I go to a fairly spendy , but not at all spa-like, dentist that doesn’t do any insurance “discounts” (in Chicago), and my annual amount (before insurance) for two cleanings, xrays, etc, is $410.00. With insurance, it’s $100.

Kids go to an absurdly expensive dentist, and it’s more, and after insurance ends up being about $200 per kid per year.

Annual cost for the family coverage is about $530 this year — so worth it, even before any fillings, etc, so long as we all go 2x a year. Coverage for the non-cleaning stuff has a deductible and a crappy-ish coverage %age.

Could we find cheaper dentists (both w/ and w/o insurance)? For sure!