Dental Implant Cost Thailand vs. Australia
The short answer.
Thai clinics often quote less than Australian practices, but compare what each quote covers. In Australia, CHOICE's 2023 fee guide puts placing an implant at $1,334 to $3,000 and the abutment at $400 to $1,404 (not our fees), with the crown extra.
When considering significant dental work, such as dental implants, it’s not uncommon to start looking beyond your local dental clinic for more affordable options. One place that consistently comes up in such discussions is Thailand.
Thailand is a popular destination for dental treatment, and the chance to combine a holiday with dental work appeals to many people. This guide compares what dental implants involve and cost in Thailand and in Australia, so you can weigh up the whole picture. If you’d like to talk through treatment closer to home, read about dental implants at Dental Spot in Croydon.
What are Dental Implants?
As a refresher, dental implants are artificial tooth roots placed into your jawbone to support a dental crown, bridge, or denture. This surgical procedure aims to replace missing teeth and restore functionality and aesthetics to your smile. The dental implant post, often made of titanium, fuses with your natural bone through a process called osseointegration, providing a sturdy base for the false tooth or teeth.
The Dental Implant Procedure: An In-depth Look
A better understanding of the stages of dental implant treatment helps put the cost into perspective. Whether in Thailand or Australia, the process requires multiple stages, skill, and good-quality materials.
The initial consultation involves a thorough oral examination, X-rays, and possibly a CT scan to determine your jaw bone’s health and density. The dentist will then create a detailed treatment plan tailored to your needs.
If there’s significant bone loss, bone grafting may be required to ensure there’s enough bone to support the implant. This procedure adds to the overall dental implant cost and extends the treatment time, as you must wait for the grafted bone to heal before proceeding.
Next comes the placement of the dental implant post into your jawbone. This surgical procedure is done under local anaesthetic, requiring precision and skill to avoid damaging surrounding structures such as nerves and other teeth. Following this, a period of healing is required for osseointegration to occur, where the bone fuses with the implant post.
Once healed, the implant post is exposed, and an abutment is attached. The abutment serves as the foundation for your new tooth. Finally, a dental crown, bridge, or denture is attached to the abutment. This artificial tooth is custom-made to match your natural teeth in colour, shape, and size.
Every step takes time, and the whole process usually runs over several months, with healing time between stages. That matters when you plan treatment in another country: you may need more than one trip, or a long stay.
Dental Implant Procedure: Understanding the Risks
All surgical procedures carry risks, and dental implants are no exception. Whether it’s immediate function implants or implants for significant posterior bone loss, the process is complex. A complication or failure can mean more invasive procedures, further costs, and additional time without a functioning tooth.
Many Thai dentists perform dental implant procedures, and standards can vary from clinic to clinic, so it pays to check the dentist’s registration and experience before you book. Moreover, if you experience a problem after returning to Australia, your Thai dentist won’t be available for immediate follow-up, and a local dentist might be hesitant to take over someone else’s work.
If your implants are placed close to home, your dentist knows your dental history and the details of your implant, and you can see them quickly if something needs attention.
Dental Implant Cost: Thailand vs. Australia
Clinics in Thailand often quote a lower price for an implant than Australian practices do. Before you compare quotes, check that they cover the same things:
- the consultation, X-rays and any CT scan;
- the implant post, the abutment and the crown (some quotes cover the implant post only);
- any extraction, bone graft or sinus lift you might need;
- the follow-up visits, and what happens if something needs fixing;
- your flights, accommodation and time off work, possibly for two trips.
In Australia, CHOICE’s guide to dental fees (updated 9 March 2023, using the Australian Dental Association’s 2022 fee survey) puts the average fee for placing one implant at $1,334 to $3,000, and for the abutment that connects it to the crown at $400 to $1,404, depending on the state. The crown is extra: the survey’s closest item, a veneered crown on a natural tooth, mostly costs $1,250 to $2,100. Scans, extractions and bone grafts add to that. These are published Australian figures, not our fees: your quote depends on your teeth, so ask us for yours. You can read more in our guide to tooth implant costs in Australia.
Health Insurance
In Australia, some private health insurance extras policies pay a benefit towards dental implant treatment. It’s worth checking with your fund what’s covered. Australian health insurance generally doesn’t cover treatment overseas, so compare your out-of-pocket cost in both places, not the list price.
Standards and Regulation
In Australia, dentists must be registered with the Dental Board of Australia through Ahpra (another site), meet its registration standards and keep up continuing professional development. In Thailand, the Thai Dental Council (another site) oversees dentists (its website is in Thai). Whichever country you choose, ask about the dentist’s training and experience with implants, the implant brand they use and the clinic’s infection control.
Healing and Follow-Up Care
After undergoing a procedure as significant as a dental implant, you may not feel up to sightseeing or beach-hopping. Your body needs time to heal; strenuous activity is generally not recommended after surgery.
Regular follow-up visits during healing let your dentist check the implant site and how the implant is integrating with the bone. Once treatment is complete, regular check-ups and professional cleaning help look after your implants, natural teeth and gums. Regular aftercare supports the longevity of dental implants (another site). If your implants are placed overseas, plan how and where you’ll have these visits once you’re home.
Your Overall Health
Chronic conditions like heart disease or diabetes can affect dental procedures, including implants. Wherever you have treatment, tell your dentist about your health conditions and medicines. If you have treatment overseas, bring your medical history with you, as your overseas dentist won’t be in touch with your GP at home.
Before You Book
Smartraveller, the Australian Government’s travel advice service, notes that elective procedures can cost much less in some countries, and that while many hospitals overseas are of a similar standard to Australia’s, quality and standards in some countries can be poor. Its advice before you book treatment overseas includes:
- check that the dentist is registered with the local authority and has indemnity insurance;
- check whether your travel insurance covers complications from the treatment;
- get copies of your records to bring home.
For implants, also ask for your X-rays and the brand and size of each implant, so a dentist at home can look after them later. For other destinations, see our guide to dental implants overseas.
Talk to Us
Choosing a dental implant is a significant decision that will affect your quality of life for many years to come. Before making your choice, research thoroughly, ask plenty of questions, and compare what each option includes. If you’re weighing up treatment in Thailand, we’re happy to explain what treatment here would involve and cost.
Sources
- How much does the dentist cost? (another site), CHOICE, updated 9 March 2023
- Medical tourism (another site), Smartraveller
- Dental Board of Australia (another site), Ahpra
- Thai Dental Council (another site) (in Thai)
- Patient-reported outcome measures following surgeries in implant dentistry and associated factors (another site), BMJ Open, 2022
This guide is general information, not advice about your own teeth. Your dentist can tell you what applies to you, including the risks of any treatment.
Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding, you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.
