This page exists for one reason: to put the right questions in your hands before you walk into a consultation. Use the questions live, take notes, and compare answers across practices. There is a free printable PDF version below — print it, bring it, and don't apologize for using it.
✱ Download the checklist as a 2-page PDF at the form below — same content, designed for the clinic, free.
Section A — On the phone before you go in
1. Do you offer a free initial consultation, and what exactly is included? A real consultation includes a CBCT scan, a written treatment plan, and time with the surgeon. A "free consult" that is none of those is a marketing visit. Both can be useful, but only one tells you whether the practice is right for your case.
2. Will the dentist who would actually perform my surgery be in the consult — or am I speaking with a treatment coordinator? Treatment coordinators are sales staff. You're paying for the surgeon's clinical judgment. Insist on at least a portion of the consult being with the surgeon.
3. What does your all-in price cover? Implants, abutments, the provisional, the final prosthesis, follow-up adjustments — the full list, in writing. The number on the billboard is rarely the full case.
4. Which financing partners do you work with, and is there a different price if I pay cash up front? A cash discount tells you the true price. A practice that won't disclose financing markup has told you something important.
Section B — During your in-person consult
5. How many full-arch cases have you personally completed in the past 12 months? Volume matters for complex surgery. Fewer than ~20 cases per year is a signal to keep asking. (See: how to spot a strong full-arch case on a dentist's profile.)
6. May I see before-and-after photos of your own patients? Not stock images. Not the implant manufacturer's marketing. Their work.
7. Which implant system do you use and why? If they use a proprietary or boutique system, ask whether another dentist nationally can service it if you move. The major systems — Straumann, Nobel Biocare, Zimvie, Neodent — are serviceable nationwide.
8. If a screw, abutment, or prosthesis fails 2–5 years out, who covers the repair? Hardware does fail. A reputable practice has a written protocol; vague answers here are expensive five years from now.
9. Are extractions, bone grafting, and the final prosthesis handled in this practice? Either is fine — the patient just needs to know up-front whether multi-provider coordination is part of the timeline.
Section C — Before you sign anything
10. Can I take home a fully itemized treatment plan and quote in writing? If they won't put it in writing, they don't want you comparing.
11. What's the warranty — on the implants AND on the prosthesis? Duration, what's covered, what voids it. Implants and the prosthetic teeth are warranted separately.
12. How long is this quote valid for, and is the deposit refundable? A reputable practice honors a quote for at least 30 days. Same-day signing pressure is a flag.
Use this checklist three times
Once on the phone before you book. Once during the consult itself. Once in your car before you sign anything. The questions don't change — the answers do, and that's how you tell who you're really dealing with.