Bonding Packages
How many teeth to bond, which teeth each package covers, what's included, and how to decide between them.
How Many Teeth Should You Have Bonded?
Smile naturally in a mirror and count the teeth you can see. That's usually the number to bond, so the result is even from one side of your smile to the other, and many people choose six or eight. At St Vincent Smile in Finnieston, Glasgow, bonding is £395 for a single tooth, £1,550 for four, £2,350 for six, £3,150 for eight and £3,950 for ten, with whitening, a review appointment and a final polish included in every package. Dr Umer Hameed confirms the right number at a free consultation.
The Packages
| Teeth | Typically covers | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A single chip, worn edge or small gap | £395 |
| 4 | The four front teeth | £1,550 |
| 6 | The front six, seen when you talk | £2,350 |
| 8 | Out to the first premolars | £3,150 |
| 10 | The full width of a broad smile | £3,950 |
Each package is one price for the number of teeth, shaped together in the same appointment so they match. Every package includes whitening, a review appointment and a final polish. Composite veneers, which cover the whole front of each tooth rather than just the edges, are priced the same way.2 These are guide prices, and your own fee is confirmed in writing before anything starts. The full list is on our fees page.
Which Teeth Each Package Covers
Counting from the middle of your smile outwards, the upper teeth are two central incisors, two lateral incisors, two canines, then the premolars on each side.
- 4 teeth is the two central and two lateral incisors: the four at the front, which carry most chips, small gaps and uneven edges.
- 6 teeth adds the canines, the pointed teeth at the corners. These six are the teeth most people see when you talk and smile.
- 8 teeth runs out to the first premolars, for a fuller, even line in a wider smile.
- 10 teeth reaches the second premolars, every tooth that shows in a broad smile, reshaped together.
Packages are usually for the upper teeth, because they show most when you smile. If your lower teeth bother you too, say so at your consultation and we'll include them in your plan.
Not Sure How Many Teeth?
We'll look at your smile and recommend the right number.
How to Choose
Smile naturally in a mirror and count the teeth you can see. Bonding all the teeth that show gives the most even, balanced result, because every tooth in view is shaped to the same design. If only one or two teeth bother you, a single tooth or the front four may be all you need.
How wide your smile is matters more than anything else. Some people show eight or ten upper teeth in a broad smile, and bonding only the front four would leave an obvious step where the new shape stops. Others show six, with the lip covering the teeth further back, and six is plenty. If you're not sure, send a photo in natural light on WhatsApp, 07761 066850. A dentist will reply with what's possible and a likely price range, usually the same day.
Why Shape Them Together
When teeth are bonded in the same appointment, the shade, shape and shine all match. Doing one or two at a time can leave small differences between them, because composite comes in many shades and translucencies and is layered by hand, and no two sessions are quite identical.
Shaping a set together also lets your dentist work on the smile as a whole: mirroring each tooth against its partner on the other side, keeping the proportions in step with your face and lips, and following the curve of your smile line. That's what makes bonding look like teeth rather than like bonding. It's also why the packages are priced as a set rather than simply multiplying the single-tooth fee.
Before You Bond: Whitening
Composite doesn't whiten, so we whiten first and then match the bonding to your new shade. Whitening is included with every bonding package. It's home whitening with custom trays made from a scan of your teeth, worn for a short time each day over two to three weeks, and checked by your dentist along the way.
We then wait around two weeks for the shade to settle before the bonding appointment, so the colour match is right and the composite bonds well. Most people choose a natural B1 shade, but your bonding can be brighter, or as age-appropriate as you like, depending on the result you're after. Our guide to whitening before bonding explains the timing in more detail.
What's Included
Your consultation with Dr Umer Hameed, who has a special interest in cosmetic dentistry and composite bonding, is free, with a £40 deposit refunded within 7 days of attending. The package then covers photographs and a shade check, home whitening, the bonding itself shaped by hand in layers, a review appointment about two weeks later, a final polish, and your fixed fee in writing.
For larger cases we can also create a digital smile design once your treatment has started, and a trial smile can be placed over your teeth so you see the shape before it's made permanent. Edge bonding usually takes one visit. A full set of composite veneers takes one longer appointment, sometimes two.
Paying for It
Bonding isn't included in the dental plan discount, so members and non-members pay the same package price. Packages of £1,500 or more can be spread through Chrysalis Finance, subject to status: interest free over 6 or 12 months, or over 12 to 60 months at 14.9% APR representative, with a deposit optional. You apply online once your written plan is agreed. Our finance page has the terms and a representative example.
Whatever you choose, the fee in your written plan is the fee you pay. If anything unexpected comes up during treatment, we talk it through with you before doing anything that would change it.
Questions
This guide is general information, not a diagnosis. A dentist needs to examine you to say what is right for your teeth.