Clear aligners are transparent, removable trays that move teeth gradually. You change to the next tray every couple of weeks, and each one nudges things a little further along.
They come out to eat and to brush, which makes them far kinder to your gums than fixed braces, and they are close to invisible in ordinary conversation — the reason most adults choose them.
They are not right for every case. Severe crowding and complex bite problems still do better with braces or a referral to an orthodontist, and we'll tell you which camp you're in at the consultation rather than after you've committed.
What it costs
$3,000–$6,000 for most adult cases
| Comprehensive treatment — the usual adult case | $3,000–$6,000 |
|---|---|
| Limited treatment — mild crowding, front teeth only | $1,800–$3,500 |
| Retainers once you finish | $100–$500 |
| What orthodontic insurance typically contributes | $1,000–$3,000 lifetime |
These are typical United States ranges for 2026, gathered from published fee surveys — they are not a quote from this practice. What you actually pay depends on your own mouth and your own plan. You get that figure in writing after an exam, before anything is scheduled.
What moves the number:
- How far the teeth actually have to travel. A little crowding at the front is a different job from correcting a bite, and it is priced like one.
- Whether your teeth need attachments — small tooth-coloured bumps the trays grip — or a fraction of a millimetre of enamel filed between crowded teeth to make room.
- Whether you wear them. Aligners work about twenty-two hours a day, and cases that drift off track need extra refinement trays.
- Orthodontic coverage is usually a separate lifetime pot from your annual maximum, so using it here does not eat the benefit you need for cleanings and fillings.
How long it takes
Six to eighteen months for most adults, and simple front-tooth cases can finish inside six.
You move to a new tray every one to two weeks, each one shifting the teeth a fraction of a millimetre further. You come in every six to ten weeks so we can check the teeth are tracking where the plan says they should be. That check is the whole difference between supervised treatment and posting impressions to a company in another state.
What it is like to actually wear them
Twenty-two hours a day. Out to eat, out to drink anything that is not water, brush, back in. That rhythm is the part people underestimate, and it is the part that decides whether treatment finishes on time.
Each new tray feels tight for two or three days — pressure rather than pain, and a sign it is working. Your speech will be faintly odd for about a week and then your tongue stops noticing. They are genuinely hard to spot in conversation, which is the reason most adults choose them over brackets.
Aligners, braces, or the mail-order kits
Fixed braces still move teeth in ways aligners cannot, particularly severe rotations and big vertical changes. If your case is one of those we will tell you rather than sell you the thing you came in asking for.
As for the direct-to-consumer kits: the trays themselves are not the problem. The problem is that nobody takes X-rays, nobody checks the health of the bone holding your teeth in, and nobody looks in your mouth between the start and the end. Moving teeth through bone that has untreated gum disease is how people lose teeth they could have kept. What you are paying a practice for is the supervision, not the plastic.
Common questions
How long does treatment take?
Commonly six to eighteen months, depending on how far the teeth need to move.
How many hours a day do I wear them?
Around 22. They come out to eat and clean, and that's it — results depend on it.
Questions about clear aligners?
Call the office and ask. We'd rather talk it through than have you guess from a website.