Had to get a root canal last month and honestly, the sticker shock was almost worse than the tooth pain. My dentist quoted me like $1,200 just for the procedure—not even counting the crown after. I’ve got dental insurance through work, but it barely covered half. Ended up paying around $700 out of pocket when all was said and done, and that’s after some back-and-forth with the insurance company about what was “necessary.”
I tried shopping around a little, but it felt weird calling offices just to ask about prices. Some places wouldn’t even give me a ballpark until I came in for an exam (which, of course, is another charge). In the end, I stuck with my regular dentist because at least I trusted them, but man… it adds up fast.
I did use my HSA card to cover some of it, which helped a bit. But I’m starting to wonder if those dental discount plans are actually worth it? Or maybe I should’ve tried negotiating more? Has anyone had luck with payment plans or found ways to get these big dental bills down? Also curious if anyone’s insurance actually covered most of their root canal—maybe I just have bad luck with mine?
Would love to hear how others handled the financial side of this. Did you find any tricks that made it less painful (in the wallet sense)?
