Dental implants

Dental implants cost over $2,000 but some extras policies can cover you under "major dental".

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Key takeaways

  • Dental implants are artificial tooth roots that are used to replace missing teeth.
  • The implants are typically made of titanium and are surgically implanted into the jawbone to provide a stable foundation for replacement teeth.
  • Dental implants can be included in major dental cover and can help you lower the costs by as much as $800.

How much do dental implants cost?

Dental implants cost between $2,000 and $7,000 in Australia but you'll find that costs vary based on what kind of treatment you require and how much your dentist charges. For example, complicated procedures involving a bone graft or sinus lift are likely to cost you more, as are all-on-4 dental implants.

Single tooth

Single implants

$2,000-$7,000

Multiple Teeth

All-on-4 implants

$17,000-$30,000

Does Medicare cover implants?

No. Medicare largely does not cover dental work, and that includes implants. There are 2 major exceptions:

  • Your oral health is impacting your overall health. In this case, you would need a referral from your GP under a GP Management Plan and Team Care Arrangement.
  • You're a concession card holder. Certain concession card holders are eligible for state-based dental vouchers that may be applied toward medically-necessary dental implants.

Does health insurance cover dental implants?

Tooth icon

Extras cover

Yes, you can get health insurance for dental implants with some extras policies. You'll often find it included under "major dental" and more specifically periodontics (the treatment of diseases around gums and teeth structure).

If your policy covers periodontics and doesn't specifically exclude implants, you may be covered. You'll have to check with your insurer to be certain, and be ready to pay some out-of-pocket expenses because your benefit almost certainly won't cover the whole amount.

Remember that even if your policy does cover dental implants, there is usually a 12-month waiting period before you can submit a claim for major dental.

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Hospital cover

Some policies will cover dental implants as part of their hospital cover, but this would require that you are admitted to a hospital as an inpatient.

Most implants are done in an outpatient setting, so in order to be covered on a policy like this, you would have to have special anesthetic needs or extensive bone grafting.

Compare private health insurance for dental implants

The table below compares policies from Finder partners that cover major dental, where dental implants are typically covered. It's sorted by value using the Finder score algorithm our experts use for the Finder health insurance awards. Prices are for a single person earning less than $97,000 living in Sydney, with a $750 excess - learn why this matters here.
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How we calculate our Finder Score

The Finder Score ranks every health policy in our database on value for money. We updated this monthly with data provided by Ombudsman.

We consider the 38 hospital treatment categories, plus the covered extras categories and the total extras benefit. We also use the average price for each product. Here's the breakdown of factors we consider.

How we calculate Health Insurance Finder ScoresHospitaltreatmentscovered25%Hospital price25%Total extrasbenefits12.5%Extras treatments12.5%Extras price25%Chart:Finder
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Factors that affect your health insurance premiums

There are several factors that will change the price of your health insurance premiums, whether you get hospital or extras cover. Here are the main ones to consider.
  • Private Health Insurance Rebate: The price of your policy can vary by over 25% due to rebate. It's mainly based on your age and income.
  • Lifetime Health Cover Loading: If you don't have hospital cover after age 31, a 2% loading will be added to the price each year you don't have it.
  • State: The cost of medical care is different in every state, and that's reflected in your premiums.
  • Policy Excess: A policy with a larger excess will have lower premiums, but you will have more out of pocket costs when you claim.
1 - 10 of 48
Name Product AUFHI-NEW Treatments Price Apply
GMHBA Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$46.63
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Medibank Private Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$27.82
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Flex 60
Extras cover
HBF Health Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$55.34
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
value extras
Extras cover
ahm health insurance logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$32.80
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
ahm health insurance logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$12.97
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Medibank Private Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$50.36
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
ahm health insurance logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$38.04
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Growing Family 60
Extras cover
Medibank Private Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$47.80
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Medibank Private Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$37.51
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
Medibank Private Limited logo
  • General Dental
  • Major Dental
  • Orthodontic
  • Endodontic
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Psychology
  • Remedial massage
$27.86
per month
Go to Site
All treatments
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What are dental implants?

A dental implant is a strong, durable replacement tooth and root system that is implanted permanently into the jaw. It looks, acts and feels like a natural tooth. It consists of 3 major parts:

  • A titanium implant. This is a screw-like device that is drilled into the jawbone and will eventually fuse with the bone creating strong foundational support for the new tooth.
  • Small metal post. When the implant has healed and fused to the bone, a small metal post is inserted into the implant so that it is partially inside and partially outside of the gum line.
  • The artificial tooth crown. This is the actual "tooth" that is placed onto the outer part of the metal post.

The entire process requires multiple visits over the course of several months since the initial implant needs time to heal and merge with the jawbone before the crown can be placed on top.

How much does health insurance cost?

We ask hundreds of Australians what they're paying for health insurance every month. Here's what their bill looked like in November 2024.
  • Extras only: $56
  • Basic: $105
  • Bronze: $141
  • Silver: $193
  • Gold: $223
Price based on 470+ responses for single hospital or extras insurance.

Frequently asked questions

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Editor

James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

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James has written 204 Finder guides across topics including:
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Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 644 Finder guides across topics including:
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  • Managing the cost of living

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