a suitable payment option for dental bills. If you have a card that offers rewards or cash back, it can also provide some benefits in return.
You might also consider looking for a medical credit card. These cards are issued by banks, credit unions, and other lenders and can only be used for health care and within a specific provider network.
Some medical credit cards defer interest for a period of time after your health care charges are incurred — much like 0%-interest cards. No interest is charged so long as those charges are paid off in full before the interest-free period expires. Late payments or balances that have not been fully paid before the deferment period ends can incur interest charges. Make sure you read the fine print and are comfortable with the fees involved before signing up for one of these cards.
Speaking of 0%-interest cards, they’re another option to finance expensive dental work. By law, these interest-free promotional financing offers must last at least six months. But the most competitive offers go well beyond this to offer 0% introductory APR financing for 18 months or longer.
Before you commit to a new card, it’s a good idea to shop around for the best terms and make sure dental work meets the requirements for any rewards. Credit card debt can be a significant financial issue, so it’s wise to know the exact benefits and downsides of this kind of card. You might want to consider getting a personal loan or borrowing from family instead.
9. Personal Loan
A personal loan is an unsecured loan that you can use for almost anything. Because of this flexibility, many people use personal loans to pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses.
Using a personal loan to finance dental work might be a better option than a credit card. The lower the interest rate, the lower your monthly payment. And personal loans tend to have lower interest rates than credit cards. As of December 2024, credit cards have an average interest rate of more than 20%, but online lenders may offer significantly lower personal loan interest rates (even less than half that percentage) to qualified borrowers.
By using a personal loan calculator, you can compare this option to, say, using a credit card or dipping into your savings.
How much you can borrow is also flexible, and getting approved for a personal loan can be done entirely online. In short, a dental loan might be a good option to cover additional dental needs, from basic fillings to more complex, high-cost procedures.
10. Emergency Fund
Tapping your emergency fund won’t offer a discount on your dental bill, but it can provide a way to pay it. One of the cornerstones of good financial management is to build an emergency fund, typically holding three to six months’ worth of living expenses. The typical scenarios for withdrawing funds from your emergency savings account include paying bills if you lose your income or taking care of an unexpected large medical, dental, or car repair bill. So if you receive a major dental bill and need cash, your emergency fund could be an answer.
Remember, emergency funds aren’t built in a day. Setting up automatic payments into this account from your checking can be a smart move; it’s fine if it’s a small sum like $25 per paycheck to start. And don’t forget to keep the money in a high-yield savings account so it can grow until you need to use it.
The Takeaway
When it comes to how to pay for expensive dental work, there is no one perfect solution. But there are a number of resources and tricks you can call upon to stretch your dollar. Discuss your options with your dentist to find out what discounts and payment plans they may offer. Avail yourself of an FSA or HSA to pay with pretax dollars, if possible, or pay your bill with a 0% interest credit card, rewards card, or medical credit card, among other tactics.
Another option is to finance your dental work with a personal loan.
Think twice before turning to high-interest credit cards. Consider a SoFi personal loan instead. SoFi offers competitive fixed rates and same-day funding. Checking your rate takes just a minute.
FAQ
What can I use as financial assistance for dental work?
To finance expensive dental work, you may have to employ a few different tricks. First, if you have an FSA or HSA, paying your bills with pretax funds will net you an effective 30% discount. You can also schedule work to straddle two plan years so that your dental insurance and FSA/HSA cover twice the annual amount. If you’re uninsured, explain your financial situation to your dentist to see if they’ll offer a discount. And consider taking out an unsecured personal loan.
Can I use a personal loan as financial assistance for dental work?
Yes, a personal loan can be a great option for covering expensive dental work, compared to high-interest revolving credit. Shop around for the best rate and terms, and read the fine print to make sure you fully understand the fees involved for any option you are considering.
Is it hard to get financial assistance for dental work?
It will take some work on your part, but financial assistance is available for low-income patients through dental schools, clinical trials, United Way, Medicare, and Medicaid. Find out what kind of assistance you may be eligible for on the U.S. Department Health & Human Services website at HHS.gov.
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