How we get our numbers

Updated October 12, 2026.

Every price on BracesPrices comes from a published source, and every estimate shows how it was made. This page lists the sources and explains the calculator's model, including its limits.

Where the numbers come from

How the calculator estimates your price

1. Range by type. We use the CareCredit ranges because they are the only published ranges we have found that cover all four treatment types from one source. CareCredit's newer 2024 figures are single averages rather than ranges, so we show them beside the ranges instead of using them in the model. The ranges are: metal $3,000 to $7,000, ceramic $4,000 to $8,000, clear aligners $4,000 to $7,000, lingual $8,000 to $10,000.
2. State adjustment. We multiply the range by your state's price level divided by 100. A state at 108.8 (New Jersey) is 8.8% above the national range; 87.0 (Mississippi) is 13% below.
3. Position in the range. Mild cases sit 25% of the way up the range, moderate 50%, complex 80%. Adults add 10 points, because adult treatment usually costs slightly more (Healthline). These positions and the size of the adult shift are our assumptions, not figures from a source. The position is kept between 5% and 95%, so an estimate never sits on the very edge of the range.
4. Your estimate is the low end of your state's range plus that position times the width of the range, rounded to the nearest $50.
5. Insurance. The plan pays your coverage percentage (0 to 100%) of the rounded estimate, rounded to the nearest $50 and never more than your lifetime maximum. What you pay is the estimate minus that amount, so the figures always add up.
6. Payments. Standard loan math on what you pay minus the down payment: payment = amount × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−months), where r is the APR divided by 12. At 0% interest it is simply the amount divided by the number of months.

What the model can't capture

• Prices within a state: cities usually cost more than rural areas.
• Other ways of adjusting for location. Other publishers' state estimates, such as Pearl's, also adjust national fee data for local living costs but in their own way, so their state rankings can differ from ours.
• Price changes since the source data was collected. The type ranges date from 2022.
• Your orthodontist's own pricing, what a quote includes, and your specific case.

Treat every estimate as a starting point for comparing quotes, not a price.

How we keep it current

We review sources at least twice a year and update the date at the top of each page. Reader-reported prices from share what you paid will be published as averages once each group has enough answers. Spotted an error? Tell us. Our editorial policy explains how we choose sources and handle corrections.

Changes and corrections

• October 13, 2026: Checked every claim on our guides against a source. Removed or reworded claims we couldn't support: that insurance is most likely to cover metal braces in full, that lingual braces affect speech, that few orthodontists offer lingual braces, that Medicaid usually uses a scoring system, and that most children get metal braces.
• October 13, 2026: Expanded every guide using patient information from the American Association of Orthodontists and Cleveland Clinic, the CFPB's 2023 report on medical credit cards, and IRS Publication 969 (2025 FSA limits).
• October 12, 2026: Added CareCredit's 2024 average costs by treatment type and retainer, shown next to the 2022 ranges.
• October 12, 2026: Added orthodontic insurance coverage data (OrthoFi, 2021, cited by Align Technology) and new pages on Invisalign cost, monthly cost and Medicaid coverage.
• October 12, 2026: Corrected the Delta Dental of Virginia insurance example: it is a $6,000 treatment, not $5,000, with a $500 first payment and $57.14 a month after that.
• October 12, 2026: Calculator: the estimate, insurance share and amount you pay now always add up; insurance coverage is limited to 0 to 100%.
• October 12, 2026: Clarified that braces count as a dental expense for tax purposes when they treat a dental problem (IRS Publication 502).