A Dentist’s Guide to the Equipment, Training, and Financing Needed for Dental Implants

What Do Dentists Need to Upgrade?

The costs of dental implant equipment are substantial. Dental practices may need to purchase machinery, equipment, and may require additional training for both the main practitioner and assistants. The list includes:

1. A 3D imaging scanner (aka a CBCT scanner)

This machine is crucial for implant surgery, as it performs 360-degree image mapping of the patient’s mouth, which will help determine the scope of the surgery. This machine, however, can cost between $50,000 to $150,000 depending on the size and brand, and is the most expensive piece of equipment needed for implant surgery.

2. Digital intraoral scanner.

This type of scanner is handheld and is needed to map out a patient’s teeth, gums, and mouth. It can cost between $10,000 and $30,000.

3. Implant surgical unit

This machine takes digital impressions, and will set the dentist back between. A single patient unit can cost between $3,000 and $6,000.

4. Extra Insurance.

Implant procedures are considered high risk and most insurance companies charge a higher premium for this service. Dentists can expect greater procedure and malpractice insurance costs.

5. A marketing firm.

The market for implant procedures is extremely competitive, and because implant procedures are so expensive, prospective patients most likely will shop around and choose a specific dentist based on cost and reputation. Dentists may want to choose a marketing firm that actually specializes in promoting dental practices to reach the desired target market.

Is Additional Training Required?

Depending on the state, many dentists may need to brush up on fields such as bone grafting in order to place the implants directly into the bone underneath gums, sinus augmentation, and prosthetic planning. In many implant procedures, dentists may be forced to refer their patients to oral and maxillofacial specialists for tooth extraction before implants are put into patients’ mouths

While general dentistry schools provide basic training on implant surgery, dentists most likely need post-graduate training in implantology, soft tissue management, and bone grafting. Every state has different requirements for implants, but some require dentists to be credentialed in implant surgery from the American Academy of Implant Dentistry and the American Board of Oral Implantology/Implant Dentistry.

All-in-all, the post-graduate training required to perform implant procedures will require additional costs for the dentist, but amount depends on the specific certification programs courses each dentist chooses. In addition to the post-graduate training required, the dentist will also need to hire and/or train assistants that specialize in prosthodontics and implantology, which will represent additional costs.

Should Dentists Offer Payment Plans?

Dental implants can cost between $3,000 and $6,000 per tooth while the price for full arch (all upper or lower teeth) can vary. Many dental insurance plans consider implants to be cosmetic and don’t cover them at all, and those that do typically don’t offer much in the way of co-pays. For dentists that want to offer a lucrative implant practice, these prohibitive costs may force them to offer financing to individual patients.

Many dentists choose to partner with popular financing plans or even offer their own, in-house financing plan. Others may direct patients to apply for dental credit cards (yes, they exist) that covers the cost of popular dental procedures often not covered by insurance and offer 0% APR in the first year after getting approved.

However, partnering with outside financing providers may eat into the revenue of the implant procedure, thus costing the dentist money and force the dentist to charge a premium for financing.

What Financing Options Are Available?

SBA loans can be very good financing options for dentists seeking to upgrade their practices. Separate from that, there are also health practitioner loans part of loan programs specifically for the healthcare industry. These programs offer funding to medical professionals that may not have high credit scores, or that might be so new that they wouldn’t be considered by many funding companies. In short, financing for dentists exists, and dentists may want to consider using them to upgrade their practices.

Dentists looking to break into the implant market need to consider what factors are most important to them, whether it’s speed of funding, options that offer flexible spending or ones that offer the lowest cost of capital. 

1. SBA 7(a) loan

The SBA 7(a) loan is often considered the gold standard of small business loans. The SBA 7(a) loan is not part of health practitioner loans, but they may be very good optiosn for dentists. 7(a) loans typically offer the lowest interest rates among lenders since the loan is partially guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. It is a loan that provides a maximum of up to $5 million upfront. The principal plus interest and fees are paid back over an agreed upon term. The interest maxes out at the base rate plus 3% for loans over $350,001.

This type of loan, however, requires a high credit score, has a lower speed of funding than conventional term loans, and usually requires more paperwork.

2. Term Loan

A term loan also provides a lump sum of money upfront, usually ranging between $250,000 and $5 million, but is different than a 7(a) loan. It typically offers a higher interest rate than a 7(a) loan because it’s not backed by the SBA. However, term loan lenders tend to offer more flexible terms than 7(a) loans, have a quicker speed of funding and require a slightly lower credit score.

3. Equipment Financing/Leasing.

If a dental practice just needs machinery to be able to offer implants, then equipment financing or leasing may be a very sensible option for funding. Equipment financing provides a lump sum of capital to outright own expensive machinery or equipment. Much like a term loan, the money is paid back over a pre-agreed term with interest and fees.

The benefits are that even with a lower credit score than a term loan, the borrower doesn’t need to put up collateral because the equipment serves as the collateral. The dentist may be able to take a tax deduction on the full price of the equipment through section 179 of the tax code. Dentists may want to consult with a tax professional, as section 179 can be complex

Equipment leasing may require the borrower to make also allows the dentist to take a tax deduction through section 179, but may require a down payment. The benefit, however, is that by leasing, the dentist can quickly upgrade if the machine becomes outdated in a few years.

4. Healthcare Practitioner Loans

This is not one specific type of loan, rather, this refers to lenders that specialize in lending to the healthcare industry. Healthcare lenders view medical practitioners as lower risk and more lucrative than other types of industries given that healthcare is generally recession proof (there will always be sick people, unfortunately). Healthcare loans, including term loans, often give favorable interest rates to practitioners and may require less-than-stellar credit scores and be willing to provide startup debt capital given that the healthcare industry is less risky than other types of industries.

5. Revenue-Based Financing.

Revenue-based financing may be a good option for established dentists who have an established list of return patients. Revenue-based financing provides a lump sum of capital and instead of demanding static repayments, the finance provider receives a percent of estimated future receivables on a daily, weekly or monthly basis until the principal plus fees are repaid. This is a good option if the dentist wants funds quickly and with little paperwork.

The Time to Offer Implants is Now

As the dental implant market continues its climb toward a $3.2 billion valuation, the window for practices to establish themselves as market leaders is wide open. While the initial investment in cutting-edge technology and specialized training is significant, the long-term return on investment of offering high-margin, full-mouth restorations is undeniable. By leveraging strategic financing options and implementing flexible patient payment plans, dentists can overcome the barriers to entry and transform their practice into a modern, highly profitable surgical hub. Transitioning into implantology isn’t just an upgrade—it’s a future-proofing strategy for the evolving landscape of oral healthcare.