MiCrown® 5D: How We Plan Crowns And Bridges

Fees vary between practices, and your own quote comes after the Diagnose stage, once we know what the tooth needs. We can’t give you a price here. For a sense of scale, one published survey puts the national average for a full veneered crown at about $1,678.

In March 2023, CHOICE reported an Australian Dental Association fee survey to 1 July 2022. It put the average for a full veneered crown (item 615) at $1,678, with a range of $1,250 to $2,100. These are national survey figures from that time, not this clinic’s fee, and they cover the crown item only.

A crown is often one part of the treatment. A root canal, a build-up under the crown and a temporary crown are separate items where they apply, and the material and method can change the fee. Ask for an itemised quote and check what your fund pays: benefits depend on your policy, its limits and any waiting period. We can claim eligible items through HICAPS with participating funds on the day. Medicare doesn’t cover most dental services.

• CHOICE. How much does the dentist cost? (reports the ADA 2022 dental fee survey; last updated 9 March 2023)

No. healthdirect says a cracked tooth may need a crown, and that isn’t the same as always. Where the crack runs, how big it is, what you’re feeling and how much sound tooth remains all shape the advice, and the first stage of the pathway, Diagnose, is there to work that out (healthdirect, dental injury).

The options run from smallest up. A small crack with no symptoms may only need watching, with a review. A filling or an onlay may do if enough healthy tooth remains: an onlay covers part of the tooth, so more natural tooth is kept. A crown covers the whole tooth and suits a cracked, heavily filled or root-treated tooth, though more of the tooth is shaped for it.

Why the tooth cracked matters. Decay, a large old filling or grinding can each be the cause, and grinding can crack teeth and dental work (healthdirect, teeth grinding), so a splint may be suggested to protect a crown. Don’t wait if a cracked tooth hurts or a piece has broken off. Keep the piece, avoid chewing on that side and phone us. A crowned tooth can still need root canal treatment later, and a crown can chip, wear or come loose.

• healthdirect (Australian Government). Dental injury
• healthdirect (Australian Government). Teeth grinding (bruxism)

Sometimes. CEREC lets us design and make certain ceramic crowns in the practice during one appointment, for selected cases. The rest need a temporary crown while a dental laboratory makes the final one, usually over two visits.

In-practice and laboratory crowns are different routes, and we don’t call either one better. Which suits your tooth depends on how much tooth is left, where it sits, how you bite and the material that suits it. A laboratory crown can be the right choice for a tooth, and same-day work isn’t available for every tooth or every mouth.

Ask what each route would involve for you: the number of visits, whether a temporary crown is needed and what each option costs. Same-day isn’t always quicker overall, because a root canal or a build-up beneath the crown may be needed first. Whichever route you take, the Deliver stage checks your bite, comfort and how easily you can clean around the crown, and the Defend stage reviews it over time.

It can leave out the work the tooth needs first or afterwards. A crown fee covers the crown, and a root canal, a build-up under the crown, a temporary crown, X-rays and reviews may be separate items. Ask which are included, and ask for an itemised quote.

CHOICE prices item 615, a full veneered crown, as the crown itself (CHOICE, March 2023, reporting an ADA fee survey to 1 July 2022). That figure doesn’t include other items the tooth may need. For example, a tooth that has been root-treated or heavily filled may need a build-up before the crown, and the build-up has its own fee.

We quote once the Diagnose stage is done, so the figure reflects what your tooth needs. Ask what’s covered at each stage: Diagnose, Design, Detail, Deliver and Defend. Ask what happens if a crown needs adjusting or comes loose, and what review visits cost. Your fund can tell you which items it covers, and waiting periods and annual limits apply. We can’t promise a set gap, and you can take the quote away to think it over. We explain fees the same way across our dental services.

• CHOICE. How much does the dentist cost? (reports the ADA 2022 dental fee survey; last updated 9 March 2023)

Often. Ceramic works for many teeth and contains no metal. Which material suits yours depends on the tooth and your bite, and we’ll explain the choice before you decide.

Ceramic, also called porcelain, can be shaded to blend in, and it wears well (healthdirect, fillings). It can chip, and a very heavy bite or some bridge designs may need a different material, so metal-free isn’t right for every tooth. We’ll tell you why, if so. A crown covers the whole tooth, so ask how much of the tooth would be shaped and whether an onlay could do the job.

If you’d rather avoid metal, you don’t need a medical reason. If you have a known allergy to a dental material, tell us and bring any test results, because we plan around a confirmed allergy. On one common worry, BPA, the Australian Dental Association states there is no evidence that long-term exposure from dental materials is linked to harm (ADA Policy 6.27, 2025). We won’t call any material toxic or pure.

• healthdirect (Australian Government). Dental fillings
• Australian Dental Association. Policy Statement 6.27 – Bisphenol-A in Dental Restorative Materials (amended October 2025)